Before we’ve fully processed everything that unfolded in 2025, Milan is already calling us back. The city is once again preparing to host the Fall/Winter 2026 Men’s collections, with anticipation running especially high this season.
This year marks Ralph Lauren’s highly anticipated return to Milan, after nearly two decades away from the men’s calendar. Zegna is set to return home, while Dolce & Gabbana, DSquared2 and Giorgio Armani anchor the schedule with their signature authority. Armani’s show, in particular, carries added weight – it will be the house’s first menswear showcase since the passing of its founder, Giorgio Armani, in September.
Notably absent this season are Bottega Veneta, Dior, Gucci and also Versace, which is currently in a period of transition without confirmed artistic leadership. Their absence underscores a broader moment of recalibration across luxury menswear.
But before we turn our gaze fully to what’s next, it’s worth revisiting what Milan Fashion Week delivered in 2025.
Giorgio Armani
“Elegance to live in” was how Giorgio Armani described his menswear collection last season – a sentiment that perfectly captured fashion’s prevailing mood. Rejecting rigid dress codes and what the designer has often referred to as “pre-packaged formulas,” the collection embraced personal expression and ease over prescription.
Fluid silhouettes moved effortlessly between tailoring and leisure, borrowing from the relaxed language of pyjamas and sweatpants, yet executed with unmistakable refinement. Blazers and trousers featured utilitarian pockets – a luxurious reinterpretation of cargo dressing – while fabrics remained soft, weightless, and wearable. What stood out most, however, was the singularity of Armani’s vision. This collection felt less archival and more conversational – subtly tuned to a younger generation.
Zegna
At the core of Zegna’s A/W 2025 collection was a celebration of the house’s relationship with wool, particularly Vellus Aureum, the ultra-fine fleece that holds a world record for its lightness.
Under Alessandro Sartori’s creative direction, silhouettes were relaxed and oversized, echoing countryside uniforms while maintaining a deeply Italian sense of sartorial discipline. There was a sense of continuity throughout – garments that felt as though they could be passed down through generations. Highlights included shearling-collar jackets, double-breasted and cocooning, paired with soft tailoring that balanced comfort and craft.
Dolce & Gabbana
For A/W 2025, Dolce & Gabbana transformed their Metropol space into a cinematic spectacle. The runway became a burgundy-hued red carpet, flanked by paparazzi whose flashing cameras framed every model’s entrance. Titled “Paparazzi,” the show leaned unapologetically into glamour and performance.
Tuxedos were reimagined, cinched with cummerbunds and embellished with crystal brooches and jewelled buttons, but the collection was not confined to classic eveningwear. Instead, it oscillated between old-school Hollywood and early-2000s nostalgia. Think faux-fur jackets, slouchy denim, cargo pants, baker-boy caps, and flashes of leopard print and sequins. The result was a contemporary vision of the leading man – confident, slightly excessive, and unmistakably Dolce & Gabbana.
Prada
Prada’s A/W 2025 menswear collection continued the house’s exploration of eclecticism and intuition. Described by Raf Simons as “Unconscious,” the line-up unfolded as a series of instinctive collisions – naïve, romantic elements set against something more raw and primitive.
Floral motifs, hanging charms, pyjama silhouettes, and boyish knits contrasted with tailoring constructed from patch-worked brown leather and raw-cut faux fur layered across sweaters and overcoats. The tension between softness and severity felt deliberate, almost psychological. It was a collection that resisted easy interpretation – less about coherence, more about emotion – reaffirming Prada’s role as fashion’s intellectual provocateur.
Dunhill
British heritage label Dunhill returned to Milan Fashion Week Men’s 2025 for its second showing under creative director Simon Holloway, staging the presentation at the Società del Giardino, a private members’ club housed in an opulent Milanese palazzo.
True to Holloway’s vision, the collection stood apart from trend-driven narratives, focusing on refinement through cut and fabrication. For Fall/Winter 2025, he looked to the English Drape Suit, or London Cut, a 1930s silhouette defined by fluid lines, a softly structured shoulder, and a nipped waist.
Pinstripes and plaids captured the louche elegance of the era, while wide-lapelled camel overcoats, high-waisted trousers and ribbed knits nodded to a bygone era injected with glamour. Eveningwear followed suit, with cocktail tailoring worn alongside velvet slippers. Described by Holloway as the result of “131 years of tailoring finesse”, – it was easy for us to see why.
From Prada’s continued push into emotional, instinct-led dressing to the excitement surrounding Ralph Lauren’s long-awaited return to the Milan runway, Milan Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2026 promises to set the tone for menswear’s next chapter. If 2025 grounded the conversation, this season is poised to move it forward – and we’re eager to see how.
