The Lacoste crocodile was a nickname before a logo
The crocodile came before the shirt. The American press nicknamed tennis champion Rene Lacoste 'the Crocodile' in 1923, after a bet over a crocodile-skin case and his bite on court. A decade later, in 1933, he put the reptile on a breathable pique polo and changed what athletes wore. The nickname became a logo.