Looking Back at the Best SI Swimsuit Covers of the 2020s to Celebrate the 2025 Issue

The latest group of SI Swimsuit cover models is revealed today. Check out just some of the elite company that they join.

Leyna Bloom was photographed by Yu Tsai in Tampa, Fla. Swimsuit by Gil Rodriguez. Earrings and rings by SOKO. / Gil Rodriguez/Sports Illustrated

The 2020s continue to be an era of empowerment at SI Swimsuit—and the 2025 issue is no exception. Editor in chief MJ Day said it best in her letter for this year’s magazine. “Every single woman in this issue brings with her a why,” she writes. “It’s more than a word. It’s a compass. A unique and powerful reason for being here. And it’s not just about looking beautiful in a swimsuit; it’s about what she represents and the change she’s driving in her own life and in the world around her.”

With its sixth edition of the 2020s, the magazine has remained true to Day’s words, platforming women whose beauty radiates from the inside out. Its four newest cover models—Salma Hayek Pinault, Lauren Chan, Jordan Chiles and Olivia Dunne—prove this once again. As we celebrate the 2025 issue, we’re also looking back at five of our favorite trailblazing cover moments of the 2020s.

2022 Issue: Yumi Nu

Yumi Nu was photographed by James Macari in Montenegro. Swimsuit by Ola Vida. Necklace by Michelle Ross. / James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Nu’s breathtaking shoot in Montenegro ensured her legacy at SI Swimsuit. Photographed by James Macari, the now-28-year-old became the first plus-size Asian model to secure a cover spot with the magazine in 2022.

June 2024 Digital Issue: Alix Earle

Alix Earle was photographed by Yu Tsai in Florida. Swimsuit by Oséree. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Earle became the magazine’s first-ever digital cover model in June of 2024, where she joined Yu Tsai for a two-part shoot in Miami. The New Jersey native returned to the fold in 2025 for her first edition to hit stands.

2023 Issue: Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart was photographed by Ruven Afanador in the Dominican Republic. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

At age 81 at the time of her 2023 shoot in the Dominican Republic, Stewart was (and still is) the oldest model to appear on the cover of SI Swimsuit. Just one year later, she was deemed an SI Swimsuit Legend for the magazine’s 60th anniversary edition.

January 2025 Digital Issue: Brianna LaPaglia

Brianna LaPaglia was photographed by Katherine Gougen at The Austin Estate. Swimsuit by Christopher Esber. / Katherine Gougen/Sports Illustrated

As SI Swimsuit’s first digital cover model of 2025, LaPaglia shared a heartfelt, vulnerable testimony following her public breakup in late 2024. Shot by Katherine Gougen in California, the Massachusetts native made her SI Swimsuit debut this year.

2021 Issue: Leyna Bloom

Leyna Bloom was photographed by Yu Tsai in Tampa, Fla. Swimsuit by House of CB. Earrings by 8 Other Reasons. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Leyna Bloom’s 2021 shoot in Tampa made history with the magazine, as she became the first transgender model to grace its cover. The activist returned to SI Swimsuit for three consecutive years following her debut—most recently shooting in Hollywood, Fla. as part of the 60th anniversary legends feature.

In 2023, Bloom shared a sentiment that still feels as fresh as ever, especially with the arrival of SI Swimsuit’s newest cover models.

“If it’s your moment to shine, even if you got five seconds, take up that space,” Bloom stated. “You don’t know who’s looking at you, who is inspired by you, who is like, ‘I finally found the one that looks like me, that feels like me, that comes from where I come from, and they are doing it.’”

“We have shattered stereotypes. We have embraced diversity. We have championed inclusivity,” Day shared in last year’s issue’s Letter From The Editor. “With each passing year, we have challenged ourselves to push boundaries and redefine what it means to be Sports Illustrated Swimsuit.”

The 2025 SI Swimsuit issue is available online today and in select newsstands May 17.

Buy the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue here.

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