It will the East versus the West, the timeless versus the eclectic. On February 3rd, two metropolises will compete for the title of 53rd Super Bowl Champion. On one end of the field, we have the Los Angeles Rams, back in the Californian city after several years in St. Louis. On the other, we have the New England Patriots who do not seem to get tired of going after a championship win. These two NFL teams do not have much in common, let alone the history of their logos. Let's take a closer look.
The Rams have a rather unique story. The team was created neither in Los Angeles nor in St-Louis, but in Cleveland in 1936. They then moved to Los Angeles in 1946, to St-Louis in 1995, and then they returned to Los Angeles in 2016. Despite all these moves, the Rams are known, depending on the year, for the different shades of their blue, white and yellow uniform, and a helmet with a ram's horn on each side. This will be the fourth time the team has gone to the Super Bowl since their win in 2000.
When the team first moved to Cleveland their logo was a blue and white ram's head looking right. This was the first team to put its logo directly on their helmet. Then, in 1951, the blue was removed leaving only the golden horns. There were some variations thereafter until the move to St-Louis in 1995. To modernize the logo, the team opted for a new image of the ram's head with a mixture of dark blue and gold. However, when the team returned to Los Angeles, management decided to use the same logo, with the exception of removing the walleye and replacing it with white. This differentiated the two periods and made for an odd match to the uniforms. This change also allowed the Rams to differentiate themselves slightly from the other team in Los Angeles, the Chargers.
In a nutshell, as explained by ESPN's Alden Gonzalez, the Los Angeles Rams are a great team, they have a good coach, they are in a great city, but they still do not have the right uniforms. It seems that their current uniform represents the transition from St. Louis to Los Angeles. With the exception of a few times this year, when the Rams players put on their bright blue and yellow yesteryear uniform, few people were convinced that the mix of gold, white and different tones of blue looked good together, especially when they played outside. The reaction was weaker than the soccer fans from Cardiff City, when the uniform of the Blue Birds changed from blue to red. Rams fans were particularly upset during a game in Dallas when the blue and white helmet did not match the blue and gold jersey. In partnership with Nike, it is expected that the team will completely overhaul their uniform in the near future. So, what mix of colors will be used in the Super Bowl LIII? We shall see!
Who, in 2019, does not know the New England Patriots and their star quarterback, Tom Brady? The Boston team has won several titles in recent years (5 Super Bowl wins out of 10 games), in addition to having shattered several records. Founded in 1959, the team began their career with some hardships, experiencing several years of misery like not having there own stadium. Then, under the direction of coach Belichick, the team became very successful. Will they manage to win the Super Bowl again this year?
The first Patriots’ logo was a simple blue three-cornered hat, which was not used for very long. In 1961, the hat was replaced by the drawing of a soldier wearing the American revolutionaries colours in a ready-to snap-the-ball football stance. The man in question was even nicknamed "Pat Patriot". The team's uniform at that time was predominantly red which is strange as red is associated with the English! The patriot was the team’s image until 1993 when the current logo took its place and the Boston band got a new owner. The image is much simpler than the old one. The new logo is composed of a face in different tones of gray, wearing a blue and red hat with a white star. This is reminiscent of the United States flag, which is more American than the red uniform! Although the red-white-and-blue combination is the most worn by the teams of a national football team (Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, New York Giants), the New England Patriots' uniform, as well as its logo, seems to be timeless.
In conclusion, you can certainly get inspiration from these logo change stories to create your own. It is very important to give a soul to your sports logo. Look to honour the fans and the city your team represents. Then it will be easier to create powerful links between your players and their supporters. Does your region have a specific emblem or host special events?
We will let you think about it. Feel free to experiment with Free Logo Design.
Until then, we hope you have a great Super Bowl LIII! May the best team win!