Stoppage Time Special: Crests & Identity

Check out this Stoppage Time Special from Ep. 18: What Makes a Good Soccer Crest?

What's the difference between a forgettable logo and an iconic football crest that fans proudly tattoo on their bodies? Our latest Stoppage Time segment dives deep into the art and science behind the badges that represent the world's most beloved clubs.

A truly great crest tells a compelling story that resonates with supporters on a visceral level. It's not just about aesthetics – though shapes, colors, and symbols all play crucial roles. The most powerful badges serve as visual ambassadors for a club's mission and values while simultaneously celebrating the unique character of their local community.

We explore how traditional shield designs pay homage to medieval heraldry while modern circular badges create a sense of unity. The psychology behind color choices reveals fascinating insights: reds and oranges convey aggression and passion, blues represent loyalty, greens connect to nature, and occasionally, a club like Inter Miami boldly embraces pink to establish a distinctive identity. From Chelsea's lion to Barcelona's bull, symbolic elements enrich each crest with deeper meaning, often drawing from regional folklore or landmarks that ground the club in its hometown.

This segment sets the stage for the full exploration of iconic crests from Europe's top five leagues in Ep. 18. Whether you're a design enthusiast, football history buff, or simply curious about the visual identities that inspire such passionate devotion, you'll gain a fresh appreciation for the badges that transform sporting organizations into beloved cultural institutions. Subscribe now and join our journey through football's most meaningful symbols!

Want to hear more? Listen to the full conversation here: https://www.pitchtopro.com/episodes/what-makes-a-good-soccer-crest/

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to the Stoppage Time edition of the
Pitch to Pro podcast.
This is a highlight reel ofsome of the best moments from
the show so far, and every otherweek we will be bringing you a
special five to seven minutesegment featuring the best
stories, tales and moments ofthe podcast.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
One of the most important things about the crest
yes, design is important, someof the symbols are important
colors but really what peoplewill tell you, and I think can
align to and agree with, is itneeds to tell a story.
You need to be able to connectwith the crest as a fan and

(00:43):
understand the different piecesand components of it and how it
comes together to tell and painta bigger picture, and so I
think that that is probably, forme, one of the most important
things when we think about whatmakes a good crest.
Secondarily, I think and thesearen't necessarily in any
particular order, by the way,but I think it also really needs

(01:05):
to connect with the club'smission, vision, values.
It needs to be representativeof the club itself, and what
does the club say that it standsfor?
And so when see that crest,they identify it with the club

(01:26):
and it is an ambassador for theclub wherever it is worn or
shown throughout the world, andsometimes you know that's,
that's what's seen.
In and of itself, on its own,uh, on different pieces of
merchandise or or print, orwhatever the case may be, it
becomes iconic and that's thething that the club becomes

(01:47):
known for, and so it reallyneeds to be representative of
what the club stands for, and soI think that again, it needs to
be able to paint a picture,tell the story and connect back
to those mission, vision, valuesand those key tenants of the
club.
Just as importantly, it needsto represent the area.
It needs to be relevant to thearea where the club is located.

(02:10):
I think that all of the greatcrests around the world and
different clubs around the worldand different leagues they
connect back to the communityand that has to be, I think, of
any.
That's so important of any goodcrest or badge is it has to be
representative and connected tosome of the pieces that make

(02:33):
that community an area specialand great, and that needs to be
part of the club itself and theethos and its mission vision
value.
So I think if you've gotten themission, the mission, vision
values right and connected tothe area, then that should
hopefully translate over to thebadge as well and the crest, um,
and then all you know,obviously there's the, the

(02:54):
design elements.
Okay, so you have the overalldesign.
What shape is it?
Um, you know?
Is it there?
The circular badge is nowpretty popular, uh, in some
different, different leagues andclubs and teams, traditional
crest or shield shape, againkind of that homage to more
traditional kind of coats ofarms, if you will.

(03:15):
That's where that history comesin, to play a little bit there.
And then, what colors you knowyou have.
Certain colors mean certainthings.
You know your warmer colors,certain things you know, your,
your warmer colors, your reds,your oranges, your yellows, um,
they're a little bit moreadventurous, aggressive, uh,
domineering, um, you knowhopeful a little bit with the

(03:36):
yellows, and you know sunshineand that kind of thing, uh, or
some of your cooler colors, likeblues, are really into loyalty
and greens a lot of timesplaying into nature and those
kinds of themes.
Pink is a little more playful,like Miami and inter-Miami and
what they've done.

(03:57):
I think David Beckham is one ofthe few that could pull off a
pink kit for his club, but theydo it well, they pull it off
nicely.
So anyway, those are the.
And then you get into symbols alittle bit too.
You know different animals havedifferent meaning, whether you
go realistic, animal orsometimes there's folklore in
the area.
You know I can say this, youknow, with example we just

(04:22):
talked about inter Miami, theyhave the, the, the white storks
there that are really popular inSouthern Florida.
So, anyway, you guys get thepicture, symbols, colors, design
, they all kind of come togetherand again tell that story and
make a holistic conversationaround what does the badge and
crest stand for.
So for me those are some of themain elements.

(04:45):
Again, I think you know peoplecan make arguments for others,
but I think that that is prettywell encompassing.
All right, guys, we've talked alittle bit in terms of the
history of good.
You know the crests of theworld and why are they called
crest badges?
How did they come to be?
We also talked about some ofthe key tenants of what makes a
good crest and tenants of whatmakes a good crest, and so what

(05:07):
I think now is a good thing tokind of jump into is what I've
done is I've put together acompilation of the top five
leagues in Europe, from Spain,england, germany, france and
Italy, and what are the mostwell-known clubs within that
league that the badges or thecrests would be well-known, and
let's kind of take a look atthem.
Again, I think there's a ton ofdifferent research out there, a
lot of different resources, andthese are certainly not going

(05:30):
to be all encompassing in termsof a breakdown on what they mean
, but it'll give you guys a goodidea of what kind of goes into
these crests from some of thebiggest clubs in the world clubs

(05:58):
in the world.