Long Live Logos
Last week, Montreal Impact unveiled its newly redesigned logo amidst great fanfare from the club. Over the past year, there have been four new logos or logo rebrands in MLS. Team logos are the most important visual aspect of a club, encapsulating what a club stands for within a simple design. Understandably, these logo launches have stirred quite a bit of controversy, so we thought we’d break down the meaning behind these four new looks from MLS teams.
Montreal Impact (Montreal Club de Foot)
Montreal owner Joey Saputo introduced the club’s rebrand by saying, “to make an impact, we have to retire the Impact.” In essence, that’s the goal of Montreal’s new logo and brand: step outside of the old and carve a new path. The old logo used to be shaped like a shield, featuring an iconic fleur-de-lis at the center of the badge to tie the club to the city’s history and heritage.
The brand new logo features a snowflake at the center of a circular badge with the words “Club de Foot Montreal” wrapping around the edges. According to CEO Kevin Gilmore, the reason for having a snowflake on the badge is that “when we come together – we are all individuals, we are all different and every single one of us is unique – but when we come together, we form that impenetrable wall. Good luck to you defeating our storm, our blizzard.”
Many fans have not taken to this change positively, as reverting to a slight variation of the “Football Club” moniker feels cheap after having one of the most unique names in the league. The Montreal Impact name dates back to 1992, and parting ways with a name that holds a great deal of history for soccer in Quebec will always be a difficult transition. The logo has also been criticized for appearing dull in comparison to the old one.
Houston Dynamo FC
The Houston Dynamo unveiled their new look in November, and as far as rebrands go, they only received mild criticism from fans around the league. According to the Dynamo, their new logo is shaped like a hexagon to “represent strength, stability and unity,” while the interlocking monogram at the center of the logo is meant to pay tribute to Houston’s bayou system.
While Houston’s old logo was nothing extraordinary, this new crest is an attempt to modernize the team’s look. Houston was probably in need of a rebrand, and as far as it goes, it’s good that they stuck with the Dynamo name and tried to make a gritty logo. However, it’s hard not to get a San Francisco Giants vibe from this logo.
Charlotte FC
Prior to launching the team name, many believed Charlotte was bound to choose a creative nickname for the club. In the end, they stuck with Charlotte FC and released a decent-looking logo. According to the club, the four-point crown represents “the four original wards coming together as one to celebrate the royal legacy behind the city’s name.” The crest is also inspired by a classical coin, symbolizing the city’s history minting American legal tender and its recent ascendence as a major financial capital.
St. Louis City SC
St. Louis officially revealed their branding last year ahead of their MLS debut in 2023. While the team name was slightly bland, they chose bright colors for their badge. The logo features the Gateway Arch and horizontal lines to represent the two rivers that define the region: The Mississipi and The Missouri. Having the text run along the side of the crest is also a nice touch, and the colors will surely help this logo stand out. Unfortunately, the team name is generic, and the “SLCSC” initials do not work very well.
