FinsUp1214

The Salt Lake Buzz MiLB team had to change thier name in 2000 due to a trademark dilution lawsuit from Georgia Tech, whose mascot is also named “Buzz”. I don’t think Smith would test those waters again.

I’m surprised how much “Black Diamonds” has grown on me in the last couple of days. That with an identity based around a retro ski resort/cabin aesthetic could be pretty cool if done right. I’m not saying it’s suddenly my favorite name - I’m still very partial to “Stags” - but it is a name I’ve warmed up to significantly.

I’ve said it before here, but the Broncos’ outgoing uniforms are one of the very few that you can honestly say changed the aesthetics of thier respective sport’s uniforms. Many uniforms at all levels of football were influenced by them. This is not to say they were perfect by any means, but they were iconic and highly influential, and you can trace many elements of modern football aesthetics back to them. I’ll miss them for that, and also miss them a bit for the nostalgia of growing up on the Utah side of Broncos territory and remembering my hometown lighting up when they won back to back in 1997-98. That they still wore the same set all these years after was a little connection to my childhood that I always enjoyed.

I can’t explain why, but there are gulls all over the place along the Wasatch front. It could be both the Great Salt Lake and Utah Lake (along the southern end of the Wasatch) that attracts them, but in any case, they’re very prominent here and not at all random. I see flocks of them on my walk to work every day. In addition to the high population here, there is “The Miracle of the Gulls” in state history where, in 1848, large flocks of gulls swept in and ate crickets who were devouring a large number of pioneer crops along the Salt Lake Valley, saving what crops were left and preserving the pioneers’ food source. That’s more often attributed to the reason the gull is the state bird, but there are plenty gulls here to justify it outright.

Huge fan of Doubleday & Cartwright! They knocked it out of the park with the Bucks and Inter Miami. I’m a little bummed we’re going to be generic “Utah” for a year, but 1) I understand wanting to take time to get it right, and 2) that wait will be worth it if D&C work the same magic they’ve done before.

In Smith’s defense, his taste in logos and typography seems to be much more minimal from what I can gather. The Jazz logo and word marks, as well as a lot of thier CounterPoint streetwear merch series, are more minimal in design. Where Smith goes galaxy brain is in color choices, and if I had any worries whatsoever about the brand, it’d be in the potential for a bad color scheme. In all honesty, I don’t think a potential logo for this team is going to be excessively detailed and certainly not AI-esque. I think - key word, think - Smith will keep the logo(s) more simple than not.

I don’t like any of those at all, but I’m inclined to believe these probably aren’t related to the team. Anything is possible, but Blizzard never seemed like a legitimate option when they’d be the Avalanche’s neighbor. I can’t imagine the Avs or the league signing off on that.

Possibly not, and I totally get any arguments against it. I think if the branding centered on a more general interpretation of “Saints” - i.e: Wings, Halo, etc. - then it could work. I’m thinking similar to Angel City FC, the LA Angels, Minnesota Fighting Saints, St. Paul Saints, that sort of thing. I like the name solely for the potential of that kind of an identity. But they’d have to be careful with it, which in and of itself may be good reason to not go there.

I’ve been seeing “Yeti” get tossed around a bit more and more locally as a popular choice for the name. I’d be curious to see if the Avalanche would have any sort of opposition to that or not, seeing as they used to have the Yeti footprint logo and their first mascot was Howler the Yeti. One part of me thinks that’d get shut down, but another thinks if the Avs willingly dropped the Yeti connection that maybe they’d be fine with it? That’s not necessarily great to hope for “fine with it” if I’m Smith, though. As for my personal take on “Yeti”, it’s not a particular favorite of mine, but I can also see the potential for some strong branding with it. I recall not really liking “Kraken” at all until the branding won me all the way over, to the point where I can’t imagine Seattle being anything else. FWIW, I think “Yeti” could score the Kraken points far more than another floated option, “Swarm,” could. That being said, my five favorites so far would be (no particular order): - Stags - Saints - Pronghorns - Elks - Talons

This, and there’s the fact that Southern Utah (especially St. George and Cedar City in the Southwest corner) is, for now, nestled into Golden Knights territory. I think he may understand that he runs the risk of alienating that part of the state and leaving it for the Golden Knights if he doesn’t make it a team for the whole state. Personally I think Salt Lake would likely roll off the tongue better with most possible names (“Salt Lake Stags” is one of my favorites that I’ve seen or heard so far), but I totally get what Smith would be trying to do if he went “Utah” instead. I haven’t commented on here much lately, but as a Utahn, I’m absolutely thrilled with the news of a team arriving. The last time I ever actively rooted for a particular team was as a kid for the Mighty Ducks some 20+ years ago, so having a team here to root for and follow is going to be a new and fun experience. I also can’t wait for a potential Winter Classic - I always thought I’d have to travel somewhere to experience that, I’d never thought that I just might get to go to one in my own backyard someday. I’m pumped for this!

Nike lineup release: https://www.footyheadlines.com/2024/01/nike-2024-national-team-kits.html —— And Portugal was left out of that article for some reason: https://www.footyheadlines.com/2024/03/portugal-euro-2024-home-away-kits.html

Well, I was very wrong about Canada - pretty much the only thing tying back to 1986 is the wordmark inside the collar. Everything else is quite different:

“Inspired by our past” I’m not very familiar with any particular iconic Canada kits….could they possibly be drawing inspiration from the 1986 World Cup kit? Seems like drawing on thier WC debut would be more fitting for 2026 (40th anniversary AND co-hosting), but with the ‘86 wordmark visible under the inner collar, it seems like that’s where they might be going.

I don’t know why, but I keep finding myself absolutely loving the Belgium Tintin kit. It’s not what I’d ever imagine Belgium wearing and I’m sure it’s going to raise some questions from viewers who aren’t familiar with Tintin, but I really like it as an out-of-the-box way to tie a kit into national culture and history without having to use national colors. I wish they didn’t feel the need to have that white side panel filled in (I feel like it’s only filled in to show off the template’s features, not as a complimentary feature), but otherwise, it’s a really fun kit and one of my favorites of 2024.

I absolutely love what you did with the Orioles’ sleeve patch. Such a clever and creative way to blend the Browns and Orioles together! Well done across the board with these so far!