2020 Lower League US Soccer - USL Championship, League 1, League 2, NPSL, etc

[Gothamite]

Which is why I think they were too clever for their own good in making that choice.

 

Set a story in Boston, have a native Bostonian wearing a Yankee cap, and everybody will instantly understand the character.  But a character in Portland, Oregon wearing the cap of a team in Portland, Maine is an inside joke of an inside joke.  Which is why they had to keep explaining why he did it. 

[Gothamite]

Getting back to lower-league soccer, New York City has a new badge in town.  Queensboro FC, David Villa's new second-division club, unveiled their badge today.

 

 

I like it.  Purple is a good color scheme, unique in the city.  The color of the 7 train, emblematic of the borough.  I hope the home shirts are purple, not black.

 

 

And as for the badge, I dig it.  Reclaiming the seventeenth letter of the alphabet from right-wing racists.

 

 

Here's the explainer-speak:

 

Quote

• The centerpiece “Q” symbolizes the borough’s namesake and origin, and is the central icon of the crest – the heart of which stands for the diversity of Queens.
• The shield surrounding the “Q” connotes the ideals of inclusion and protection, and is a reference to royalty and tradition. The top supporting edges of the shield represent the community – the most important part of the club.
• The bold and athletic logotype “Queensboro FC” is a custom typeface called QBFC Plaza, based on historical typography at Queensboro Plaza. 
• The crown above the “Queensboro FC” logotype represents the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge, a designated landmark, and each of the 11 elements of the bridge corresponds to the number of players on a soccer field.
• The color palette of the crest is centered upon one of the most iconic colors of NYC’s subway system – QBFC Purple – shared by the 7 train connecting Queens to Manhattan. Complementary colors include dark and light gray, evoking the urban landscape of New York City. 

 

And I love that they're using the bridge.  

 

 

This is the first professional team to identify with Queens specifically (aside from the very short-lived Queens Kings baseball club, which was always intended to be a one-year identity on the way to the Brooklyn Cyclones).  And I think this is pretty cool.

[mcrosby]

I was brought on to work on the Queensboro brand after they weren't happy with their original designer. It ended up being a terrible process that included surprising me with the fact that they had also hired other designers and then asked me to work with the others designers at the end of it all. The logo they ended up with is essentially what Villas hire (another person from the front office hired me) did with my design. Here's a look at one of hundreds of designs I worked on. The Q/crown/bridge was central to the brand, with the crest as more of a holding body for the Q. The Q was to be an icon that would stand beyond soccer, a la Juventus or any number of designer clothing brands. The bridge/crown and for the 7 train color were all my ideas and I'm sure I'll never get credit for it because the final logo was done by Villa's design hire. 

 

It may seem unprofessional to air this dirty laundry, but this was already one of the most unprofessional projects I've ever worked on thanks to the client, so I'm over it. 

 

Here are some jersey designs I used in presentation, but they didn't pay me for jersey designs and posting them here is the best way for them not to be used without my permission. The sponsor is a placeholder based on ownership, I wasn't privy to any information about possible sponsors so there's no spoiler here. 

[mcrosby]

Here's the Queensboro Bridge, for those that haven't seen it. It's not a suspension bridge as the final logo might have you think. 

[sportsfan7]

 

 

Q is one letter that cannot be co-opted by any group. No worry of associating your brand solely with the Q right now, guys.

[mcrosby]

12 minutes ago, sportsfan7 said:

 

 

Like I said, it was a mess. 

[AstroCree]

On 10/6/2020 at 4:44 PM, Gothamite said:

Reclaiming the seventeenth letter of the alphabet from right-wing racists.

Had you not said this, I would’ve never thought about it. Because of that, I dunno if using “Q” was the best of choice in this environment. Probably should’ve borrowed the wampum, tulip and rose from the borough’s flag. Using elements from the flag was something I had hoped they’d do. Oh well.

I still like the logo. I think using the bridge to also represent a crown is a great touch. 
 

Having a new team represent my home of Queens is very exciting. I hope they find success. 

[MrOrange]

Sorry to hear about how it all went wrong @mcrosby

 

I love the black background version you shared, really cool how you incorporated the bridge as (queen) crown and the purple color for the subway to Queens.

 

Hope your creative talents get appreciated soon by other sports teams (and other clients).

 

2 hours ago, mcrosby said:

 

 

 

[Gothamite]

Might have been a messy and unsatisfying process, but the results are pretty damn good.

[-kj]

Yeah, working with lower-level soccer teams can be a mess.  Working on the Minnesota Stars FC design in 2012 was actually pleasant, as I was working with good people in the tiny front office.  After the new ownership came in, we had a meeting to talk about changes, because the NHL had apparently suggested that the name was close to infringing on the Minnesota North Stars trademark.  After the meeting I started working on some new stuff... and then radio silence.  A few days before the launch of the new identity as Minnesota United FC (a name we discussed during that meeting and all signs were that it wouldn't be used), I was pulled aside at a supporters event and shown the new stuff and got a vague apology-not-apology from the new team president about the ghosting.  (He was thankfully run out of the team before the MLS change.)

[CaliforniaGlowin]

On 10/7/2020 at 6:58 PM, mcrosby said:

I was brought on to work on the Queensboro brand after they weren't happy with their original designer. It ended up being a terrible process that included surprising me with the fact that they had also hired other designers and then asked me to work with the others designers at the end of it all. The logo they ended up with is essentially what Villas hire (another person from the front office hired me) did with my design. Here's a look at one of hundreds of designs I worked on. The Q/crown/bridge was central to the brand, with the crest as more of a holding body for the Q. The Q was to be an icon that would stand beyond soccer, a la Juventus or any number of designer clothing brands. The bridge/crown and for the 7 train color were all my ideas and I'm sure I'll never get credit for it because the final logo was done by Villa's design hire. 

 

It may seem unprofessional to air this dirty laundry, but this was already one of the most unprofessional projects I've ever worked on thanks to the client, so I'm over it. 

 

Here are some jersey designs I used in presentation, but they didn't pay me for jersey designs and posting them here is the best way for them not to be used without my permission. The sponsor is a placeholder based on ownership, I wasn't privy to any information about possible sponsors so there's no spoiler here. 

There's only one perfect sponsor for this team...

 

I like how they reference the 7 train.  But what's with this trend of announcing teams two years ahead?  I can see it if the stadium/arena needs to be built, as with the Trash Pandas, but I doubt that's the case with a minor league soccer team or NWSL. 

[AnPheitseog]

11 minutes ago, CaliforniaGlowin said:

There's only one perfect sponsor for this team...

 

I like how they reference the 7 train.  But what's with this trend of announcing teams two years ahead?  I can see it if the stadium/arena needs to be built, as with the Trash Pandas, but I doubt that's the case with a minor league soccer team or NWSL. 

USL-C requires a 5k seating stadium, and is seeming to start to be enforcing needing a SSS as well. Not as cut and dry as it used to be.

 

EDIT: Add on: USL-C is moving to operate as a true second tier league, rather than the American understanding of a minor league.

[Gothamite]

 

21 hours ago, CaliforniaGlowin said:

I like how they reference the 7 train.  But what's with this trend of announcing teams two years ahead?  I can see it if the stadium/arena needs to be built, as with the Trash Pandas, but I doubt that's the case with a minor league soccer team or NWSL. 

Why not?  They can keep building anticipation, sell some merch and make some bucks. 
 

Besides, soccer clubs usually have a strong community-service component, so I would expect to see community outreach well before they have any players at all. And it’s good to have a badge when you start doing that. 

[Dilbert]

 

On 10/9/2020 at 8:52 PM, CaliforniaGlowin said:

But what's with this trend of announcing teams two years ahead?

To be fair the team was supposed to start next season but they are using covid to wait another year.

[-kj]

It's better to build the foundation rather than just rush to play.  See the difference between Atlanta and Minnesota entering MLS.

[gosioux76]

Didn't see this posted anywhere else, so I'll drop it here. Looks like the Los Angeles NWSL franchise on Wednesday confirmed its name and dropped what appears to be its logo: 

 

This comes from their Twitter header. 

 

[MrOrange]

it's like this inverted triangle (Charlie's Angels say hello ) and the various color bars very much, but I think that's just the placeholder since there was no usual "describe the logo explainer"

 

Would be stoked if it was the real deal though!

 

 

On their shop and social media they do sometime have the name in the inverted triangle, but without the color bars.

 

https://store.weareangelcity.com/

https://www.instagram.com/WEAREANGELCITY/

https://twitter.com/WEAREANGELCITY

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmL3eLNeL2Ux5hh5tUHLzng

[CaliforniaGlowin]

I hope Angel City doesn't change the old rose gold and cream colors. Those were awesome. New logo is cool but colors are faded and boring.

[Gothamite]

So if the Los Angeles NWSL team is “Angel City”, does that mean when NYC finally gets a club we can call them “Gotham City”?

[Dilbert]

27 minutes ago, Gothamite said:

So if the Los Angeles NWSL team is “Angel City”, does that mean when NYC finally gets a club we can call them “Gotham City”?

I assume you're not counting Sky Blue as a NY club then yes. Gotham City can join but only after we get Queen City in Cincinnati.