More Seattle Sounders and Reign Concepts (西雅图的足球!!!)

[vtgco]

The Sounders released their new logo, and it's pretty nice! The real thing is a big improvement on our previous MLS-era logo, but it could use a couple more elements and some minor tweaks IMO. So I did my twist on it, and while I'm at it, I'll post some old Sounders logo & jersey concepts that I've put on my website but haven't posted here before.

They will each be paired with synergistic Reign logos, especially relevant as the upcoming sale of the NWSL team might go to their MLS co-tenants. 

As usual for my Sounders & Reign concepts, all logos will have color variations to show all the color schemes used by each team's alternate jerseys, retro color schemes, and holiday color schemes for July 4th, Pride Month, and Cascadia Day. Also, the numbers of the concepts are in chronological order of when I started making them, not posting order.

 

I'll link to each of the concepts with the icons below as I post them:

       

       

 

 

Outtakes and Extras:

     

 

 

Thanks for checking it out!

[vtgco]

First up, my tweak of the new logo:

 

2023 — Concept 8: 50th Anniversary Brand Tweak

 

The NASL wave and orca, which are included in the IRL brand package as secondary logos only, are now both integrated as elements in the primary logo and wordmark for a more cohesive set.

I also tweak the shades and outlines a bit. Thus we have an element from each decade of the team: ('70s wave, '80s blue Space Needle, '90s orca, '00s color scheme, '10s shield, plus a new '20s Tahoma silhouette)

The Reign also get a sorta matching style wordmark with a raindrop in the R.

 

  

The Sounders home jersey uses a sublimated pattern of the NASL-era waves, ascending northwestward in diagonal hoops. You might have seen this design before in my MLS series, but I've messed with the colors to match.
On the road is an aqua jersey with a hoop inspired by the 1994 home jersey's sleeves.

At home, the Reign boast a barberpole design inspired by their 2015 training top, with logo elements as a pattern.
On the road Reign jersey, I use an ant's-eye view of the famous arches at the team's old neighbor, the Pacific Science Center.

  

 

[vtgco]

Next up is a recreation of my very first logo concept!

 

2016 — Concept 1: Unified Shield

 

I never posted it, but I first created this back in January 2016 when I was in middle school:  Looking back at it, I think all it needed was some cleanup, so I redid it in 2023.

 

As you can see, this concept folds the Sounders brand into the existing Reign branding by using the latter team's shield. (The Reign are unchanged, because why fix what ain't broke?)

The Sounders logo retains the current logo's Space Needle and banner text treatment, while reintroducing the NASL-era waves and ball. The four stars represent our four USL titles ('95, '96, '05, '07).
The Reign are a double-blue team, so to match, the Sounders revert to their blue & teal team colors used in 1983 and 1994–2002.

 

   

I also redid some of my earliest jersey concepts for this set, which I originally made with my crappy Photoshop Elements skills using this Paint template.

 

The Sounders get a gradiented home jersey featuring Tahoma (aka Mt. Rainier) and an wavy away jersey. (See the originals here: Home, Away)

The Reign use a rainy double-blue home jersey, and a take on their 2015 third jersey with logo-inspired patterning for the away. (Original: Home, Away)

 

  

 

Future posts will not keep the Reign logo exactly as-is : P

[VampyrRabbit]

The first concepts are beautiful, the green for the Sounders works wonderfully with the blue and cyan, and the crest for Reign looks great with the incorporation of the space needle summit with the crown, the raindrop and Tahoma.  Great job.

[vtgco]

On 10/2/2023 at 6:46 PM, VampyrRabbit said:

The first concepts are beautiful, the green for the Sounders works wonderfully with the blue and cyan, and the crest for Reign looks great with the incorporation of the space needle summit with the crown, the raindrop and Tahoma.  Great job.

Thanks! You'll be seeing that formula a fair bit for the Reign, but in lots of different styles : P

 

Here's our next concept!

2016–22 — Concept 3: Sound Waves in Motion

 

I originally made this concept in 2016 by combining the existing logo with a then newly-posted concept on Sounder at Heart by Jasmine Woo (who went on to redesign that site's logo!)
Then, in 2022, James Woollard (official stadium announcer for the Sounders) posted my design on Twitter, leading him, Jasmine, and myself to all riff on the design until reaching the Sounders logo you see here.

My original 2016 attempt at a matching Reign logo was not very good (though the mountain idea that started here stuck with me!) So I designed a new one from scratch just recently, with the monarch's face and hair being hidden in mountains, and the crown forming a raincloud. I'm not 100% on it, so any C&C on that would be appreciated.

Both logos can go with or without a banner.

 

   

 

For this concept, both teams get local music-inspired jerseys in the vein of the Sounders' IRL Hendrix kit. I couldn't say if any of the musicians involved would really appreciate this, but I certainly wouldn't be the first to over-commercialize them in this way ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The Sounders get a home kit based on Kurt Cobain's famous sweater from the Smells Like Teen Spirit video, with a cracked background texture like the cover of In Utero. The dead smiley is the jocktag and the neck icon is in the Bodoni font that Nirvana used.

The away kit is a black & white number inspired by the Sub Pop logo.

The Reign wear a home jersey with a wave pattern inspired by the logo for the famous '70s pop-rock band Heart.

 

The pink collage away kit is tribute to the Riot Grrrl movement of punk rock that came from Olympia, WA in the '90s. The neck icon is in Eurostile to match the cover of Sleater-Kinney's Dig Me Out. (I'm not sure if Carrie Brownstein is a Portland fan IRL—I choose to believe that going to a Timbers game in Portlandia was entirely as a satirical character—but I would be stoked to see Sleater-Kinney play a set or do scarves up at a Sounders or Reign game!)

 

  

 

[vtgco]

2017–2019 (updated 2023)
Concept 5 — Classically Cascadian

I think one of the oldest MLS teams and a royalty-themed team could afford to look the part... So here's my attempt at a kinda classy, older-looking concept.

To that end, both teams end up using vintage white.

The Sounders' Space Needle is abstracted and appears in a roundel for this logo I originally made in 2017.
Much like in the concept above, the monarch on this Reign logo, which I made in 2019, is incorporated into mountains, with cresting waves underneath, but it all appears in a much more abstract style.

 

I came up with the "Salish Sea" moniker during the Reign's stint in Tacoma, since I felt the team should still have a location in its name and at the time we were still using "SEA" as our official abbreviation (wish we still would!)

I hadn't finished the wordmarks until recently though; thanks to @VampyrRabbit's recent Sounders concept for reminding me I could use the Market Deco font from the Pike Place Market sign!

 

  

To continue the classic look, we have some fauxback jerseys--the Sounders wear two fauxbacks and the Reign wear one.

At home, the Sounders wear a 1978 fauxback, but with blue shorts and a streamlined take on the checkerboard from the current 2022-23 jersey. On the road, a simple pinstriped 1983 fauxback appears in updated colors. I added in the new carnation logo because it felt like it matched well.

The Reign's home jersey is a fauxback to their inaugural kit, but with a plaid pattern added. For the road, we go with a Gasworks Park-inspired jersey.

 

 

C&C appreciated, as usual.

 

[loneranger158]

Great work as always all around.

[vtgco]

On 10/9/2023 at 8:49 PM, loneranger158 said:

Great work as always all around.

Haha thank you!

 

Next up is another fairly simple (but hopefully classy) design!

 

2016–2023
Concept 2 — Spirit of '83

This concept is based around simplifying the 1983 Sounders logo.
For the Reign, I created a matching crown version with rainclouds instead of waves. I wanted to do this for the Reign because I remember back in our Memorial Stadium days, the team would occasionally have novelty Twitter profile pictures that were Reign versions of retro Seattle logos. They had a Supersonics skyline logo with a soccer ball instead of a basketball, and they had a version of the NASL Sounders wavy wordmark that said "Seattle Reign." I can't find them archived anywhere, but that basic idea inspired this Reign version of the '83 Sounders.

 

Also, I can't decide to use the actual '83 wordmark font (above, Plaza Ultra) or a more modern font (below, Hasthon). Lmk what you prefer.

 

   

Navy blue and pinstripes make the home "Midnight Rain" Sounders jersey into a loose 1983 throwback (with hints of the 2016 "Pacific Blue" alt jersey) to pair with the logo. You might have seen my old version in my earlier Sounders concept thread, but I wasn't happy with it, so I updated it.
The Sounders' change kit shows a Washington State Ferry in the inaugural NASL colors.

A straightforward triangle pattern adorns the home Reign uniform.
On the road, the Reign wear a jersey inspired by the purple skylights of the Seattle Underground.

 

  

[vtgco]

Just a quick couple coming up that are kind of repeats of my main concept. During my MLS and NWSL series, I already posted these logos and jerseys to the boards:

 

 

 

This colorway and these designs are definitely still my favorite Sounders/Reign concepts I've done, and I'd take them over any of the IRL logos, if I don't say so myself.

 

However, a couple of years after I first posted this, the Seattle Storm released their new logo, which coincidentally looks very similar to this style. Now that the Reign are for sale, the other group that's considered a likely contender for ownership is the Storm's Force 10 corporation. Thus, I recolored this concept to reflect a hypothetical Storm takeover of the city's soccer teams:

This is not my first choice of color schemes for any of the teams (you can see my preferred Storm colors in my concept here), but this is just for experimentation's sake, and the three make a surprisingly cohesive group this way IMO! I think it'd be kinda poetic for these organizations to all merge, since "Seattle Storm" was the men's soccer club of the '80s and "Seattle Reign" was the women's basketball club of the '90s.

 

   

 

At home the Sounders wear a 2016 fauxback with the hook S pattern, but with the Storm's double green.

On the road we have a retro Seahawks-inspired silver jersey.

 

The Reign wear a primary uniform with Space Needle side panels based on the current Storm jerseys.

The away jersey is a '90s Sonics-themed yellow jersey. I don't think I'd ever really want to see either team do a Sonics tribute jersey since green and yellow are reminiscent of something a bit... gross... but it can just barely work for the Reign, whose rivals don't wear those colors and whose ABL namesake wore yellow & maroon too.

 

 

[vtgco]

2022
Concept 6.5 — Gem of the Emerald City

Last year, some people told me my main hexagonal concept didn't quite look like an emerald. Some others told me that, after the Dynamo rebrand, another hexagon crest in MLS seemed redundant... So here's a simple reworking of Concept 6 to use a more distinctive gem shape and a Space Needle closer to the 1983 logo. The Reign concept gets minor minor tweaks to match.

 

   

At home, the Sounders sport a tesselated pattern of sparkling gems on a blue-green gradient.
Away, the team wears a loose 2006 throwback, with the center stripes formed by the wake of a ferry. This is an update from a version where I just used normal, non-water stripes.

The Reign get a photograph of the Olympic Mountains over the Sound at home. A simple idea that surprisingly hasn't been used yet in Seattle soccer!
On the road, a vertical stripe alternates between nautical flags spelling out "REIGN" and rainbow colors.The Progress Pride crest appears on this jersey all year, not just June.

 

  

[vtgco]

Yay both teams have clinched!!!!

2022-23
Concept 7 — Forces of Nature

Before the new logo was released IRL, a sizeable faction of Sounders fans wanted to ditch the Space Needle entirely in favor of the orca. I'm glad they didn't do that, but here was my attempt to appease the orca fans while still keeping a secret Space Needle!

 

The orca appears above the team's classic waves in front of the silhouette of Tahoma, and hides an abstract Space Needle on its belly (in the style of the Kraken secondary logo, by Brian Gundell.)
The same Space Needle render appears in the Reign's crown, with the same Tahoma render below the monarch.

 

Here are some sloppy animations I made in Anigen (which seems to have recently rebranded to SVGAnima?)

    

 

Both logos are part of a joint brand system, and so can appear with or without wordmarks. There are also alternate logos you can see below, where the Sounders get a 2009 fauxback logo in this style, and both teams share a Lumen Field Royal Brougham Park logo.

  

 

Sounders fans have occasionally asked for blue-green hoops, so the home jersey is an attempt at that with waves.
The away is based on the 2014 third nicknamed "Nuclear Orca" by fans, but with an added Seattle skyline pattern in diagonal pinstripes.

A 2014 fauxback for the Reign at home, but with rain patterning from the crest.
On the road, the team sports a harbor porpoise-inspired monochrome jersey. (Also I know PTJ wouldn't wear an outfield jersey but she's a marine biologist so I had to! And best of luck to her in Manchester; we'll miss her dearly!)

 

   

 

 

That's all the main joint concepts, folks, but don't worry... there are a couple of outtakes, extras, and individual team concepts I'll post very soon! In the meantime, C&C appreciated!

[vtgco]

Here's a concept I wasn't totally happy with, so I didn't make a Reign partner for it.

2017-2023
Concept 4 — the Jewel of the Sea

As you can see, this is the intermediate stage that eventually led to by flat-styled hexagon crest Concept 6.

 

Just another wavy jersey, and a modification to 2018's Nightfall jersey.

[vtgco]

By the way, here are the iterations that led to all of the logos you've seen:

If any of these stand out to you, feel free to ask, and I'll post a closeup.

 

That's it for Sounders and Reign logos for now! Which one is your favorite?

To finish this series off, I'll be posting two Tacoma minor-league affiliate concepts soon!

[vtgco]

It seems that, unfortunately, the Tacoma Defiance brand is probably not long for this world, but nevertheless here's a concept!

IMO, the IRL Defiance logo has way too much detail in some places (waves, tentacles) and way too little in others (boat, roundel container)... and the composition is just not great. I just attempted to simplify the design and make it cohesive, while also adding a bit of Tacoma soccer history.

I add a ship wheel, cuz why not? The waves and wordmark idea are inspired by the original 1976 Tacoma Tides team of the American Soccer League.

 

The home jersey is dark dark gray (I like gray as a main color for Tacoma, as inspired by this "Grit City Gray" concept by @BagelHK), with a Museum of Glass design.

The away is a 1976 Tides fauxback, with subtle chevron stripes based on the iconic East 21st Street Bridge.

 

Also, here are some versions to match a couple of my Sounders concepts. I think either 6 or 8 would work with the new IRL Sounders logo (especially since I tweaked the hull to match that shield shape!)

 

Kind of a shame that this latest iteration of Tacoma outdoor soccer seems to be totally over (now that the Defiance play in Tukwila again and will play in Renton starting next year...)

I think probably the best thing would be for the Defiance brand to go independent, maybe join USL League 1 or League 2... And I'd be curious if the Stadium Bowl downtown would be viable...?

 

Last up, I'll give you an alternate take on Tacoma!

[vtgco]

Here's the name the Tacoma affiliate should have gone with, IMO:

The Tides name has history from 1976 (in the American Soccer League) and from 2006 to 2011 (in the USL PDL, now USL League 2), making it by far the biggest name in Tacoma outdoor soccer.  The name only died again when the Sounders bought the team and de-branded it "Sounders U23." (This was in the sorta 2008-2013 era where the Sounders seemed to want nothing to do with local soccer history for some dumb reason.) It seems right to restore a legacy brand to the region!

The logo uses a font (Clarendon Wide) that splits the difference between the 1976 and 2007 Tides, and showcases Tahoma over the East 21st Street Bridge and a 1976 Tides-style wave.

The alternate logo is a straight 2007 Tides fauxback logo.
 

At home, the team wears a gray Tacoma Dome triangle-patterned jersey.
On the road, the Tides wear a 2006 fauxback yellow jersey with an East 21st Street Bridge 3/4 profile view.

As with the last alternate logo

 

This logo was designed to pair with either my Concept 3 or the previous IRL Sounders logo. You can see my original attempt below, as well as a way to match the new logo:

[vtgco]

And last up, what the Sounders really should be wearing in 2024... (instead of whatever this sad leak is meant to be...)

1978 fauxback at home. 1982 fauxback on the road. 1994 fauxback third. 'Nuff said.

 

As always, your C&C is greatly appreciated, and thanks for checking out this series that spans my entire concept-creating career! I hope to have the pleasure of seeing you lovely folks again on this thread sometime before the 2024 NWSL season after the Reign sale is finalized.

[VampyrRabbit]

13 hours ago, vtgco said:

And last up, what the Sounders really should be wearing in 2024... (instead of whatever this sad leak is meant to be...)

1978 fauxback at home. 1982 fauxback on the road. 1994 fauxback third. 'Nuff said.

It would be great if Seattle did wear retro shirts for their 50th year, like the home and away, would probably have used the shades of blue and green used on the shirt on the new crest too. Not sure about having two blue shirts though, maybe black would be a better bet for the third.

[vtgco]

21 hours ago, VampyrRabbit said:

It would be great if Seattle did wear retro shirts for their 50th year, like the home and away, would probably have used the shades of blue and green used on the shirt on the new crest too. Not sure about having two blue shirts though, maybe black would be a better bet for the third.

I actually intentionally kept the crest colors, since I figured that'd be appropriate for the first year with a new brand system... (Plus the Timbers have done something similar with their old neon yellow on their throwback jerseys.) But certainly it looks better matching.
Also, here's some more options; a white 1982 throwback, and a black 1997 throwback:

 

 

[vtgco]

I just started taking intro level Mandarin, and the class gave an assignment to draw posters for upcoming sporting events ( 这个星期有什么比赛? ) Basically the perfect assignment for me, haha! So I took the opportunity to create some Mandarin wordmarks for the Sounders and Reign.

 

 

 

 

 

西雅图 = xīyătú = Seattle (it literally translates to "western elegant picture" which is perfect IMO!)

海湾者 = hăiwān zhĕ = [bay/gulf/body of water] people ≈ Sounders. This translation comes straight from Wikipedia.

EDIT: 御极 = yù jí = ascend to the throne / utmost control ≈ Reign. I really scoured the dictionary to make a pun like "Reign", so this is meant to sound like 雨季 = yǔ jì = rainy season! IMO Wikipedia's translation of 君主 = jūn zhǔ = monarchs seemed kinda underwhelming.

EDIT: For the Reign name, I originally went with 御宝 = yù bǎo = royal treasure, a pun of 暴雨 = bào yŭ = rainstorm and/or 预报 = yù bào = weather forecast... But at the advice of my professor and Reddit users u/ygao70 and u/nails8485, I switched to the aforementioned 御极. 谢谢他们 for their help! You can see my original version here!

I don't know if this pun comes across very well to a Mandarin speaker, so if anyone here knows Mandarin, your advice would be appreciated! 谢谢!

 

Also, my original drawing version that I turned in (since the professor wanted to see our handwriting.) Hopefully my silly little drawings are recognizable!

[vtgco]

OMG ITS HAPPENING!!!! PLZ PLZ PLZ