Probably a dumb question, but...

[655321]

Why exactly do teams like the Steelers and Lakers, etc, call that yellow-looking uniform color gold when it's clearly, obviously, plain as day yellow?

I mean, if I had a Lakers coloring book, I'd color their jersey with the yellow Crayola crayon, not the gold crayon. The gold crayon would be reserved for the 49ers, Notre Dame, the Saints, etc. I know those in Nike uniform speak would be considered Vegas gold, but they should just be gold and the gold should just be yellow. I'm thinking of running for president with that as my number one issue.

Is this just a case of the teams thinking yellow sounds a little wussy (or worse yet, gay, given how homophobic sports in America is) so they call it gold?

I'm curious.

Thanks in advance.

[Gothamite]

No, the appropriate designation is "gold" or "athletic gold." Metallic golds are "Vegas gold" (such as the new Pens color) or something like that.

I suspect it goes back to the days when textile colors weren't as sophisticated as they are now, and metallic fabrics weren't really feasible. So if a team wanted gold, they would use Athletic Gold.

[ColeJ]

not all gold is vegas gold, though... look at the dallas stars. it's far from yellow. it's almost a paper-bag light brown. but it's not metallic like vegas gold.

i think it is all a macho thing. no one wants to be called a "yellow" team.

[VitaminD]

True enough. Who wants to be yellow?

Growing up, it seemed like the "yellow" teams wore gold, and the "shiny gold" teams wore what was called "old gold", like the Saints and 49ers. Vegas gold seems like a newer way to refer to "old gold", but now teams are throwing in pewter, copper and other semi-precious metals, so I guess all bets are off.

[Bleujayone]

If it isn't a "macho" thing, then can anyone name ANY team that lists their team color as "Yellow" instead of Gold? I can't. Gold seems to cover any shade of yellow outside of metalic Vegas Gold.

[Ben5]

I've never really thought about this, but I know that during a basketball game, the refs always say things like "Gold ball" or whatever instead of "Yellow ball." Htey also say blue instead of purple, and this really has no relevence when talking about the Steelers or Penguins.

[slats7]

Packers are yellow; Steelers are more like mustard.

[Stampman]

Nashville predators are mustard....

I remember hearing a comedian say men shouldn't wear colours you can eat...

[rmered]

Nashville predators are mustard....

I remember hearing a comedian say men shouldn't wear colours you can eat...

Lime, Orange, Mustard.

I'm with him so far.

[jr79]

In Australia we've always called yellow "gold" when its worn in sports, as long as its not like fluorescent yellow.

[slapshot]

I've never really thought about this, but I know that during a basketball game, the refs always say things like "Gold ball" or whatever instead of "Yellow ball." Htey also say blue instead of purple, and this really has no relevence when talking about the Steelers or Penguins.

Referees are instructed to refer to a team's color in one syllable, instead of two. Supposedly makes things efficient.

[Roger Clemente]

Nobody complains that the other official color of the Lakers is Forum Blue, so why bother complaining about gold?

--Roger "Time?" Clemente.

[TruColor]

Nobody complains that the other official color of the Lakers is Forum Blue, so why bother complaining about gold?

OK...that hasn't been true since 1981.

Yes - the "Gold" thing is just something the marketing-types say because it sounds better than Yellow. ANOTHER reason why I care so much more about the actual Pantone colors than what a team decides to call them. Doesn't matter. I could take a team, call their colors "Heliotrope and Puce", and use Pantone colors of 553 C (Dark Green) and 116 C (Yellow), and it really wouldn't matter.

The Penguins' "Vegas Gold" is actually "Pittsburgh Penguins Yellow"...what is termed as "Vegas Gold" is usually a flat, non-metallic Beige. But, it could mean a number of different things too.

However, I think that what constitutes "Gold" vs. "Yellow" also has to do with the amount of Orange in the color. For example, the Arizona Cardinals darkened the color of the bird's beak in the new logo...it is still officially listed as "Arizona Cardinals Yellow", but the team is referring to it as "Gold" now. It is now the same "Gold" as the Packers, Steelers, Redskins, Vikings, Chargers, et al, use.

BTW - "Heliotrope" (Light Purple) and Puce (Dark Red) actually WERE the official school colors of SUNY-Purchase back in the '70s-'80s...

[josh1068]

This just in...Georgia Tech is changing their name to the "Gold Jackets."

[sc49erfan15]

I've never really thought about this, but I know that during a basketball game, the refs always say things like "Gold ball" or whatever instead of "Yellow ball." Htey also say blue instead of purple, and this really has no relevence when talking about the Steelers or Penguins.

Referees are instructed to refer to a team's color in one syllable, instead of two. Supposedly makes things efficient.

Yep, my basketball team wore orange, and they referred to us as "Red."

[Gary]

Or you can be the University of Michigan and have Maize instead of Gold or Yellow

[Auriz Deep]

Yeah, I always use Maize for Athletic Gold... heh...

[cableguy]

Thanks 655321 for bringing up something that has bugged me for years, just never took a minute to bring it up to anyone. I dont think this thread has really accomplished anything but it was fun reading it and knowing I havent been the one to have thought of this.

[cableguy]

Thanks 655321 for bringing up something that has bugged me for years, just never took a minute to bring it up to anyone. I dont think this thread has really accomplished anything but it was fun reading it and knowing I havent been the one to have thought of this.

[rainmaker17]

I like Pepsi better.