British American Football League

[Nick in England]

...because their logos suck ass.

Some background - some of these logos have been commented on before (when I can find it I will post a link to the thread) in the Sports Logos forum. These are logos for the 48 teams currently represented in the British American Football League (BAFL) split over three divisions - Premier, League 1 and League 2. In the lower leagues, teams are split into conferences. The league is a volunteer, amateur league but has designs on something much bigger, and the standard of play and presentation has risen sharply in recent years. However, logo design across the board is pretty patchy (and I am not even going to go near uniforms - some are awesome, some are very hideous) and I thought of all the creative cats here who might like an unofficial stab at redesigns. One of the biggest problems, IMO is the blatant theft of other pro sports logos and the shoddy design of others.

I've arranged the logos below into league order. Feel free to C&C the existing logos or suggest alternatives. For Premier League teams only I have given uniform details for those who fancy attempting complete concepts.

BAFL Premier

London Blitz

(think Penn State - White Helmet with logo. Home - Navy jersey, white pants. Away - all white)

Bristol Aztecs

(Black Helmet with Aztec A logo, Black Jersey and Pants. Away/Alt has Orange jersey)

Coventry Jets

(Navy Helmets with jet logo, Light Blue Jersey with Navy Shoulders, Navy Pants. Away = white jersey)

Farnham Knights

(Red Helmets with knight logo, powder blue jerseys with red shoulders, red pants)

Sussex Thunder

(Royal blue helmets - logo depending on how new to the team you are! - white jerseys, royal blue pants)

Other leagues - coming soon

[Nick in England]

update - before I have the time and patience to past links to every other logo, my Flickr set is here: Flickr Set

[9erssteve]

Dude, dont take this the wrong way, I mean this as an encouragement, but have you ever thought of having a stab at any of this stuff yourself?

This has to be the fourth or fifth thread you've started where you propose projects for OTHERS to try without making any contribution yourself! If your so keen to see the logos of the BAFL updated and you're right some of them desperately need updating (I should know I've updated and created a few officially), why not have a go yourself first?

By all means invite others to have a go if they want to, but I think you'll get a much higher participation if you at least attempt the first one. As you said there are many creative people in here and as a result they are all more than capable of coming up with their own ideas and projects, so to be honest I cant help but feel that just throwing ideas out there isn't going to attract the biggest or best response, especially this one as the vast majority of members on the board here, unlike us, are not from the UK and will have never heard of these teams so chances are will have no emotional draw to the project and understandably would rather work on teams they know and care about.

YOU clearly care so give it a go! If you're worried about abilities there are all levels in here and everyone is incredibly supportive, if you need advice there are tons of skilled people in here willing to help everyone and anyone. Trust me you'll find it far more rewarding to create your own ideas than simply comment on the ideas of others. Dont sit on the sidelines, GET INVOLVED!

9erssteve

[mcrosby]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

[The Imperfect]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

[9erssteve]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

Other than being the German name for the air raids that destroyed large parts of London not a whole lot I guess! What do you know about WWII?

mcrosby is right it does seem like a strange choice to me, but then it's always been said that the Blitz brought out the best in the British and Londoners especially during the war and rather than it demoralising them as it was intend it actually drew the nation together and made them more resolved. So perhaps that combined with the obvious football derivative of the word may have been the reasoning behind choosing it as the name for the team I cant honestly say.

9erssteve

[rentz]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blitz

Anyway, I agree with steve. This is honestly not how the concept forum works. You will find people won't jump at the chance to make a logo simply because you want them to. And I recall on one of your other threads when someone did post a concept, you responded rather critically and harshly.

Undoubtably the logos are rather lacking. But a big element of design is inspiration. I rarely choose a team, and come up with a design or logo after. I usually have an idea for a logo first, if that makes sense. So basically what I'm saying is that if I try to make a design only knowing a name and team colors, it will probably be very lacking.

[mcrosby]

While it may not have been an all out blitkrieg, the Germans did use "an overwhelming force" to attempt to break enemy lines, or just break the enemy (in this case an overwhelming air attack).

The point is 'blitzkrieg' was a german tactic and they were not quite on the same side as London.

[Nick in England]

Guys - thanks for the comments. I do plan on having a go. It takes me AGES to do this kind of thing as I have no skills or training, and have to go back to basics on everything. Unless I can follow a tutorial, I am toast.

I think it's a shame that the concepts forum can't do both C&C on concepts people provide AND provide a platform for inspiration for others.

Thanks anyway. Post closed. When I have developed my skills enough to be able to start something from scratch I'll post it.

PS - comments in other threads are simply my honest reaction to designs. Harsh or not, if you post a concept here, you should expect feedback. I care about logos and what they look like - and even though I have never been able to produce something myself, doesn't mean I don't get a vote.

[Davidson]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

Other than being the German name for the air raids that destroyed large parts of London not a whole lot I guess! What do you know about WWII?

mcrosby is right it does seem like a strange choice to me, but then it's always been said that the Blitz brought out the best in the British and Londoners especially during the war and rather than it demoralising them as it was intend it actually drew the nation together and made them more resolved. So perhaps that combined with the obvious football derivative of the word may have been the reasoning behind choosing it as the name for the team I cant honestly say.

9erssteve

'the blitz' and 'blitzkrieg' are two completely different things. the name is just the german word for lightening, so in and of its itself is innocuous, but either way it is a stupid name.

this is indicative of a wider problem tho. what the fk does bristol have to do with the aztecs? its not like the uk is bereft of history and unable to come up with interesting local mascots.

when i was younger, i played a rugby (at the time mascots were creeping into the game) for henley hawks (there are no hawks where i grew up) against a team called the exeter chiefs. fair enough i thought, there are ancient tribal traditions that resonate to this day in that part of england. they had a picture if a native american on their jerseys? wtf?

why not start by at least coming up with some sensible names for some of these teams.

there are some great, relevant nicknames for teams in the uk (london harlequins, the gunners, london wasps etc etc.) why not come up with some for these.

at uni i played for the nottingham outlaws which i thought was a decent name for a town associated with robin hood.

[9erssteve]

Guys - thanks for the comments. I do plan on having a go. It takes me AGES to do this kind of thing as I have no skills or training, and have to go back to basics on everything. Unless I can follow a tutorial, I am toast.

I think it's a shame that the concepts forum can't do both C&C on concepts people provide AND provide a platform for inspiration for others.

Thanks anyway. Post closed. When I have developed my skills enough to be able to start something from scratch I'll post it.

PS - comments in other threads are simply my honest reaction to designs. Harsh or not, if you post a concept here, you should expect feedback. I care about logos and what they look like - and even though I have never been able to produce something myself, doesn't mean I don't get a vote.

Glad to hear you're gonna give this one a go, to help save time break the project down into parts begin with, pick a team and then just work on say the primary mark produce that and submit it for feedback rather than work up a whole package in a oner which can take even the most experienced of us a fair amount of time sometimes. You're already streets ahead of some in here if your Bills thread is anything to go by as you clearly know how to do research and appreciate it's importance. If others in here put together similar mood boards before starting their projects then they'd see far better results, so dont go knocking yourself too hard you're not totally without skills!

I never said that the concepts forum could not do both, one I dont believe that you only have to look at the number of competition threads to know ideas set by others can be incredibly popular, and secondly I've been here less than a year and have no authority to make such a statement. All I said was that if you wanted others to do work on a project that interests you the best way to achieve that is to join in and I stand by that.

I think your lack of participation may be why people felt some of your criticism was slightly harsh, I mean there you were passing judgement on someone who'd put in work on a project you'd set but not submitted anything to yourself. Can you see how that might seem a little unfair? Where as if you'd also submitted something and your work was also there for people to view and comment on it levels the playing field as it were. Yes everyone's entitled to their opinion but l think people have more respect for opinions when the person giving them has submitted work of their own regardless of quality, it's give and take, if a user can show they can take criticism well, then other people are more likely to listen to the criticism and advice that person gives, it's a two way street but right now the traffics only going one way. Again I'm not trying to have a go, just encourage you to dive right in a get fully involved instead of just sitting on the sides dipping a toe in the water. You clearly do care about sports logos and a lot of what you said was valid and right but if you only ever do one thing in this forum people will start to filter you out, and that's not because all you do is voice opinions, there is the other end of the spectrum too, there are those who only want praise, they post a concept dont listen to feedback and never offer any to others and I filter them out too. It would be a shame for that to happen to you as you clearly have a real love of the subject and have insight and opinions to share.

So come on roll up those sleeves, pick a team and get stuck in and I look forward to seeing the results!

9erssteve

[9erssteve]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

Other than being the German name for the air raids that destroyed large parts of London not a whole lot I guess! What do you know about WWII?

mcrosby is right it does seem like a strange choice to me, but then it's always been said that the Blitz brought out the best in the British and Londoners especially during the war and rather than it demoralising them as it was intend it actually drew the nation together and made them more resolved. So perhaps that combined with the obvious football derivative of the word may have been the reasoning behind choosing it as the name for the team I cant honestly say.

9erssteve

'the blitz' and 'blitzkrieg' are two completely different things. the name is just the german word for lightening, so in and of its itself is innocuous, but either way it is a stupid name.

this is indicative of a wider problem tho. what the fk does bristol have to do with the aztecs? its not like the uk is bereft of history and unable to come up with interesting local mascots.

when i was younger, i played a rugby (at the time mascots were creeping into the game) for henley hawks (there are no hawks where i grew up) against a team called the exeter chiefs. fair enough i thought, there are ancient tribal traditions that resonate to this day in that part of england. they had a picture if a native american on their jerseys? wtf?

why not start by at least coming up with some sensible names for some of these teams.

there are some great, relevant nicknames for teams in the uk (london harlequins, the gunners, london wasps etc etc.) why not come up with some for these.

at uni i played for the nottingham outlaws which i thought was a decent name for a town associated with robin hood.

Isn't Harlequin a french word? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlequin

I was alway under the impression that the London Harlequins got their name from the fact they combined the four jerseys of the original teams that merged to create the new club and as a result of their quartered up patchwork looking uniforms they took on their new nickname as it look reminiscent of a Harlequins diamond patchwork costume? Could be wrong not a big rugby fan but that was the legend I'd heard.

I do agree that team names in this country often have little to no relevance with the general locale of the team and that's often a real shame as many areas have a history and heritage worth celebrating.

9erssteve

[Davidson]

I have to agree with 9erssteve.

But I must add one thing...

The London Blitz? This just doesn't seem right, what with the Blitzkreig being so related to the destruction of London, just a thought.

Wait, do you know anything about WWII? WTF does blitzkreig have to do with London?

Other than being the German name for the air raids that destroyed large parts of London not a whole lot I guess! What do you know about WWII?

mcrosby is right it does seem like a strange choice to me, but then it's always been said that the Blitz brought out the best in the British and Londoners especially during the war and rather than it demoralising them as it was intend it actually drew the nation together and made them more resolved. So perhaps that combined with the obvious football derivative of the word may have been the reasoning behind choosing it as the name for the team I cant honestly say.

9erssteve

'the blitz' and 'blitzkrieg' are two completely different things. the name is just the german word for lightening, so in and of its itself is innocuous, but either way it is a stupid name.

this is indicative of a wider problem tho. what the fk does bristol have to do with the aztecs? its not like the uk is bereft of history and unable to come up with interesting local mascots.

when i was younger, i played a rugby (at the time mascots were creeping into the game) for henley hawks (there are no hawks where i grew up) against a team called the exeter chiefs. fair enough i thought, there are ancient tribal traditions that resonate to this day in that part of england. they had a picture if a native american on their jerseys? wtf?

why not start by at least coming up with some sensible names for some of these teams.

there are some great, relevant nicknames for teams in the uk (london harlequins, the gunners, london wasps etc etc.) why not come up with some for these.

at uni i played for the nottingham outlaws which i thought was a decent name for a town associated with robin hood.

Isn't Harlequin a french word? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlequin

I was alway under the impression that the London Harlequins got their name from the fact they combined the four jerseys of the original teams that merged to create the new club and as a result of their quartered up patchwork looking uniforms they took on their new nickname as it look reminiscent of a Harlequins diamond patchwork costume? Could be wrong not a big rugby fan but that was the legend I'd heard.

I do agree that team names in this country often have little to no relevance with the general locale of the team and that's often a real shame as many areas have a history and heritage worth celebrating.

9erssteve

yeah, its a french word. the origin and etymology of which doesnt really make any difference does it? its a word adopted into english well before the formation of the club. well the team formed out of hampstead rugby club originally, the name is derived from the strip, yes. my point being that they arent the hampstead cougars or something similarly inappropriate.

[9erssteve]

yeah, its a french word. the origin and etymology of which doesnt really make any difference does it? its a word adopted into english well before the formation of the club. well the team formed out of hampstead rugby club originally, the name is derived from the strip, yes. my point being that they arent the hampstead cougars or something similarly inappropriate.

Cant say as I'm overly familiar with Hampstead as a whole but I dont ever remember it being a world famous hotbed of medieval "jestering'' but you're right the word was commonly accepted hundreds of years before they were founded so yes i'll accept it's not as inappropriate as others.

I think the trap that a great many teams fall into, especially British american football clubs is that they pick names people would expect to hear from an American team. Now while I can understand why some might choose to do it, it automatically sets them apart from native sports and gives the casual observer who may never have heard of them a clue as to the type of sport they play, it does at the same time totally disregard the local area from which they are trying to attract fans and players. It's kind of a double edge sword if you will, acknowledge your local heritage or differentiate your sport from other more "local" or rather native sports.

Up here that tide has been slowly changing, we have a host of newer clubs starting to acknowledge their roots, the Highland Wildcats (yes we do still have a few left) the Stirling Clansmen who train within sight of the Wallace Monument and I believe there is a new team who were just formed in the past few months that will be called the Carlisle Border Reivers. So it does happen but you're right all to often names have little to no bearing on the location of the team, but then that's not really exclusive to British teams is it? How many Bengal tigers ever roamed the wilds of Cincinnati?

[Davidson]

yeah, its a french word. the origin and etymology of which doesnt really make any difference does it? its a word adopted into english well before the formation of the club. well the team formed out of hampstead rugby club originally, the name is derived from the strip, yes. my point being that they arent the hampstead cougars or something similarly inappropriate.

Cant say as I'm overly familiar with Hampstead as a whole but I dont ever remember it being a world famous hotbed of medieval "jestering'' but you're right the word was commonly accepted hundreds of years before they were founded so yes i'll accept it's not as inappropriate as others.

I think the trap that a great many teams fall into, especially British american football clubs is that they pick names people would expect to hear from an American team. Now while I can understand why some might choose to do it, it automatically sets them apart from native sports and gives the casual observer who may never have heard of them a clue as to the type of sport they play, it does at the same time totally disregard the local area from which they are trying to attract fans and players. It's kind of a double edge sword if you will, acknowledge your local heritage or differentiate your sport from other more "local" or rather native sports.

Up here that tide has been slowly changing, we have a host of newer clubs starting to acknowledge their roots, the Highland Wildcats (yes we do still have a few left) the Stirling Clansmen who train within sight of the Wallace Monument and I believe there is a new team who were just formed in the past few months that will be called the Carlisle Border Reivers. So it does happen but you're right all to often names have little to no bearing on the location of the team, but then that's not really exclusive to British teams is it? How many Bengal tigers ever roamed the wilds of Cincinnati?

well actually there is an annual hamstead jester festival, but i take your point. my issue isnt that a place should necessarily be synonymous with its mascot name. the fact that the root of the word is french is no more to the point than that the detroit lions name has greek etymology. both the word and concept predate the team. its the anachronism of the idea of a bristol aztec that i find particularly jarring.

anyway, whatever, quins may not be the best example. but the reivers, claymors, ospreys etc are far better suited names. and no, i certainly wouldnt claim it was a uniquely british phenomena, its just disappointing to see towns with rich histories debase their roots in an attempt to sound americany.

two of the worst examples that have just spring to mind. the keighly cougars and the halifax blue sox of rugby league. madness.

few better examples that i do like from around sport: the nsw warratahs, the act brumbies, the south sydney rabbitohs etc.

[Discogod]

That's why I love the name London Blitz. It ties in historically with the surrounding area. Take Birmingham - the city and surrounding area are famous for so much - it has a rich motoring heritage (until the last few years), it's the birthplace of heavy metal music, there's a lot of gun crime - I'm sure something could be gotten from those few ideas (if only the Birmingham Bullets were still around, what an eerily presciant name).

Too many teams playing "niche" sports over here (which is pretty much anything American) seem only too happy to either take an existing logo and recolour it or just use some crappy bit of clip art. My university teams were called the Hurricanes, and just used the Carolina Hurricanes logo with the red swapped for green. The name didn't fit at all, other than being alliterative. I even came up with a few concepts with names taken from local history (the area had a large deer & stag population, the de Havilland Comet was built there), but I was told that no one really cared about the team identities. That's an all too common excuse in the UK.

[Davidson]

not sure my initial impressions of birmingham are of guncrime. i lived in radford, nottingham, the gun crime capital of britain, and i only heard about 10 shots in 3 years. its not exactly la.

and im not sure the blitz has all that positive connotations in london. it would be like naming a team the oklahoma bombers.

[Nick in England]

I promise I will get a concept done soon (see also my previous attempts at Bills concepts)...

But - on the name debate - I like the dual purpose that Blitz serves. It takes a football word and a relevant London historical point and mashes them together to make a team name.

The best London football team ever was the London Ravens.

As for Birmingham Bulls - I like it. Right in the middle of Birmingham is the Bullring shopping centre, and a giant Bull sculpture.

It's teams like Berkshire Renegades that leave me scratching my head. But on the whole I think the majority of teams have a suitable nickname it's their logos that so often suck.

BTW - Bristol Aztecs - it's historical I believe. I think their first homeground was near Aztec Roundabout in Bristol.......

[Discogod]

I always thought "Birmingham Sixers" would be a good name, but then again I'm a sick bastard.