New logo: Big Sky Conference

The Big Sky Conference is a conference within US college athletics that includes colleges from the Western part of the United States. On Monday, July 16, it unveiled a new conference logo, created by SME Branding, the agency behind last year's new Miami Marlins identity.

The new logo lets the words "Big Sky" extend over a mountain range. The word "Conference" is written with Dobra Slab Bold. The blue version below is the generic version used by the conference itself, but the colleges have their own versions that use their team colors.
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New logo: Erste Liga (Switzerland)

Erste Liga ("First League") is the somewhat confusing name for what is actually the third and fourth tier in Swiss football, although it is the highest amateur league. It used to be called 1. Liga and consisted of 48 teams in three regional groups. For the 2012/13 season, the Swiss Football Association has introduced a national tier called Erste Liga Promotion above the old one, which has been renamed Erste Liga Classic.

Late last week, the new logos for Erste Liga and its "Promotion" and "classic" divisions where unveiled.
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Istanbul's Olympic logo contest

On May 23, the International Olympic Committee announced which bids for the 2020 Olympics would be allowed to move on the the candidate phase in the selection. Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul were granted candidate city status, while the bids from Baku and Doha were rejected.

The logo Istanbul used for its bid for 2020 Olympics was a bit unconventional as it consisted of a wordmark combined with a pattern, and not the usual badge stacked on top of a wordmark. And last week, on June 13, it became clear that it will not be used in the candidate phase, as Istanbul 2020 launched an online vote where the public can select the logo they want.

Whether this was because they organisers never intended the previous logo to be used in the candidate city phase, or that it was breaching IOC's strict rules on Olympic emblems, isn't clear. Olympic bids typically use the same symbol in both the application and candidate phase. In the event that Istanbul gets to organise the 2020 Olympics, they will have gone through three completely different logos.
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New logo: Swiss Football League

Swiss Football League is the name used by Switzerland's professional football league. Ahead of the 2012–13 season, it highest division has changed its name from Axpo Super League to Raiffeisen Super League after the banking group Raiffeisen replaced energy company Axpo as its name sponsor.

To mark the new name, the league unveiled new logos last week, on June 15, for both the Swiss Football League, Raiffeisen Super League and the second division Challenge League. All three logos are based on the same template, a pentagon with a footballer and a football with the Swiss cross. Compared to some other logos in this genre, they are quite restrained.
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Olympic bid logo: Istanbul 2020

While most Olympic bid logos have been revealed with highly publicised ceremonies, it seems the Istanbul bid logo has somehow managed to slip under the radar. I've held on to the logo above for weeks, not being entirely sure whether it was an official bid logo or not. Bid logos are typically revealed before or directly after the deadline for handing in applications to the IOC, which was February 15. And the logo above could be seen on the covers of all publications related to the Turkish bid, as well as on its website. It sure seems like this one is intended to be the official bid logo.

Disclaimers aside, as a bid logo, this is somewhat unconventional. Bid logos are typically a symbol that fits in a square, stacked on top of a wordmark. This one consists of a modern wordmark and a banner with a traditional Islamic pattern. The banner and wordmark can be used in the horizontal lock-up seen above, but they are also often used separately.

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New logo: USA Basketball

USA Basketball is the governing body for basketball in the United States (duh). Last week, on February 24, it unveiled a new logo to be worn by all teams affiliated with the organization. USA Basketball says its previous logo was introduced in 1989, and a change was certainly overdue.
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Olympic bid logo: Roma 2020

On February 14, Italy's new prime minister Mario Monti called for an end to Rome's bid to host the 2020 Olympics, just one day before the deadline to post applications to the IOC. The European debt crisis lead Monti to replace Silvio Berlusconi in November, and it was probably a factor behind the bid's cancellation as well. The committee did however finish the application before the bid was cancelled, and it also created a bid logo.

The logo features a spiral inspired by the Colosseum. A special graphic was also made for the bid slogan, "A time for history". Alas, it wasn't.
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Olympic bid logo: Doha 2020

Qatar's capital city Doha unveiled the logo for its Olympic bid today, February 10, at a "Family Fun Day" in the city. They also unveiled the bid's official slogan, "Inspiring Change". As one can see, the logo depicts a colourful tree. Purple, the colour of the Qatari flag, is used for the trunk and the wordmark.
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Olympic bid logo: Madrid 2020

Madrid revealed the logo for its bid to host the 2020 Olympics at an event today, January 30. It is credited to a design student named Luis Peiret* and was inspired Puerta de Alcalá, a monument in central Madrid. The squiggle should be read as the letter M, for Madrid, and the number 20.

*It appears Peiret came up with the original idea for the logo, and that it was later altered substantially by an agency called TAPSA.
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Olympic bid logo: Baku 2020

The parade of logos to represent the different bids for the Summer Olympics in 2020 continues. Tokyo was first, and the second bid to reveal its bid logo became Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. This was done at a ceremony on December 21, featuring officials and "a spectacular flash-mob performed by more than 500 Baku youngsters".

At the same time, the bid's slogan, "Together We Can", was unveiled. The logo follows the same sentiment and is inspired by Azerbaijani carpets, where threads come together to form a fabric.
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Olympic bid logo: Tokyo 2020

After the Winter Olympics for 2018 were awarded to PyeongChang in South Korea this summer, the process to select the host for the 2020 Summer Games went into high gear. Six approved bids have been submitted to the International Olympic Committee, and over the coming months they will all reveal their bid logos.

The first one out was Tokyo, who revealed their Applicant City logo yesterday, November 30, at the Tokyo Mode Gakuen design school. It depicts a circular arrangement of cherry blossoms, a flower commonly used as a symbol of Japan and its culture. The five Olympic colors are all represented with the addition of Edo purple, a color traditionally associated with Tokyo.

The logo was selected through a contest won by Ai Shimamine, a fourth year art student.
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Olympic bid emblem: Munich 2018

The host of the 2018 Winter Olympics is announced on July 6. Preparing for this, The Branding Source presents the emblems for the three Olympic bids.

Despite being a major winter sports nation, Germany has only hosted the Winter Olympics once, and that was in 1936. Should Munich win the games, they would be the first nation to host both a Winter and a Summer game, as they hosted the Summer games in 1972.

The logo for Munich's application was unveiled on October 16, 2009, just as the IOC had announced that Munich had officially become an applicant city. The logo was selected through an online poll involving three suggestions. The winning design was a stylised M, which could also be likened to the mountains around the city and the roof of the Olympiapark, which was constructed for the 1972 games.

Applicant logo.

When it was unveiled, the logo included a colourful stylised snowflake. It was replaced by the Olympic rings in June 2010 when the IOC declared Munich an official candidate city.
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Olympic bid emblem: PyeongChang 2018

The host of the 2018 Winter Olympics is announced on July 6. Preparing for this, The Branding Source presents the emblems for the three Olympic bids.

The South Korean region PyeongChang's bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics is its third bid in a row, after very strong bids for the 2010 and 2014 games which they lost narrowly. Should they win, this would be the first Winter Game held in South Korea.

PyeongChang was the last Olympic applicant to reveal its logo, and did so on January 14, 2010. The following explanation of the logo was provided in an official press release:

The logo shows the spectacular winter scenery of PyeongChang with snowing on the mountains. The dynamics of Olympics and the challenge spirit to victory was represented by the gushing curve. It implies the strong will to win the bid with the curve symbolizing a snowboard and slope of winter sports.

The Olympic rings were added after the IOC declared PyeongChang an official candidate city in June 2010.

PyeongChang 2018 (archive)
GamesBids
Around the Rings

Olympic bid emblem: Annecy 2018

The host of the 2018 Winter Olympics is announced on July 6. Preparing for this, The Branding Source presents the emblems for the three Olympic bids.

Several French cities had expressed interest in hosting the 2018 Olympics, and after considering their opinions, the French Olympic Committee (CNOSF) decided that it would bid. In March 2009, it was anounced that Annecy, a city in the Alps with 50,000 inhabitants, would be the French applicant.

The first logo used for Annecy's attempt to host the Olympics was introduced in 2008, before they had even been recognised by their national Olympic committee as an applicant. Annecy is situated by a lake with mountains around it, and the logo featured mountains and a lake.

The first Annecy 2018 logo.

What Annecy 2018 ended up using as their official applicant logo was a more modern version of its first logo. It was unveiled at a ceremony on the morning of December 1, 2009.

"More modern and more dynamic, the new bid logo expresses the international dimension of the bid." - News article form Annecy 2018

The lake and the mountains were updated and five lines were added. Although the typographic treatment of "Annecy 2018" remained in essence, it was polished somewhat, ironing out some curls, giving the entire logo a look more fitting for a modern sports brand.

The offical applicant logo.

The Olympic rings were added after the IOC declared Annecy an official candidate city in June 2010.

Annecy 2018 news article (archive)
Tribune de Genève

New logo: Canadian Olympic Team

Last Monday, June 6, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) unveiled a new Canadian Olympic brand identity. It includes a bunch of new logos that will symbolize things that are both Canadian and Olympic, two values that like no others are universally regonized by graphic symbols, the maple leaf and the five interlocking rings, which form the base of the new design. A team of four designers is credited with creating the new look. They are named Ben Hulse, Greg Durrell, Adam Bognar and Andrew Simpson.

The most prominent of the new logos is the new Olympic team mark, a simple elegant and timeless combination of the maple leaf and the Olympic rings with a red oval border. It also includes the word for team in English and French, but that can be omitted for certain uses, such as on clothing.

The only new logo that doesn't uses a simple unaltered maple leaf is the COC mark, which keeps its maple leaf and Olympic flame combination, but drops the gradient that was in the previous version.

Further logos have been presented that will be used by the Youth Olympic Team for Nanjing 2014, the Pan American Team for Toronto 2015 and The Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame. The will use variations of the team mark.

Another new visual element presented on Monday was the "The Mosaic Maple Leaf Graphic", a pattern created by expanding the trajectory of the lines that make up the maple leaf. The areas between these lines have been filled with different colour tones based on the Olympic rings to create the mosaic.

All the new marks and more examples of the Olympic mosaic after the jump.
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New logo: Mountain West Conference

The Mountain West Conference is the youngest American college athletic conference, covering institutions from the mountain and Western regions. This Monday, June 6, Mountain West revealed its first new logo since its establishment in 1999. It was created by an agency called Loma Media.

The new symbol has already received the official nickname "The Rock", and consists of the letters M and W standing "shoulder to shoulder". The gray-purple color scheme is kept. The mountain range is removed, and the word "West" becomes bigger, giving the two regions more equal prominence in the logo.

Previous logo.

The previous logo had been used since the conference was formed and was unveiled on January 14, 1999. It was credited to R&R Advertising in Las Vegas.
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New logo: PZPN - Polish Football Association

The Polish Football Association is organisation which governs soccer in Poland. It is also known by its abbreviation PZPN (for the Polish name Polski Związek Piłki Nożnej). Yesterday, April 14, it revealed a new visual identity at Teatr Capitol in Warsaw.

The colour scheme from the previous logo, the Polish national colours red and white with gold, is carried over the the new one. At the center of the new logo is an invisible sphere, representing the ball, with a shimmering gold ribbon wrapped around it. The crowned eagle from the old logo can bee seen at the top of the sphere in the form of a silhouette made up of the ribbon.

The new identity was created by Warsaw design agency SaltPepper Brand Design, with specific credit to their senior designer Andrzej Antoniuk.

The reband process started last autumn. In January it was reported that PZPN was going to get a new logo, when it was also reported that SaltPepper Brand Design was designing it.



Previous logo.


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New logo: Deutsche Eishockey Liga

Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) is a German ice hockey league, one of the most prestigous ice hockey leagues outside North America. Yesterday, April 13, it presented a new visual identity. The first time it will be used in a game will be tomorrow, April 15.

The new logo includes some features associated with ice hockey, such as a puck and a rectangular frame with rounded corner representing the rink. It is coloured red, as that is the strongest signal colour.

The new look was created by the Cologne agency buergerclever, who had previously done other work for DEL.

Previous logo.

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Super Bowl XLVI logo

Those who remember last years unveiling of the Landor-created logo for Super Bowl XLV may remember that back then it was said that future Super Bowl logos would be based on the same template, a shiny rendering of the trophy with the stadium and the number. Those who didn't and were expecting to see a new design for Super Bowl XLVI were probably disappointed when the logo was revealed on Thursday, February 24, by the Indianapolis Super Bowl Host Committee.

See the new logo in a video on the Indianapolis Super Bowl Host Committee website
Press release (PDF) (archive)