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ReBrand: Bo’ness United FC

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BUFC badge newFootball in the Central Lowland town of Bo’ness (officially, Borrowstounness, though no one calls it that) dates back to at least 1882, when Bo’ness Football Club was established. This original club competed in various amateur leagues until 1909, when they joined the old Central League (not to be confused with the current Central Scottish Amateur Football League, established in 1927).

With the outbreak of First World War in 1914, both this original Bo’ness club and the Central League closed their doors until the resumption of competition in 1919. By 1921, the Central League was subsumed into the Scottish Division Two and Bo’ness enjoyed relative success, even winning the league in the 1926/27 season and gaining promotion to the Scottish First Division with second-place Raith Rovers. The following season, the Rovers were able to retain their place in the top tier, though, unfortunately, Bo’ness came second-bottom and were relegated back to the second tier alongside the last-place Dunfermline Athletic.

By the 1932/33 season, Bo’ness were facing serious financial difficulties and were expelled from the Scottish Football League (alongside the struggling Armadale [1910-1935]) after only 14 matches. For the next decade, Bo’ness return to their hopping from amateur league to amateur league and even sat-out the 1937/38 season. By 1945, Bo’ness could no longer stand alone and merged with another junior side, Bo’ness Cadora, to form the current Bo’ness United. As United, Bo’ness enjoyed modest success in the amateur game, winning the Edinburgh & District League for three consecutive seasons (1946/47, 1947/48 and 1948/49). During these years, they also reached the final of the Scottish Junior Cup on two ocassions, winning in the 1947/48 season. They would repeat this Junior Cup victory twice more, in 1975/76 and 1983/84.

In April 2018, United—along with a number of other Junior East Region Super League clubs—became part of the East of Scotland Football League. The club made an immediate impact, winning the East of Scotland Football League Cup in their first season and topping the table in their second. This 2019/20 performance gained United admittance into both the Scottish Football Association and the Lowland League.

Bo’ness United’s current badge is a somewhat new rendering of their longtime ‘blue’ badge, featuring the club’s name, year of founding and a new motto. (From what I can gather, the ‘current’ badge is used for digital media while the ‘blue’ badge remains the one worn on the kit.) The centrepiece of the badge is a version of the Bo’ness coat of arms. Bo’ness itself was made a Royal Burgh in 1668, ‘in favour of Anne, Duchess of Hamilton’. The red and black fields represent the Hamiltons and the town’s historical coal mining industry, respectively. The ship in full sail calls back to Bo’ness’ historical place as the third-largest seaport in Scotland in the 1700s. The exact meaning of the lion passant is less clear, though this could either be connected to the Scottish lion rampant or even a reference to ‘the former Castle Lyon which stood near the sea and was probably the jointure house of Lady Margaret Lyon, daughter of the 7th Lord Glamis, and widow of John, 1st Marquess of Hamilton, whom she had married about 1577.’

For my redesign, I opted for the more traditional blue dominance and a re-rendered version of the coat of arms. I also included the club motto on a scroll beneath the badge.

BUFC badge

The kit redesigns are based on United’s historical colour schemes, with the home kit calling back to the original Bo’ness FC kit worn from 1927 until at least 1933.

BUFC kit

BUFC badge new

10 June 2021 E Tagged Bo'ness, Bo'ness Cadora, Bo'ness Cadora JFC, Bo'ness Cadora Junior Football Club, Bo'ness FC, Bo'ness Football Club, Bo'ness United, Bo'ness United FC, Bo'ness United Football Club, Borrowstounness, Europe, Falkirk, Falkirk Council, football, LFL, logo, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, rebrand, redesign, Scotland, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, sport, texture, UK, United Kingdom, West Lothian Leave a comment

ReBrand: Caledonian Braves

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CBFC badge newEdusport Academy was established as a residential football academy in 2011 with the aim of developing young French players and giving them the opportunity to improve their English language skills. The purpose behind refining these skills was to give the young footballers an edge in entering into the professional game in Britain.

The academy continues to operate as such, but in 2014, applied successfully to become members of the South of Scotland Football League, becoming the first private academy to participate in a senior league recognised by FIFA. The following season, Edusport applied to the Lowland Football League, but was rejected. This did not deter the club for long, as they were crowned champions of the South of Scotland League in 2017, gaining promotion to the Lowland League.

In 2018, club founder Chris Ewing launched ‘Our Football Club‘, an online membership scheme, giving supporters the opportunity to have a more democratic voice in the affairs of the club. With this, Ewing expressed the goal of establishing the senior Edusport team as a separate club in its own right with the ambitious aim of reaching the top tier of Scottish football by 2025.

In 2019, the club was rebranded as Caledonian Braves FC, complete with a new badge. The original badge employed the colours of the French tricolore and featured a small Saltire within its central football, representing the link between France and Scotland. While I appreciated the aim of this badge, I found it somewhat difficult to see as more than a relatively weak corporate brand. For a start, I found the colour scheme of ‘Edusport’ reminiscent of the uninspiring SportsDirect.com logo. Additionally, the original badge featured text within a shield – a ‘no-no’ under ancient Scottish heraldic law. For my first redesign, I went for a roundel which featured the club’s name with the French definite article le (l’). I also included the French name for Scotland, Écosse, which is recognised quite readily in Scotland. The centre of this first redesigned badge featured a stylised ‘EA’ monogram and a red circle representing a football.

EAFC badge-01

I assume the current badge is the result a great deal of consultation with the club’s stakeholders. It futures the club’s name as part of a shield. The centrepiece of the current badge is an eagle in dark blue, behind which is what seems to be a fleur-de-lis in a lighter blue (perhaps a reference to the club’s French connection). The football and saltire from the original badge is found on the breast of the eagle. Being that this new badge continues to violate ancient Scottish heraldic law, I decided to have another shot at this redesign. The new design is very similar to my redesign of the original badge. Instead of the ‘EA’ monogram, the centre of the badge features a similar design to that of the current badge. The fleur-de-lis is depicted in red, with its side petals crossing over the eagle’s wings and the triple stalk acting as the eagle’s tailfeathers. I decided to omit the saltire as ‘Caledonian’ seems a sufficient reference to Scotland.

CBFC badge-01

The kits are based upon previous incarnations of Edusport kits, with thick blue and black hoops on the home kit and red and dark red hoops on the away kit. To me, these seem simple, clean and dramatic.

CBFC kit-01

CBFC badge new

28 October 201924 February 2020 E Tagged academy, Annan, badge, crest, Dumfries and Galloway, Dumfriesshire, eagle, Edusport, Edusport Academy, Europe, fleur-de-lis, football, France, French, Galabank, LFL, logo, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, monogram, Our Football Club, rebrand, redesign, Scotland, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, sport, texture, UK, United Kingdom Leave a comment

ReBrand: Scottish League Two

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20 July 20199 June 2021 E Leave a comment

ReBrand: Scottish League One

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20 July 20199 June 2021 E Leave a comment

ReBrand: Scottish Championship

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20 July 20199 June 2021 E Leave a comment

ReBrand: Scottish Premiership

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20 July 20199 June 2021 E Leave a comment

ReBrand: Vale of Leithen FC

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VLFC badge new-01Vale of Leithen Football Club began its life as Leithen Vale Football Club in 1891, making it one of the oldest clubs in the Scottish Borders (a region traditionally dominated by rugby). The ‘Leithen Vale’ name was used only for the club’s first two matches (a victory against Gala Harp and a loss to Peebles Hibernian) before the change to Vale of Leithen. It has been suggested that the name change was made in order to bring to mind the successful Dunbartonshire club Vale of Leven FC (the original Vale of Leven was established in 1872 and folded in 1929, winning the Scottish Cup on three consecutive occasions between 1877 and 1879).

The Vale became full members of the Scottish Football Association in 1897 and competed in the Borders Football League at that time. By the 1910s, the Vale was playing in the Eastern Football League and for the 1923/24 season, joined the new East of Scotland Football League. The club would be crowned EoSFL champions the following season, but would not win the league again until 1977/78 (and then again the following season). The club’s final EoSFL championship came in 1986/87.

In 2013, the Vale became founding members of the Lowland Football League alongside Dalbeattie Star, East Kilbride, Edinburgh City, Gala Fairydean Rovers, Gretna 2008, Preston Athletic, Selkirk, Spartans, University of Stirling, Threave Rovers and Whitehill Welfare. The club’s best performance in the Lowland League came in 2013/14, when they finished in the sixth position.

Vale of Leithen’s current badge is one of my favourites in the Lowland League. According to legend, the town of Innerleithen was established in 737 CE by the Irish monk St Ronan (often referred to as St Ronan the Silent or St Ronan of Locronan), who travelled up the River Tweed (of which the Leithen Water is a tributary) in a coracle. St Ronan is the figure depicted in the current badge, with a crosier in his right hand and a lantern in his left, bringing the ‘light’ of the Christian faith to Innerleithen. This resembles the official blazon of Innerleithen.

While I appreciate each of the design features of the current badge, for my redesign, I decided to make several changes. For a start, I determined that the club’s name feels a bit cramped within the circular portion of the badge – St Ronan’s crosier is nearly touching the ‘E’ of ‘VALE’. Inspired by the handsome ‘KEEP FAITH’ banner, I incorporated the same banner above the circular badge. I was resistant this depiction of St Ronan, especially since it does not resemble many other depictions of the saint and that the boat in which he travels is not suggestive of an Irish coracle (the aesthetic of which does not lend itself to minimalistic illustration).

Instead of a depiction of St Ronan in a boat, I decided to go with the sole image of a lantern to represent the saint. The lantern in my redesign is inspired by one found in a JaJa postcard illustration of the Innerleithen coat of arms from the early 1900s. Being that the Vale is one of the oldest clubs in the Borders, I also decided to include the date of the club’s founding.

VLFC badge-01

The colours for the kit redesigns are taken from the Vale’s traditional kit colour schemes.

VLFC kit-01

VLFC badge new-01

6 July 201928 February 2020 E Tagged badge, Borders, crest, Europe, football, Innerleithen, Leithen, Leithen Vale, Leithen Vale FC, Leithen Vale Football Club, Leithen Water, LFL, logo, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, Peeblesshire, rebrand, redesign, Ronan, Saint Ronan, Scotland, Scottish Borders, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, sport, St Ronan, texture, Tweeddale, UK, United Kingdom, Vale, Vale of Leithen, Vale of Leithen FC, Vale of Leithen Football Club Leave a comment

ReBrand: University of Stirling FC

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USFC badge new-01The University of Stirling was established in 1967. Two years later, the eponymous football club was founded. Among the six teams operated by USFC, the most senior of which has been competing in the Lowland Football League since its inaugural season in 2013/14.

Prior to competing in the Lowland League, in 2008, USFC was admitted to the East of Scotland Football League. In only their second season in the league, USFC won the First Division (at the time, the sole second tier in the EoSFL) title. This saw USFC compete in the Premier Division, the top tier of the EoSFL, in the 2010/11 season. That season, the club secure a second-place finish to Spartans. By the following season, 2011/12, USFC clinched the top spot in the Premier Division.

The 2012/13 season finished with Whitehill Welfare as champions and USFC finishing as runners-up, ahead of Spartans. The following season saw the transfer of these three, alongside Edinburgh City, Gretna 2008, Preston Athletic and Vale of Leithen admitted into the new Lowland League. In that inaugural season, USFC finished in second place, only four points behind the league champion Spartans.

As far as the club’s aesthetics go, the current badge is excellent. The features of the badge come directly from the coat of arms of the university. The university website states:

The coat of arms may be described as an arched bridge topped by a tower and surrounded by open books. The bridge may represent a governor or magistrate, the tower safety and guardianship, while the open books have clear associations with learning and knowledge. The imagery portrays the University as an official guardian entrusted with the safekeeping of the process of imparting knowledge, whilst willingly serving the public.

On a more visual level, the three elements of the coat of arms may be interpreted as a reflection of the University’s striking location in a historic Scotland, suggesting as they do Stirling Bridge, the National Wallace Monument and the University itself.

With the simplicity and cleanliness of the current badge, certain elements might not come across as clearly. For instance, without colour, the wavy lines, which represent water running under the bridge (perhaps the River Forth running under the Old Stirling Bridge) are not as obvious. I decided to stick with the simple design features of the current badge, adjusting various bits and pieces for aesthetic purposes (the normalisation of the ascending and descending arches of the bridge, the increased simplification—even a suggested digitisation—of the open books) and including colours which are akin to those in the official university coat of arms.

USFC badge-01

The home and away kits derive their colour schemes from the badge redesign. The predominantly green kit is the colour scheme of the traditional USFC home kit.

USFC kit-01

USFC badge new-01

1 July 201924 February 2020 E Tagged badge, crest, Europe, football, LFL, logo, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, rebrand, redesign, Scotland, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, sport, Stirling, Stirling University, Stirling University FC, Stirling University Football Club, Stirlingshire, texture, UK, United Kingdom, University of Stirling, University of Stirling FC, University of Stirling Football Club Leave a comment

ReBrand: Bonnyrigg Rose AFC

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BRAFC badge new-01The Midlothian town of Bonnyrigg was first home to a club called Bonnyrigg Swifts, who were established in 1874. The Swifts gained the nickname ‘the Rose’ and in 1881, a new club, Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic Football Club, was born of the Swifts. For the vast majority of their history, the Rose competed as a junior side, having won the Scottish Junior Cup on two occasions: 1966 and 1978.

In the twentieth century, the Rose joined the Scottish Junior Football East Region Super League and were crowned league champions on four occasions (2008/09, 2011/12, 2015/16 and 2017/18), making them the most successful side in the league’s history. With each Super League championship, the Rose qualified for the first preliminary round of the Scottish Cup. Their most successful outing took place in the 2016/17 competition. Having defeated Glasgow University and Burntisland Shipyard (the latter result of 14-0 being the competitions largest margin of victory since 1984, when Stirling Albion dealt Selkirk a 20-0 dismantling), the Rose proceded to the first round proper of the Scottish Cup. There, they defeated Highland League side Turriff United 4-1 in a replay. In the second round, the Rose faced and defeated another Highland League outfit, Cove Rangers.

By the third round, the Rose and Beith were the only junior sides remaining in the competition. There, they issued a shock defeat against SPFL side Dumbarton in a replay at Dumbarton’s home ground. The rose proceeded to the fourth round as the only remaining junior side, though their draw would prove too great a challenge. Playing at Hearts‘ home ground of Tynecastle, the Rose lost 1-8 against cup-holders Hibernian in January 2017 and exited the tournament.

After their 2017/18 season, the Rose joined the East of Scotland Football League and in their inaugural season, won their conference (B) and qualified for the league’s championship playoff. They competed against other conference winners, Penicuik Athletic (Conference A winners) and Broxburn Athletic (Conference C winners) in order to gain the prize of promotion to the Lowland Football League. Ultimately, the Rose defeated both of their opponents and on 14 June 2019, Bonnyrigg Rose gained admittance into the Scottish Football Association.

I’m going to come out and say it – I don’t like the current Bonnyrigg Rose badge. I find the club’s name to crammed together (it doesn’t even reflect the club’s actual name: Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic Football Club). Additionally, the typeface differs from that used in the club’s year of foundation. I also find the other features (the rose and the footballs) jarring. But this is the badge of a junior side and I’ve seen worse. Still, the Rose have climbed the ladder in phenomenal fashion and are now part of the Lowland League. Therefore, a redesign is in order. My design is simple and clean, incorporating a stylised (and more symmetrical) rose and opting to remove the footballs.

BRAFC badge-01

Bonnyrigg Rose’s home kits have long featured red and white hoops. For these kits, I have decided to borrow from the schemes for both the home and away kits of the 2018/19 season.

BRAFC kit-01

BRAFC badge new-01

1 July 201924 February 2020 E Tagged badge, Bonnyrigg, Bonnyrigg Rose, Bonnyrigg Rose AFC, Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic Football Club, Bonnyrigg Rose FC, Bonnyrigg Rose Football Club, Bonnyrigg Swifts, Bonnyrigg Swifts FC, Bonnyrigg Swifts Football Club, crest, Europe, football, LFL, logo, Lothians, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, Midlothian, rebrand, redesign, rose, Scotland, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, sport, texture, The Rose, UK, United Kingdom Leave a comment

ReBrand: Spartans FC

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SFC badge new-01In 1951, the Spartans Football Club was established by Elliot Wardlaw and Jimmy Beaumont, two former Edinburgh University players. It was their intention that the club would field graduates of the university, though the constitution soon allowed for the admission of ‘other interested parties’.

Upon their founding, the Spartans were admitted into the East of Scotland Football League, where they would compete for more than six decades and amass nine league championships (including a spell of three consecutive championships between 2009 and 2011). It was also during this time that the Spartans pulled off some impressive Scottish Cup runs – advancing to the fourth round in the 2003/04 season after defeating Buckie Thistle and league sides Alloa Athletic and Arbroath. Eventually, this run would end at the hands of top-tier side Livingston. The club would reach the fourth round on two more occasions — in 2005/06 and in 2008/09 — defeating many league sides in the process.

In 2013, the Spartan’s long stay in the EoSFL ended when they became founding members of the Lowland Football League. During that first season, the club topped the table for the first time. Their greatest Scottish Cup performance came in the 2014/15 competition. By the fifth round (the round of 16), the Spartans were the only non-league side remaining. On 7 February 2015, the Spartans drew 1-1 with Berwick Rangers, forcing a replay. Ten days later, the Spartan’s run would end in England, with a 1-0 loss away at Berwick.

After winning the Lowland League in the 2017/18 season, the Spartans qualified for the League Two play-off semi-finals. As Lowland League champions, they faced the Highland Football League champions, Cove Rangers. Cove proved too strong over two legs and the Spartans went away losing 2-5 on aggregate.

For the badge redesign, I sought to capture and build upon the boldness and strength of the current badge. I decided upon a minimalist badge, incorporating a depiction of the Spartan helmet alone. Within the crest of the helmet is found the club’s initials and the year of the club’s founding.

SFC badge-01

The home kit incorporates the traditional Spartans strip of a white shirt with red shorts and white socks. The top features red details in a scheme resembling the handsome Admiral strips from the early 1980s. The away kit also incorporates a bold 1980s athletic feel, making use of the badge’s blue and red colour scheme while presenting the redesigned badge in white.

SFC kit-01

SFC badge new-01

27 June 201924 February 2020 E Tagged badge, crest, Edinburgh, Europe, football, LFL, logo, Lothians, Lowland Football League, Lowlands, rebrand, redesign, Scotland, Scottish Lowland Football League, SLFL, Spartans, Spartans FC, Spartans Football Club, sport, texture, The Spartans, The Spartans FC, The Spartans Football Club, UK, United Kingdom Leave a comment

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