Friday, October 10, 2014

Orlando City stadium groundbreaking set for October 16

Early stadium design

New stadium design

 
(orlandocitysc.com 9-26-14)
 
Orlando City SC and the City of Orlando today announced the ceremonial groundbreaking for the Downtown Soccer Stadium will take place on October 16, 2014, beginning at 5:00 p.m. The event will be open to the public and fans are encouraged to participate.

Specific details of the event will be released in the coming weeks but it will be held on the property located on the northwest corner of Church Street and Parramore Avenue.

“October 16 will be a landmark day for the community of Parramore, the City of Orlando, Orange County, our fans and our Club,” said Orlando City President and Founder Phil Rawlins. “We look forward to hosting an unforgettable, festive celebration to mark the ceremonial start of construction of what will be the best soccer stadium in the league.”

The Downtown Soccer Stadium is a 20,000-seat, state of the art venue designed to host Major League Soccer and other world class events. The stadium will be home to Orlando City SC beginning in the 2016 MLS season.


Columbus gets it right


 
Columbus Crew Soccer Club unveils new badge and brand identity
 
(thecrew.com 10-9-14)
 
The Columbus Crew today unveiled its new brand and visual identity at an exclusive event at the LC Pavilion in downtown Columbus. Evolving to Columbus Crew Soccer Club in 2015, Investor-Operator and Chairman Anthony Precourt revealed the club’s new badge at the ceremony alongside Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber and the entire Black & Gold roster, including the club’s newest addition, striker Kei Kamara. The event was hosted by MLS veteran and national soccer broadcaster Brian Dunseth, and featured a live performance from national recording group New Politics.

The new Columbus Crew SC brand will be implemented through a few select elements in 2014, including stadium signage, merchandise and digital executions. Full brand implementation will take place at the beginning of 2015.

“We are extremely proud of our new brand direction and visual identity,” said Columbus Crew SC Investor-Operator and Chairman Anthony Precourt. “Our new badge and word-mark truly reflect who we are as a club, from our origins and historical accomplishments to our connection with Columbus and our unique fan culture. It’s a timeless design and a strong statement for our brand.”

The new circular-shaped badge, which features the club’s current black and gold colors and adds white as an accent color instead of the previous grey tone, is a symbol of unity and a nod to Columbus’ German heritage by way of the German Bundesliga club crests that are predominantly circular in shape. Within the badge, the club’s full name, Columbus Crew SC, wraps around an outer ring to make a stronger connection to its hometown and further distinguish the brand as a soccer club. The inner ring mirrors the circular shape within the state flag of Ohio to emphasize Columbus as the capital city. Within the heart of the inner ring, 96 adorns the club’s original crest to reference the year the club and League were formed. That crest sits atop nine black and gold diagonal lines to distinguish the club’s history as the first member of the original 10 charter clubs that formed the League, as well as the upward trajectory of our club. The other design element within the heart is a black and gold checkerboard pattern to symbolize the club’s unique and passionate fan culture.

Complete information regarding the new brand identity – featuring the club’s brand pillars; a breakdown of the new badge; a frequently asked questions section and more – is available on the Crew’s official website.

In addition to the new badge being revealed, Mayor Coleman and Precourt announced that the club is investing $100,000 in a new authentic Columbus experience at Crew Stadium that will feature food, retail and artistic elements that reflect Columbus’ iconic hot spots such as German Village and the Short North. Details of this program and how people can contribute their ideas toward creating this experience will be released at a later date.

Precourt also announced that beginning in 2015, children living in the state of Ohio will be treated to a complimentary Crew ticket on their 11th birthday as part of a new program to grow the fan base and the club’s brand throughout the region. Details on how parents can register their child for this program will also be released later in 2014.

“What we are talking about is not just a new badge for our club,” Precourt said. “We want to show people that we are doing things differently, that we want to represent the pride of Columbus, and that we want to attract fans from throughout the region.”

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1996 - 2014

Some fan made logos



Friday, October 3, 2014

Red Bulls future uncertain, Garber says they are committed

'Zero chance' Henry returns to Red Bulls; Club's owners losing interest

While Marc de Grandpre, the club’s head of commercial operations, says the team is not for sale, one source says that if a buyer approached Red Bull and offered $300 million for the Red Bulls and their stadium, the deal would get done within 48 hours.

(see full article here)
http://www.si.com/soccer/planet-futbol/2014/10/01/thierry-henry-new-york-red-bulls-mls-premier-league-uefa-concussions


MLS commissioner Don Garber: New York Red Bulls not for sale

“I can absolutely assure you that the New York Red Bulls are not for sale,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “Both the owner and the management team in Austria and in New York are as committed as ever to Major League Soccer, the club and their fans.”

(see full article here)
http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2014/10/02/mls-commissioner-don-garber-new-york-red-bulls-not-sale