Football, Fútbol, Soccer. Regardless of your native tongue, the “world’s game” is a source of history, competition, and champions. It is also a source of some of the more interesting styles of sports branding. Unlike many American sports clubs, European football teams take a more classic route when designing their logo.

Lacking colorful mascots, many of these clubs choose to brand their team with a crest. While different from the primarily illustrative logos of American teams, football clubs incorporate more history into their designs.

These designs are not necessarily flashy or cutting edge, but their attention to history, and meaningful symbolism create a sense of nostalgia often lost in modern branding. During the mid to late 1900’s many of these teams realized the potential fiscal opportunities present in the football industry and changed their logo designs. However, a recent trend has surfaced reconnecting the clubs with their roots.

It is common for these clubs to borrow components of their home city’s crest in combination with symbols unique to the club. Barcelona for instance is one of my favorite logos:

Notice the two upper panels of the logo. The left features St. George’s Cross while the right displays the colors of Catalonia. The bottom half of the logo includes the football clubs colors, as well as a graphic image of the ball. By including all of these components, the FC Barcelona logo displays a perfect balance between where the club came from, and what it stands for. I love the simple, clean cut look that this type of sports logo embraces. Not to mention cant ever hurt to be proud of where you came from.

Take a look at these other logos that represent their cities with pride. See if you notice anything they have in common.

And just for fun, some of the logos that just don’t do it for me

Do you have any suggestions for great Football Club design?