Kits 23/24

[FatSam]

John Townley
@johntownley11
·
2h
#AVFC's current shield crest will remain visible next season, while the 1982-inspired round badge will only be used across the 2023/24 kits and training wear.

The club plans to further engage with supporters on the future identity of Villa.

What would be the point?

We already did that & they have decided to tell us to go fuck ourselves...

Because they realised they offered the wrong choices and thus we weren't making informed and good choices.

Exactly. I don’t think the fan consultation carries much weight. The number of people who actually respond is never very high anyway.

[Des Little]

All utter horseshit. We’ll just spunk millions with another bunch of creatives to pump us full of corporate bunkum and present us with a hula hooping hippo. A pox on their London Bedsits.

[FatSam]

We spent the best part of 6 months and fuck knows how much money on this crest, including saying things like this, and it's no wonder folks think it's a tad amateurish.

There are a number of elements we’ll look at. The shape; could a more rounded badge have more impact and work better across different places it exists, for example? Is the balance of colour right? Also, how should we use our name? Is it ‘AVFC’ or should we be using Aston Villa, given how distinctive a name it is? This isn’t a process of starting from scratch, it’s a process of thinking about the role of each element so it comes together in the strongest of ways to represent us brilliantly. It’s not just the crest, it’s about how our whole design world looks, in every part of what we do, from our Academy to matchdays at Villa Park, to our social media channels.

I think the amount that they will have spent on the redesign probably equates to about one week’s salary for Coutinho. I don’t think the money is the issue. Of course it would be better to have got it right first time, and yes it is better than Randy’s MS Paint effort. If the brief for the design exercise wasn’t broad enough, and consequently the end result isn’t something that they are confident in getting behind for the long term, then I’m fine with another change. We obviously can’t go on indefinitely like that though.

[FatSam]

We spent the best part of 6 months and fuck knows how much money on this crest, including saying things like this, and it's no wonder folks think it's a tad amateurish.

There are a number of elements we’ll look at. The shape; could a more rounded badge have more impact and work better across different places it exists, for example? Is the balance of colour right? Also, how should we use our name? Is it ‘AVFC’ or should we be using Aston Villa, given how distinctive a name it is? This isn’t a process of starting from scratch, it’s a process of thinking about the role of each element so it comes together in the strongest of ways to represent us brilliantly. It’s not just the crest, it’s about how our whole design world looks, in every part of what we do, from our Academy to matchdays at Villa Park, to our social media channels.

See to me the bold bit there is a perfect example of why you'd stop this and take a step back, The badge they came up with doesn't do a good job of achieving that specific goal. This is the exact reason why I was always a bit 'cold' on the idea of just going back to the 82 badge and why i thought the choice we made was a bit of a missed opportunity.

Yes, you made the point I wanted to make much better than I did.

[FatSam]

The badge! What has happened there! I'd love to know more about this - who opted to backtrack on the 80s badge and why! Personally it wasn't my choice - too many random clubs have that same template of a round emblem now and sadly ours is lost in that sea of generic badges. I understand that we know better, but a lot of twitter seemed to think we had ripped off Chelsea. That's the world we live in now. I think it was an opportunity to be more forward thinking, and one spurned. Fascinated to see what Villa will do with this now!

Yes, I agree with this.

[dave.woodhall]

 
Exactly. I don’t think the fan consultation carries much weight. The number of people who actually respond is never very high anyway.

We were absolutely railroaded into the new design. When the options went to the FCG they were all facing right and we were told "Everybody else liked them." I'm convinced Purslow knew what he wanted from the off and made sure he got it.

[Brazilian Villain]

Exactly. I don’t think the fan consultation carries much weight. The number of people who actually respond is never very high anyway.

We were absolutely railroaded into the new design. When the options went to the FCG they were all facing right and we were told "Everybody else liked them." I'm convinced Purslow knew what he wanted from the off and made sure he got it.

I think most people were happy with the two designs presented. That may not be the case next time around, or if it's decided for us.

[FatSam]

'Wrong choices"?

77% of the thousands who voted didn't seem to think so.

And while I personally didn't like some of the elements of the circle crest, it was the result of them asking us what we thought as a fanbase.

They have now decided that our opinions are meaningless, but are still going to ask us again what we think in the future...

Whats the point?

They already asked us...

Yes, the wrong choices. I can’t remember specifically what questions were asked in the fan consultation, but I’ve been involved in public consultations for development projects where the questions have been things like “we are proposing a new network of public space with bicycle and pedestrian links, do you think this is a good idea?” No one is ever going to say that is a bad idea, so you just get the answers you want. Similarly, the very fact that you ask a certain question, like “winning the European Cup in 1982 was the club’s greatest achievement. Do you think this should be marked in some way on the crest?” Would lead in a particular direction.

[Stu]

I don’t like it and everyone should be fired. Of all the shit we’ve been through since 2011, this is the absolute worst

[john e]

Well I won’t be buying one

Nothing to do with the design (although it is crap with a crap sponsor)
But my shape is not best suited to this sort of fitted garment anymore

[FatSam]

I think most people were happy with the two designs presented. That may not be the case next time around, or if it's decided for us.

It’s interesting isn’t it, because that wasn’t my impression at all. I was completely underwhelmed by the two options that were presented. The gas lamp very much seemed like a straw man, and the round one seemed like an awkward attempt to evoke the 1980s badge, whilst being different, and pleasing people who wanted a star, and was consequently a bit of a compromise.

[PaulMcGrathsNo5Shirt]

Another shirt I won't buy.

Quite like the design, but can't get my head around seeing the lion face the wrong way and that fucking horrible orange logo for Burger King or whatever it is on the front and the orange sponsor on the sleeves.

[Bad English]

I was really looking forward to getting the new top or tops with the new, albeit flawed, badge. However, I just can't get excited about it and I don't like the gaudy sponsor's logo. So I haven't ordered.

[Brazilian Villain]

I think most people were happy with the two designs presented. That may not be the case next time around, or if it's decided for us.

It’s interesting isn’t it, because that wasn’t my impression at all. I was completely underwhelmed by the two options that were presented.

The latter may explain the former.

[FatSam]

 
Exactly. I don’t think the fan consultation carries much weight. The number of people who actually respond is never very high anyway.

We were absolutely railroaded into the new design. When the options went to the FCG they were all facing right and we were told "Everybody else liked them." I'm convinced Purslow knew what he wanted from the off and made sure he got it.

I’m sure you’re right, but I do think that establishing the right level of engagement is very subtle. I definitely think that you can both have too much engagement, and too little.

Too much engagement leads to design by committee, where the design is trying to be all things to all people, and loses any clarity and coherence.

Too little engagement is basically what happened with the Randy redesign, which breaks lots of well established rules of graphic design. Even a little bit of peer review would have teased out the fact that it just doesn’t work.

I think probably somewhere in between, where different strategies are tested with focus groups would make most sense, rather than a large and clumsy fan survey. But ultimately, I think you need to give some talented graphic designers a clear brief and allow them to do their job properly.