The UEFA Champions League has released a visual identity this season, accompanying the new format of the international football competition. The new image, presented last August under the Kick of Light concept, It is already activated and has been the work of the Spanish agency Vasava.
The branding studio, based in Barcelona, has shared the details of its creative process for what will be the identity of the club tournament between 2024 and 2027. As stated in a statement, it has worked in close collaboration with the UEFA and with the intention of maintain its iconicity while making it evolve in a constantly evolving sports environment.
“This brand evolution marks a bold step into the future, showcasing the potential of the UEFA Champions League with this new cycle, making the coming years of football more exciting and engaging than ever.“Vasava points out in his statement.
Aware that the Champions League is one of the most recognizable brands in the sports industry, the rebranding has sought rejuvenate the image, maintaining the Premium character and sophistication. It has preserved the main brand elements, such as the soccer ball and the “Ultimate Stage” stadium with the ball-shaped roof, but has renewed its look.
Kick of Light
All this taking as reference the characteristics of a prism, which decomposes white light that runs through it in an infinite range of colors. These become the basic resource of the new identity, and are visible on the edges of the stars of the emblematic ball. From Vasava they explain that these colors symbolize the different clubs that participate in the competition.
Thus, the so-called Starballthe soccer ball that emulates glass, incorporates those colors on its edges, as does the characteristic stadium, an extension of the previous one. The intention is to convey a feeling of invitation to live a unique experience in the stadiums on competition nights.
The Kick of Light concept is applied to patterns and resources, and is introduced light wave texture. This appears in digital activations, whether graphic publications on social networks, the creatives that are physically seen in the stadium and stands, or elements of the television broadcast.
A new typography
The concept of color and refraction has also been applied to the competition’s fonts. The new design includes a special version of the Champions font, the Champions Display Refractedwhich also includes the resources of refraction and is expressed in the incorporation of different colors per character.
Furthermore, the family Champions Display It has been completed with Italic and Ritalic styles for more dynamic use of the font.
A new version of the anthem
Furthermore, as UEFA pointed out a few weeks ago, the new stage of the Champions League also has a new version, which has been refined by its original composer, Tony Britten. Thus, the instrumentation has been improved and the music has been recorded again with a selected orchestra and the Tenebrae choir.
Technical sheet
- Concept, design, typography and graphics: Vasava
- CGI/Animation: Found
- Generation of stands and crowds: Coffee & TV
- Image retouching services: La Cápsula
- Post-production: Higgins TV
