ICM - Leeds Design Agency

Sticking with the World Cup theme of previous posts I thought I’d take a quick look at the logos that are attached to the event.

Although we are now only twenty-something days away from the opening of the tournament, the logo for this years’ event still isn’t that well-know. Here it is…

I personally feel that many of these ‘world-logos’ are starting to blend into one. Both the World Cup and the Olympics seem permanently stuck down the ‘primary colour, brush-stroke, arts-y with a bit of flair’ route.

A quick look back shows how we got here:

Germany 2006 – let’s all have a right good laugh about football.

Korea/Japan 2002 – A real ‘bit of everything in one place’ multi-colour thing.

Here’s a couple of my graphical favourites:

USA ’94 – Unashamedly patriotic from the home of ‘soccer’

Like USA, we’re going to use our nation’s colours whether you like it or not.

And finally, a look to the future, here’s the logo for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil:

More multi-coloured bland-ness? Has the host-nation’s spirit been removed in favour of a ‘lets not upset anyone’ correctness?

It’s not often an advert makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, not due to fear or shock but something harder to describe, I guess it’s pride. English sports men and women get a lot of stick, so sometimes it’s hard to get into the national spirt and follow them, whether it be the Olympics or the most important thing on the calender… the World cup.

When those eleven players step on the pitch every English man/woman that enjoys football is right there with them, every kick of the ball, every bad decision, every foul is felt. The best place to watch the match, after of course actually being there, is the pub. Of course advertisers are going to use this, but the way they do it can make the ad instill a sense of pride or a sense of just cashing in.

The new Carlsberg team talk ad I think captures the feeling perfectly, how does it do it so well? It’s hard to put your finger on it exactly, but as the camera moves about you feel like your actually in the tunnel with the players. Having past sporting greats form all types of sports encouraging the players as they walk past, the little joke as former world darts champion Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor throws a dart into the hand of god – Maradona (cheating little b?*@$r). Or my favorite, the homage to the late Sir Bobby Robson who was everything English football stood for.

Finally the shot of the lion stood with Bobby Moore at the top of the stairs to the pitch, harking back to the only time England has lifted the World cup. So all thats left to say is come on England, do it for Bobby with all your pride.