Champions League badges: A history of the unique and iconic football logo
This post will be about the badges that the UEFA Champions League has used over time. Although there have not been many major changes, all the slight adjustments are meant to aim for a more stylish and modern logo.
What has the Champions League badge changed over time?
The European Cup changed its name in 1992 and the name UEFA Champions League has been used since then. Along with the change in the competition’s official name, a new design for the logo of this prestigious tournament was also revealed in 1992. The design hasn’t been adjusted significantly so far, but we take a look and interpret all Champions League badges during its history.
1992–1993
In 1992, the inaugural UEFA Champions League logo was unveiled, consisting of a spherical insignia with a wordmark underneath it. The symbol featured a stylized football with a pattern of multiple black five-pointed stars. Despite its bland 2D implementations, it appeared incredibly unforgettable as a globe composed of stars.
The “Champions” component of the wordmark was set in a sleek strong serif typeface with the “C” expanded, while “League” was placed in a lightweight sans-serif, which provided professionalism and stability.
1993–1995
In this period, the “UEFA” appeared below the “ball” symbol and above the wordmark “Champions League”.
1995–1997
A more elegant design for the Champions League emblem in the 1995–1997 period was the slight change in the “UEFA” lettering. Accordingly, UEFA was put between two arched lines and bolded but with a smaller size.
1997–2012
In this stage, the change in the Champions League badge was almost unnoticed. Everything was kept the same, but in general, all the symbols on the logo looked sharper and more modern.
2012- present
The current logo of the Champions League has been created since 2012. At first sight, you might see that it looks identical to the old version of the emblem. However, in fact, the “UEFA” lettering looks more stylish with the edges from the “E”, “F”, and “A” letters being rounded instead of pointed like in the old designs. There is also a registered trademark symbol (a small capital R letter in a circle) in the top right of the last letter “E” in “League”.
What is the Champions League badge of honor?
Besides the Champions League logo that we all see in every Champions League game, there is the Champions League badge of honor that is featured on the sleeve of the player. But not all players’ jerseys include this special logo. Only football clubs that have received the Champions League trophy permanently (meaning they won three titles in a row or a total of five titles) can have their sleeve featured the Champions League badge of honor.
It used to be the same as the Champion League logo, which is a 2D ball with a five-pointed star pattern. Now, it is the symbol of the Champions League trophy with the number of times that the club has won this competition.
