Chris Heck, the head of commercial operations for the English Premier League squad, is in charge of the project as the organisation looks to enter new markets. As part of The Drum’s Sports & Fitness Focus, we learn more.
August will see the debut of Aston Villa’s new crest on the team’s apparel for the upcoming season.
As part of a relationship with the sports giant, Aston Villa will debut a new club crest on new jerseys created by Adidas in August for the Premier League season.
The club hopes to establish itself as a global brand, and the crest, which was unveiled in May, is at the centre of a new identity system that is being implemented across everything from in-stadium fan experiences to internet and retail.
After a strong domestic season in which it placed fourth in the Premier League, it qualified for the prestigious European competition, the Champions League, thus it will need to get started right away.
Every Premier League team, including Aston Villa, is half billionaire Nassef Sawiris.
Aston Villa’s president of business operations, Chris Heck, says that unbeknown to him, a new visual identity was planned just before he joined in 2023 and announced internally shortly after, which meant his main task was to make it work.
The essence of that work, which began to roll out last season but will be fully realized next season, is focused on the needs of domestic fans first, according to Heck. He says the brand has been shaped to think “local first” and recognize the club’s history. “Those two elements are always a top priority and if you get them right, then it translates globally.”
‘We do it for the fans, not investors’
He resists the suggestion that a new visual identity is a careful balancing act, appealing to domestic fans, overseas fans and investors.
“[In terms of the brand], we don’t do anything for investors; we do it for the fans and the natural progression of that investment is that our value is greater if we’re catering to the fans first.
“It starts with the fandom and ends with the fandom and any outside influence, whether that’s investors, corporate partners, sponsors or merchandise, comes as a result of the fans’ love for the brand and the infinity we have with them.
“I think about the club’s history and the core fan before anything else. I always wince when I see that a brand has been altered because there’s a new person in charge or there’s a new direction in marketing just to shake things up.”
Having said that, Aston Villa wants to project its brand internationally. To that end, the Birmingham-based team opened a new office in London at the beginning of 2024 to handle partnership development. However, they are not the only team that has taken this action. London is home to a number of other national premier league teams, such as Manchester City and Liverpool.
Heck led the design of the new design standards, which were created by internal lead designer Luke MacGregor-Dignan and make no secret of their goals with fresh approaches to positioning, storytelling, and imagery from around the world.
The Drum knows that the previous crest, which was worn on the shirt from the previous season and was created by the design firm Dragon Rouge, was a part of a larger identity system that was delivered, but it was short-lived.
Heck admits he has no idea why this suite of work was abandoned but affirms that all of the new work, which debuted last season and will be completely implemented this coming season, was completed internally.
The new crest is a simplified version of the one that was last used in the 2022–2023 season and has been in use for 35 years.
Heck claims that Aston Villa was the first team to employ a lion on their crest, and they have done so ever since their founding in 1874. Pardon the pun, but this would make teams like Millwall and Chelsea look like imitators.
The new lion features a star recognising the team that won the European Championship in 1982, the club’s founding year of 1874, and
Heck claims that the crest’s new double line of piping surrounding its edge is a nod to the piping found on kits from the 1950s to 1980s, which was frequently visible on the collar and shorts. “We made the decision to pay tribute to the outstanding teams that graced Villa Park. At a historic club like this, it’s all about opening your eyes to what’s right in front of you, and that’s what we’ve accomplished. The piping is currently the subject of more tests to see if it
The hero font, Medula One, is the design language that most clearly addresses the concepts of location and history. The lettering on the Holte End gates at Villa Park served as inspiration, but it was modified to function in the contemporary environment across a variety of touchpoints. It also draws inspiration from Villa’s famous lion’s claws.
The idea was presented to Heck by MacGregor Dignan, who then went about designing a typeface with tiny brush-like end strokes that could be utilised in all of the club’s primary messaging. Alverata and Roboto both support the custom typeface.
The launch of the brand is being accompanied by the construction of unique, multi-tiered spectator experiences all around the stadium. Among them is Legends, a classy eating establishment that is undergoing renovations and of which Heck claims that “many former players will be present at the space and work on game days.”
“Game days.”
Similar to this, the club is celebrating its sesquicentennial milestone this season with the opening of an area dubbed 150. “A new private club space where members will have private tables, seats, and lockers” is what this is.
The Villain’s Lounge honours notable patrons such as Ozzy Osbourne, Tom Hanks, and the Prince of Wales. Each of these sectors seeks to provide fans with varying degrees of service according to their desired payment amount.
Read more news on https://sportupdates.co.uk/
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