Standing Tall: The New Portland Timbers Crest
In 2011, the Portland Timbers will be making the jump from the minor leagues to Major League Soccer. The Timbers made one of their first big, public steps in making that transition a reality when they unveiled their new crest today in front of a crowd gathered in downtown Portland. We were delighted to be called on to help the Timbers step up to the MLS, and were eager to take on the task because we knew it would be a fun challenge. Because Portland isn’t your ordinary city, the Timbers aren’t your ordinary team, and Timbers fans aren’t your ordinary fans. The passion for the Timbers and soccer in general in that region is intense, and we knew we needed to create something that reflected that.
The Timbers have a proud, strong heritage as a team; we understood that the new brand needed to be designed to not only celebrate the Timbers’ ascent to the MLS in 2011, but to symbolize the team’s history of success and continuing evolution and progression. Our research and exploration took us in a lot of directions, but we knew it was important to pay respect to the team’s history, the Portland region, the game of soccer, and the embodiment that the Timbers stand tall in every situation and at each new juncture.
Portland Timbers logos through the years.
The new primary mark features four main elements which all pay homage to the team’s history while signifying the new era of Timbers soccer. The new mark’s central focus remains the T-shaped axe, which now breaks free of the confines of the original crest. The axe represents the team’s intense strength, precision, and exactness in all they do. The circle shape also remains, representing unity, wholeness, and the Timbers’ pursuit of perfection. Also retained in the logo are the chevrons, which are more than a graphic representation of trees. Now simplified to three chevrons, these elements represent the team’s membership in the NASL (where their roots began), the USL (where they started to flourish), and their current inclusion as the 18th MLS franchise—thereby paying tribute to their league history and growth. The Timbers’ colors get an enhancement as well, with the traditional “Ponderosa” green and the energetic accent of “Moss” getting their inspiration from the pines of the deep, lush Oregon forests.
Another significant part of the new crest is the dominance of the word “Portland”. This is Portland’s team, and the mark was made to emphasize that connection that the Timbers have with the city. There’s also a nod to the team’s history in subtle visual cues to the previous logo’s typeface. The name “Timbers” embraces the team’s heritage and pays homage to the logging industry of the Pacific Northwest.
It was a lot of fun to work on this new mark for the Timbers and we look forward to the release of the rest of the brand system as the year goes on.