This is the moment a lot of people have been waiting for!
The AFL logo review wrap up – The teams ranked from 1-18 by their logo
1. Carlton
The Carlton monogram is far and above the best logo in the AFL. There’s no debating it. It’s iconic, it’s historic, it’s simple, and it’s memorable.
2. Hawthorn
A great mix of tradition and modern sport logo design, with a nod to the club’s greatest era.
3. Richmond
Another good mix of mascot and shield, the Richmond logo is proud of its origin.
4. St Kilda
One of the older logos that exudes tradition and history, even if the practicalities aren’t that strong.
5. Essendon
While some call the Bombers logo dated, I still think it’s a really strong sports logo that is easily placed on merch, uniforms or wherever. It still feels like a young and energetic logo, which is why I’ve ranked it so highly.
6. Fremantle
The new shield style of the Dockers logo looks fresh, with the D/Anchor monogram being a future great in the sports logo landscape.
7. Western Bulldogs
The brandmark is simple and effective, only let down by the text underneath, which does its best to avoid having personality.
8. Port Adelaide
A subtle message of forward thinking coupled with some strong imagery makes this logo stand out from the pack. It’s one of the more unique logos in the league and should be commended for it.
9. North Melbourne
Removing themselves from a period of location uncertainty, the Kangaroos have produced a workable logo with a whole lot more personality than the previous version which is let down on some of the minor details.
10. Sydney
I can’t get behind the font choice of the logo and the weird swan rendering at the bottom right hand side. It does get points for connecting well with the history and culture of the club.
11. Brisbane
One of the more dramatic redesigns in the league saw them ditch the traditional silhouette inherited from the Fitzroy merger in favour of an Aslan-style lion face. Points given for the research, points removed for the typeface and the separate styles of each half of the lion-face.
12. West Coast
The text doesn’t work, and the focus of the logo is on the wings of the eagle which means the most important part (the face) loses its impact.
13. Collingwood
The Magpies logo is clearly not that important to the team compared to the uniform. With an outdated magpie rendering poorly at small sizes and the awkward forced flipping of sides of the Australian flag, this is a logo which feels historic but could still be improved.
14. Geelong
Geelong get points for aligning their logo with the Footy Full On vision, however the text choices for the main logo are poor, along with the top of the cat head. While I normally advocate for secondary marks, the fake tradition and awkward cat rendering in the crest style logo puts this rebrand surely in the bottom half of the AFL. They’re better than the previous logo, but still have a long way to go before earning my respect.
15. GWS
If you wanted to design a logo for a sports equipment shop, this is probably the one you’d go for. The problem is that it’s for a team. It’s bland. I hope one day they incorporate a mad monk a la the Padres to give them a bit of a personality kick!
16. Melbourne
Too many elements, trying too hard to convey a sense of history. Needs a reduction, stat!
17. Adelaide
Apart from the weird speed/feather marks on the letters, the Baltimore Ravens association, the odd connection of mascot to the text, and the strange choice of typeface, there’s probably a lot of things kids will like about the Adelaide Crows logo. That says it all really.
18. Gold Coast Suns
It’s hard to know where to start and end with the Suns logo. It’s all style, no substance, and I hope we see the back of it soon.