AFC Eskilstuna is a Swedish football club based in Eskilstuna, founded in 2007 as Athletic FC in Solna and later renamed AFC United before adopting its current name in 2017 following a move to Eskilstuna.[1] The club’s visual identity has undergone a significant update in recent years, driven by a desire to strengthen its connection to the city of Eskilstuna.
Design and History
In January 2024, AFC Eskilstuna announced it was renewing its club badge. The work on the updated mark began in early 2023 in collaboration with the communications agency Columbird.[2] The primary motivation for the redesign was to incorporate the city’s name into the logo, as the club sought to affirm its place in Eskilstuna after relocating from the Stockholm area.[3]
Peter Harich, media manager at AFC Eskilstuna, stated that the club was proud of its old badge but wanted to update it so that “Eskilstuna” would be visible in the mark, emphasizing that the club is an Eskilstuna club and intends to stay.[4] Henrik Roos, a strategist at Columbird who worked on the new look, described the refreshed badge as a key piece in tying the club’s history to Eskilstuna.[4]
The club’s earlier history notes that the original badge was the same one used since the club’s early days as AFC Academy, with blue and white jerseys being a consistent part of the club’s identity.[2]
Meaning and Symbolism
The 2024 update was designed to make the club’s local anchoring explicit. According to the club, the new badge was intended to show that AFC Eskilstuna is “here to stay” as an Eskilstuna club.[3] The inclusion of the word “Eskilstuna” in the logo was the central symbolic change, marking a deliberate shift from the club’s earlier identity as a Stockholm-based organization.[3]
Typography and Design
Columbird, the agency responsible for the new badge, also handled the club’s broader visual identity update on social media, which was described as a first step toward capturing the club’s core and attitude before the badge refresh.[4] Specific details about the typography or construction of the current badge have not been publicly documented by the club or the agency.
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