Minnesota United FC, known to supporters as the Loons, has carried a single core visual identity since its 2013 rebrand from the Minnesota Stars. The crest was designed by Minneapolis-based firm Zeus Jones, which was hired by new ownership in late 2012 to build a brand that tied soccer to the state of Minnesota.[1] The firm proposed eleven concepts, ranging from the club’s initials to Iron Range mining tools, but three loon-focused designs became front-runners, and the state bird was chosen as the centerpiece.[1]
Design and History
The crest is built around a black loon with a red eye, set against a gray shield with a blue diagonal stripe. The loon features 11 feathers, representing the 11 players on the pitch.[2] The blue stripe represents the Mississippi River, which starts in Minnesota, while the gray backdrop nods to the state’s Iron Range.[2] The upward-pointing crest and the North Star above it were inspired by “L’Étoile du Nord,” the state motto.[3]
The club unveiled the new name and crest on March 5, 2013, at a news conference at Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis.[4] The rebrand changed the team’s colors from the Stars’ blue and yellow to sky blue, gray, and black with a red accent.[5]
When Minnesota United joined Major League Soccer in 2017, the club retained both its name and its loon crest, with only slight alterations. The most notable change was replacing the full team name in the lettering with the acronym “MNUFC.”[2] The crest otherwise remained largely the same as the NASL version.[3]
Meaning and Symbolism
The loon is Minnesota’s state bird, and its prominent placement in the crest gives the club its adopted nickname, “the Loons.”[3] The nickname emerged organically from supporters shortly after the 2013 rebrand, and the club embraced it.[1]
The crest’s elements are drawn directly from Minnesota geography and history. The gray sections reference the Iron Range, the blue diagonal stripe represents the Mississippi River, and the North Star above the crest reflects the state motto “L’Étoile du Nord.”[3] Zeus Jones described the key elements as “the majestic loon (Minnesota’s state bird) to the North Star and the silver taconite plates symbolizing the state’s mining heritage.”[6]
Typography and Design
The “MNUFC” lettering in the crest uses a font created by a local graphic design firm based in St. Paul.[7] The club’s official colors are gray, sky blue, and black.[8]
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