Newport County Association Football Club, the Welsh club nicknamed The Exiles, competes in EFL League Two. The club’s visual identity is built around a roundel crest in amber and black, the colours that have defined Newport County since its earliest days. The current badge is a modified version introduced in 2007, replacing an earlier design modelled on the Newport coat of arms. [1]
Design and History
The original Newport County club was founded in 1912 and went bankrupt in February 1989. [1] Two months later, a phoenix club was formed as Newport AFC and elected to the Hellenic League. [1] Unable to secure the lease on Somerton Park, the reformed club played its inaugural season in Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, earning the nickname The Exiles. [1] The crest designed for the new club featured the Newport Transporter Bridge, a prominent local landmark, alongside the new nickname. [1]
After adopting the title Newport County AFC in 1999, the club introduced a new crest modelled closely on the Newport coat of arms, which features an heraldic sea lion and a sea dragon, indicating the town’s maritime tradition as a port. [1] The design proved popular, and in 2007 a modified version replaced the coat of arms. [1]
The current badge is a roundel in the club’s amber and black colours. [2] The outer ring carries the club’s name at the top and the nickname “exiles” at the bottom, with the dates 1912 and 1989 flanking the central design. [3] The 1912 date marks the founding of the original club, while 1989 records the year of its reformation. [3]
Meaning and Symbolism
The badge’s central shield is taken from the Newport coat of arms, which was officially granted in April 1929. [4] The shield is that of the Staffords, the Earls and Dukes of Buckingham, who were Lords of the Manor of Newport in the 14th and 15th centuries. [4] The coat of arms features a winged sea lion, a symbol Newport was the first authority to use, representing strength on land, sea and in the air. [4]
The current badge reverses the colour scheme of the older club’s badge, with the outer roundel in black rather than amber. [4] The nickname “exiles” is rendered in lowercase, an unusual stylistic choice noted by badge historians. [4] The club’s supporters refer to themselves as the “Amber Army” in reference to the traditional club colour. [5]
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