The Real Sporting de Gijón, commonly known as Sporting de Gijón, is a Spanish football club based in Gijón, Asturias. Its visual identity is built around a triangular crest featuring the club’s red and white stripes, the intertwined initials “S” and “G,” and a royal crown above the shield.
Design and History
The club’s official website documents that the current crest is a direct evolution of an emblem adopted in the 1920s, during the presidency of Ismael Figaredo. That earlier design showed a pointed shield with red and white vertical stripes, the club’s initials imposed over them, and the Spanish Royal Crown above. The site notes that the current badge “takes as reference” this 1920s emblem, though with a triangular form. [1]
In 1997, the club commissioned a formal adaptation of its crest. The work was carried out by the Gijón-based studio Cyan Diseño under designer Juan Jareño. According to the club, this adaptation was driven by the demands of modern visual media and merchandising, which favored “clear images stripped of excessive ornament.” The club registered the colors, dimensions, and forms of its shield as part of this process. [1] Jareño himself described the 1997 project as one of his most complex assignments, noting that the client’s brief required maintaining the structural identity of the existing image while guaranteeing its perfect reproduction and durability over time. [2]
Earlier in the club’s history, the crest underwent several notable changes. The first documented emblem dates to around 1912 and is attributed to Anselmo López, a founder of the club. It was never officially adopted or printed on match shirts. [1] The first officially used crest featured a “casulla” (chasuble) heraldic shape with a football, an image of Don Pelayo from the city’s coat of arms, red and white colors, and the Spanish Royal Crown between an “S” for Sporting and a “G” for Gijón. [1]
With the arrival of the Spanish Republic in 1931, the club was forced to reform its crest, replacing the royal crown with a mural crown and changing the shield’s shape to round. After the Civil War, a new crest took the form of a pointed “G” with red and white colors and the Spanish Royal Crown on top, coinciding with the club’s forced renaming to Real Gijón. [1]
In 2025, to mark the club’s 120th anniversary, the Real Sporting de Gijón presented a commemorative logotype. The design gives absolute prominence to the initials “SG,” presented in the traditional typography of the club’s crest. The monocolor emblem exists in a principal version in the club’s corporate red (Pantone 485C) and a variant in corporate gold (Pantone 117C). The design incorporates a graphic detail extracted from the royal crown that appears on the official crest, connecting the founding year 1905 with 2025. [3]
Meaning and Symbolism
The club’s official history explains that the red and white vertical stripes, described in heraldic terms as “palado de gules y plata,” reflect the colors associated with the maritime province of Gijón. The Spanish Royal Crown appears because the club received the honorary title of “Real” (Royal) in August 1912. [1]
Regarding the 120th anniversary logotype, the club stated that the detail extracted from the royal crown “represents our heritage, our tradition, the dignity and the commitment to excellence” that has accompanied the institution throughout its history. [3]
Typography and Design
For the 120th anniversary emblem, the club specified that the initials “SG” are presented “with the traditional typography of the club’s crest,” reinforcing the link between the commemorative mark and the established identity. [3]
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