Wellington Phoenix FC is a professional football club based in Wellington, New Zealand, competing in Australia’s A-League Men. The club was founded in 2007, and its name was chosen from 250 suggestions to symbolise “the fresh start, the rising from the ashes and the incredible Wellington support that has come out.”[1] A concept logo featuring the phoenix bird and the club name was revealed at the same time, with the Wellington colours of yellow and black prominent.[1]
Design and History
In August 2017, as the club entered its second decade in the A-League, Wellington Phoenix unveiled a completely new logo, referred to as a tohu (the Māori word for logo or symbol).[2] The new crest was formally launched in a dawn ceremony in front of the Wharewaka on the Wellington waterfront, where a 3m x 2.4m steel representation of the crest was unveiled.[2]
The 2017 redesign marked a significant departure from the original, more ornate crest. The earlier badge featured a phoenix perched above a shield with a football amid flames, while the new design adopted a simpler, circular format with a yellow background and black outline.[3] The club’s owners and management had long felt the absence of a true identity, and the new logo was seen as a way to redress that.[4]
Meaning and Symbolism
The current crest includes the Māori inscription “E Rere Te Keo”, which translates to “The Resounding Call” or “The Rising Call”.[5] The logo is described as a representation of the Phoenix-like spirit of the taniwha, a great water monster of Māori mythology.[6]
The design takes inspiration from the legend of Ngake and Whataitai, two taniwha who lived in a lake and sought to break free into the ocean. Ngake prepared by building speed and burst through the harbour mouth, while Whataitai attempted to break through at the weakest point without preparation and became stranded, turning into a hillside. “E Rere Te Keo” is described as a rallying cry, the type of cry Ngake would have used as he built momentum.[2]
The club stated that the central concepts of the new tohu are mana (respect), kaha (strength), and whanau and iwi (family and tribe).[2] The phrase “E Rere Te Keo” has since become embedded in the club’s culture, described as “the call to prepare, the call to work hard, the call to prevail regardless of circumstance.”[7]
The club’s colours are black and yellow, the traditional colours of Wellington.[8] These colours have remained consistent across the club’s identity, with the 2019/20 playing strips described as retaining “the famous black and yellow colours alongside E Rere Te Keo.”[9]
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