JuventusCopied

Juventus' traditional crest was an oval shield in the black and white stripes of the club's shirts, with a bull for its home city of Turin and a crown above. In January 2017 the club replaced it with what Interbrand called an unprecedented move: a stylised J built from the stripes, with a JUVENTUS wordmark.

The ambition was bigger than a badge. Juventus launched the logo with a plan to go beyond football, to be recognised not only for results but as a symbol of perseverance, ambition and premium Italian style. Creative Review compared the language to the personal brands of individual athletes rather than club badges. The stripes stayed, as the designers pointed out, as a link to the club's legacy.

Interbrand designed it. At the launch, music producer Giorgio Moroder declared that Juventus had seen the future of football.

President Andrea Agnelli presented the J as representing the Juventus way of living. Many supporters were not persuaded. Dezeen reported a fan uprising, AS described a wave of negative reaction on social media, and FourFourTwo noted that not everyone was a fan, with critics calling the mark corporate, anonymous and cut off from the club's history. Others defended it as modern and scalable, and The Week asked whether it was the biggest redesign in football history.

The Guardian recorded the theatre of the launch: a ceremony in Milan, first team players in attendance, and Giorgio Moroder declaring that Juventus had seen the future of football. Andrea Agnelli said the year of work had gone into understanding what new markets wanted while keeping a sense of belonging. What it replaced matters. The crest carried the charging bull of Turin, a symbol shared with rivals Torino and used in some form since 1971, and the stripes date to 1903, when Notts County sent replacement shirts for the original pink. The J kept only the stripes.

The obvious objection is that dropping the bull removed Turin from the crest. But the club got what it paid for. The J works on merchandise, social media and kits like a fashion monogram. As a football badge it is cold; as a brand mark it is very effective.