All-New MLS 2020 Kit Font Launched - 3 'Different Versions'
F37 Foundry. the studio which designed of the MLS 2020 kit font, has officially revealed the design process and all design details of the new MLS 2020 font. There are three different versions of the typeface (3 weights which are layered on top of each other, creating a 'tri-line').
David Bruce — Vice President of Brand, MLS: "We picked F37 because of their track record in the typography world which we have long admired. Their ability to interpret our needs and translate that into compelling design was clear from the very start. The work fits the tone of our brand, culturally fluid, progressive and modern. They pushed our thinking throughout this process, expanding what we thought was possible and creating something bigger than a new set of name and numbers for our jerseys. Rick was a great listener, a top collaborator and was quick to deliver."
All Major League Soccer 2020 kits were released on February 5, 2020.
MLS 2020 Kit Font
The new MLS 2020 jersey typeface "is a dynamic, energetic and bold graphic typeface that introduces a layering tri-line effect." It is inspired by the design of classic typefaces while being very modern.
As revealed by MLS on their website, "official MLS name and number jersey font for 2020 font was designed in collaboration with MLS by Rick Banks, lead designer and typographer of Face37, an award-winning graphic design studio based in Manchester, England."
The font comes in 3 weights and when layered on top of each other, it creates a 'tri-line', something never before seen in football shirt lettering. This creates an energetic, 'swooshing' optical effect, representing the movement and energy in the game, like a Beckham free kick or an Ilsinho step over. The tri-line also symbolically ties into the 3 stars found in the logo. Where possible the angle of the number terminals follows the points of the three stars that appear on the MLS logo.
Like a versatile player capable of shining in any position, the MLS font can be used in many different configurations to suit different applications — MLS Streets is featured on shirts and shorts, whilst the other weights can be used, at the discretion of the league, on banners around stadia, online and for social media.
Bearing in mind that footballers of many nationalities play in the league, F37 Foundry worked on a lot of language support, including a range of accents, ligatures and small caps to cover any eventuality we could think of. We also crafted a specially condensed font for longer names (the Latvian player Andriuškevičius immediately springs to mind!).
The MLS 2020 kit font will be used for all MLS kits from 2020, including those jerseys that were already released last years and are carried over.
It is not known yet if the MLS 2020 font will be used only next year or beyond 2020. We expect the typeface to be used for quite a few years.
Do you like the MLS 2020 font? Let us know in the comments below.
