NLL Swaps LaX for Native American Symbolism in New Logo – SportsLogos.Net News

NLL Swaps LaX for Native American Symbolism in New Logo

NLL New Logo

The National Lacrosse League yesterday unveiled their new league logo at an event held at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. It’s the first logo change the NLL has made since they took on that name for the 1998 season, previously the league had been known as the Major Indoor Lacrosse League and, before that, the Eagle Pro Box Lacrosse League.

Featuring a noticeable lack of anything associated with the sport they represent, the new NLL logo is a monochrome star (known as the “NLL Star”) with four points to represent the original four franchises, the star is placed inside a black shield with the league acronym above it in silver. A lack of sport imagery isn’t as uncommon as you might think, the National Hockey League for example has never used anything that would suggest it’s a hockey league in their league logos, but for a sport that isn’t really one of the big ones quite yet you’d imagine they’d want some sort of lacrosse representation included in there.

NLL Shield Logo NLL Logo New

“The NLL is the top professional lacrosse league in the world with the biggest crowds and best players, so after 30 years we needed to modernize a League logo representative of the strength, power and swagger of the NLL,” Nick Sakiewicz, Commissioner of the National Lacrosse League was quoted as saying in the press release. “Each part of this design is purposeful; each line, colour, and symbol specifically chosen to convey unique elements of the League.”

So, let’s take a look at each of those lines, colours, and symbols and what they are meant to convey — according to the league, of course:

(click image for larger version)
(click image for larger version)

As noted in the graphic above the new logo will have custom colour-ways for each of the league’s nine teams, similar to Major League’s Baseball and Soccer:

2017 nll logo colourways by teamThe logo doesn’t look so bad with a little colour added to it… I’d still never guess it was for a lacrosse league though, and that might be a problem — depends on how important you feel league logos actually are.

A look at the logos – old vs. new, is this an improvement? Share your thoughts in the comments:

nll old vs new