*Ranking All 22 Logos

**MMFLEX** · (This post was last modified: 05-28-2021, 06:14 AM by .simo.)

2x Claim

This seems like such a new guy article idea, but with the Baltimore Hawks recently announcing their rebrand and the Ultimus Week PT having an option to comment on best and worst brands I have decided to rank all ISFL and DSFL logos according to my personal preference. This will include the new Baltimore logo and I will try to keep it to logos only without getting much into the overall brand. All of these logos were pulled from each league's index aside from the Baltimore Hawks logo which was used from their reveal announcement.

Allow this to be a notice to ISFL GMs: I would be more than happy to play for any of you or your teams regardless of what your logo looks like and my thoughts about them. I am a loyal user and player, and a logo is not a reason for me to be disinterested in a team.

New York Silverbacks

In my Ultimus Week PT I separated ISFL from DSFL and I listed New York as my favorite brand. Now that I am combining the leagues New York takes the cake overall as best logo, in my eyes. I really like how the logo incorporates iconic New York scenery into the logo. The Broadway signage for the text is classic, and the skyscraper background is an excellent subtle touch. The gorilla is the focal point and just blends nicely with the rest of the logo.

London Royals

If I were ranking brands here, I think the London Royals would take the top spot. Like New York, I really like how everything ties in here and I think it is extremely creative. The king of the jungle rocks a crown, because with royalty comes crowns. The logo is very sleek and clean, and the color scheme just screams royalty. The only real issue I have with the logo is a lot of dead space on the left side between the text and the mane.

Arizona Outlaws

Maybe I have a soft spot for western bad boys, but this logo grabs my attention. There really isn’t anything flashy about this logo, so I bet ranking this at number three is higher than average across the league. The text is the best thing about this logo. I love the curvature on Arizona, and I love how the As on the ends have some additional detail. The A in Outlaws also has some difference that I like as well. I’m not sure if that’s to call out A as the beginning later of the state, but I like it. I like the color scheme as well and it follows similar colors of the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Berlin Fire Salamanders

This is the first salamander logo I have ever seen, and it is top notch. It has a bit of an intimidation factor with the red eyes and flames throughout the logo. The tail wrapping around the text is a nice touch and the text in general is my favorite of all the logos the league offers. The only thing I think that could have been done differently is a downward curve on the salamanders text to open more space for the fire text; it seems crowded now.

Tijuana Luchadores

This is a dope logo and I love the text, which is simple, but it pops for me. Tijuana in the belt is cool to see. Luchadores seems to be the focal point and I am okay with the text being the focal point since the Luchador, himself, is very shaded. The white is a nice contrast to the overall logo. I wish there were a bit more gray tones in the shaded mask area, but I think it is a very nice and simple logo overall.

Chicago Butchers

As a brand I do not like it. I even mentioned in my Ultimus PT that this was the brand that needed a rework in the ISFL. As a logo, however, it is pretty cool. I like the sharp edges on the text as if it is a meat tenderizer. Red is, obviously, a logical color choice. Would have worried me if it was any other color. And I like how the red fluidly flows throughout the text. A- grade for the logo. D- grade as a brand.

Portland Pythons

Now we are starting to get into the logos without text. As you can tell from the logos I have ranked to this point, I like text. I do not want to be guessing what the team name is, and text most definitely adds a creative element to a logo. For Portland, I think the compass rose in the background is creative as Oregon is known for it’s beautiful countryside. This is Portland, Oregon, right? The snake wrapped around a football tells me this is definitely a sports logo, and I like that the snake has more cartoonish features unlike the Austin Copperheads logo I touch on down the road.

Philadelphia Liberty

I’m kind of on the fence with this logo. On one hand, I don’t like that it lacks originality since it looks like a combination of the Philadelphia 76ers and Phillies. The color schemes are even the same. On the other hand, I kind of like that the logo pays homage to the other hometown teams, and at least the Liberty Bell looks better than the Phillies’ logo. It has text too, so that’s a bonus amiright?!

Baltimore Hawks

The new Baltimore Hawks logo… How is this not number 1? I mean, I like it. I think it is better than their previous logo, but I think it lacks originality as well. I saw a comment that it looks like the Cardinals’ logo. It does. It looks like many other birds of prey logos out there. What I do like is the color scheme and the dark red contrast as shading. I like the golden yellow outline that surrounds the head. It looks fierce and agile, and it is a decent logo overall.

Kansas City Coyotes

For not having text, I really like this logo. I like that it has the multiple layers of coyote, mountain, and sun. The howling coyote is a cool feature to incorporate. The rounded logo is a nice touch to keep the overall look consistent with the shape of the sun. I think the color scheme works for this logo more than the purple on the Second Line. There is a tiny purple blip at the bottom of the right white stripe that I think should be fine-tuned, but it is a nice logo.

Honolulu Hahalua

I initially had this logo quite a bit lower until I realized it was really only the mustache on the manta ray I didn’t like. I understand mantas have that fine, but it looks a bit too much like Yosemite Sam. Despite my feelings on the mustache I think this logo is pretty legit and creative. The ties to Hawaiian culture are incredible. From the naming of the mascot to the lei, and even the colors. The detail on the lei and the shading throughout the logo are subtly impressive. The tone in the manta’s eyes are fierce, and that’s great for a football team’s logo. Moral: Don’t judge a logo by it’s mustache.

Austin Copperheads

The capital of the Lone Star state features a star in the background, and I like the touch of state history included. The snake looks nice as well. It has nice detail, shading, and it looks natural. A major thing I don’t like on this logo is the body of the snake giving in to the angle of the star on the left side. I think it would look better to continue with the shape and overlap the star just like it is done on the other side. I think doing so doesn’t take anything away from the star and wouldn’t be as much of a distraction.

Norfolk Seawolves

My new team! I’m sorry this did not make it into the top half of my rankings. At least I like something about this logo. I don’t know if I can say that about any remaining logos. What I like about the logo is it’s unique. You don’t see sports logos use submarines and I think it makes it fresh. I think if any logo in the entire league needed text it would be this one. There is no way in one million guesses that I would have come up with Seawolves as the team’s name. Now, as far as the overall appearance goes, I think the logo is very dark which leads me to guess, again, as to what the team colors would be. The circular shape of the radar flattens out at the bottom quite abruptly and the large wake on the left side of the logo completely deviates from the entire style of the logo.

New Orleans Second Line

I don’t know about this one. I have spent too much time looking at it and searching for something to enjoy about it. It does have text, so I will give it bonus points for that, but I am having a difficult time finding anything else. The colors are hideous. I do not think crests as logos, and especially sports logos, are what you want. I look at this and I think of Harry Potter or some Hogwarts crest. If you put all these logos in a lineup and asked me to identify one that does not belong, I would pick this one. The marching line is too small to really identify what is going on, and as the main identifier for your sports team I think you should be wanting to showcase that more.

Minnesota Grey Ducks

I actually had this logo higher until I started writing about it and the more I wrote the more I despised the logo using the state abbreviation and then covering up the damn M with a giant ass wing. Then I got to thinking about the Oregon Ducks and how nice their logo is for a duck. Despite it being Donald Duck, Oregon actually makes their logo express emotion and look intimidating. Other than what I pointed out, to me, there isn’t anything else that is especially exciting either way about this logo. Like I said at the beginning, at first glance I actually kind of liked the logo, but as it settled it just became boring and the more I felt it could hold my interest after doing a good job of initially capturing it.

Yellowknife Wraiths

It’s plain. It’s boring. I’m fine with a black and white color scheme, but this just looks like a skeleton popping out to play whack-a-mole. I don’t even really have a whole lot to say about this. I just feel like it could be drastically better with any amount of creativity. Have I mentioned I like text on logos? Maybe that’s an idea. There is a lot of dead dark space around the wraith’s neck area as well. I previously stated that the Chicago Butchers were the team I thought needed a brand makeover just due to the blood and, well, butchery. If I were to choose a logo, and logo alone, I think I’d choose the Wraiths to get a makeover. It just seems like the logo that lacks creativity the most and I think there could be some really cool mockups done for a wraith.

Bondi Beach Buccaneers

Did LaVar Ball found this team? BBB. Get it? Dumb joke. I am probably putting this a little higher than I should since I’m a sucker for Pirates of the Caribbean and this logo looks like it is straight off a movie cover. I am not really a fan of the colors and I don’t really know what’s going on with the purple eye thing. The beard bleeding into the border is incredibly distracting to me. If not for a Pirates type logo this would be near the bottom. Not really a fan.

Dallas Birddogs

There is just so much that is not working for me with this logo. I’m a Michigan Wolverines fan so I’m usually all about the Maize and Blue, or another similar color scheme; but this is a shameful representation. The dog, specifically the legs, are a huge point of contention for me. The back leg looks like a prosthetic that is used by athletes, or like a clog or something. The front legs give me an aneurysm because I cannot determine which leg is supposed to be in the background and what leg should be in the foreground. The final thing regarding the dog is the turd it is stepping over and walking through the D. I said in my Ultimus PT that this was the DSFL team that needed a brand rework, and I will double down on that. The logo is yucky and I think of a hundred other things when I think of Dallas.

San Jose SaberCats

I struggle finding something that speaks to me with this logo. The next few logos are plain and boring in my opinion. A SaberCat should be somewhat intimidating, right? The isolation of the cat on the dark background does not exactly allow the logo to be intimidating. The background is problematic as well. There is not enough contrast in the background to easily identify the SJ, and to be honest I can not tell if there is more to it aside from the SJ. The color scheme is a bit too militaristic without any real rhyme or reason to it; that I can see anyway. I have no issue with the military, but I did not find any strong ties to San Jose. Maybe the choice of colors wasn’t intentional in paying homage to the military, but it’s more of a call out of my own curiosity on the color choice.

Orange County Otters

It’s just a beaver head with nothing else; no text. Yes, I know it’s not a beaver. It clearly says otters, but I think of beavers when I see this. And get your head out of the gutter. Maybe it’s my subconscious with the colors and the animal similarity that screams Oregon State and I think of beavers. Maybe it’s just that it looks like a beaver. Either way, it’s clearly an aquatic mammal. Back to the logo though. It is plain and boring. I like the orange. I like the emotion in it’s eye. I just think there can be a lot more creativity and fun mock ups to be had with the fun spirited animal.

Sarasota Sailfish

I can not get over the fact this fish looks drunk. The eyes are lifeless, and the mouth is just begging for more alcohol. I think it looks like a remake of an old school Microsoft Word Clip Art image instead of many of the other league logos that legitimately could be a real sports logo or look more professionally done. This is an example of what I’ve been saying throughout this media piece that text on this logo could add to it and divert attention away from the drunk fish. I don’t think this logo is too far off from looking better with just a few touch ups.

Colorado Yeti

No! You can’t take the iconic Chicago Cubs “C” and use it for anything else! That C is something everyone knows to be the Chicago Cubs. This logo looks like the Cubs’ alternate logo, but just swapped out the bear for the yeti and changed up the colors. That’s all it is! The unoriginality is disappointing and it has no ties to Chicago. There could have been way more done to connect to a state that has unique history and beautiful views.