Super Bowl Logos

A online New York Times multimedia section shows the evolution of the Super Bowl logos since the Super Bowl's inception. The official logo actually featured no football until Super Bowl 26, no shield traditional to the league until Super Bowl 34, and no hint to the existence of 2 conferences until Super Bowl 40 (excluding the first game, which wasn't called a Super Bowl). Are these just logos or are they something more? While I believe that the logos surely aim to evoke the tradition of the game and I think that it's nice to show the evolution of graphic design in the U.S., I find it hard to believe that fans remember or care how the logos change from game to game, year to year, despite duplication on beer cans, jerseys, hats, and other memorabilia.

Last week, the New York Times called professional and amateur designers for proposals for alternative Super Bowl logos. The "best ones," including an entry from Pentagram, were published later in the week on the Fifth Down blog. I think the second one below is hilarious -- it definitely captures why so many Americans enjoy watching the Super Bowl.

"A departure from the roman numerals primarily featured in past Super Bowl logos, a bold symbol celebrates the coming together of the champions of the A.F.C. and N.F.C. Their two overlapping helmets, in the N.F.L.'s colors, embed a football within the center of the design. The ball rests on the 50-yard line, creating the game's iconic trophy." -- Michael Gericke, Don Bilodeau and Jed Skillins, Pentagram

"Since Super Bowl Sunday is the second largest U.S. food consumption day, following Thanksgiving, I propose to mark this unofficial second (or for some people first) national holiday with the elements that any self-respecting football fan or American cannot go without: pizza, burgers and chicken wings. So this logo is a celebration, an ode to the fan and America's favorite pastime. The only graphic requirement is to design each food item in the shape of a football." -- Julia Hoffmann, New York