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United’s ‘Brand’ New Crest

During a time when the media ponder England Glory, we here at RedRants focus on a real United Icon…..The Manchester United Crest

The Manchester United Crest has become one of the most instantly recognisable ‘Sports Brand’ Icons of the modern global game. It’s become synonymous with success on and off the field. Yet this only tells part of the story, since for much of the reported 659million followers Our Crest means so much more than a Brand…..

It represents Pride… Joy… Tears… Pain… Love… Belief… Sweet and Bitter Memories… It represents Our Passion…

For the fans of Manchester United Football club, (rather than the brand), it represents the Heart and Soul of the club. Worn on the Shirts’ of our warriors; A banner to which we can flock.

Glory, Glory Man United….

Early History:

Teams’ originally donned crests on their shirts only in finals. Manchester United wore Manchester council’s coat of arms as a crest on victorious shirts in the 1963 F.A.Cup final and the 1968 European Cup final.

Originally the Coat of Arms crest celebrated Manchester’s esteemed rich industrial history, so recently touched on by Nike’s clumsy and ill-conceived ‘Gingham’ experiment, “Forged in History, Striving for Glory”.

It contained a globe covered with Bee’s, adopted in the 19th Century to depict the Industry and endeavour that saw Manchester at the heart of the birth of the Industrial revolution. It contained animals either side of a shield; an antelope with a gold chain portraying the city’s innovative engineering accomplishments and a Lion wearing a crown, recognising the fact that the city of Manchester grew up around the ancient Roman settlement of Castlefield. Red roses acknowledged the County of Lancashire. Three golden bands on the shield refer to the ancient arms of the Grelley family, First Baron of Manchester, rather than the three rivers as sometimes mistakenly presumed. Atop this, a Ship in sail illustrates the trade and enterprise achievements of the city. The motto it bore declared “Wisdom and Effort”, (Consilio et Labore).

Sixties And Seventies:

In the sixties, the badge was remodelled to a more familiar contemporary style reflecting the new exciting innovative flair of the Busby Babes. It retained the shield and ship, but now bordered by Banners that pronounced “Manchester United” “Football Club”. Even then, Sir Matt Busby had adopted the tag; ‘The Red Devils’ taken from the Salford Devils’ Rugby league club, designed to strike fear into the heart of the Opponents.

In 1970, the crest finally saw the iconic Red Devil added to the shield in place of the bars.

1998 saw the last major change. The forward thinking Hierarchy sanctioned a change to the banners as it sought to establish today’s Global Sporting Brand dropping “Football Club” to leave the crest simply reading “Manchester United”.

Today:

Today we see our crest on many advertising opportunities and commercial goods, but beyond this, Manchester United F.C., for all its failings, never forgets its soul or history. The original coat of arms crest can still be seen on the official club blazers the players wear on official club appointments and long may that continue please, The Glazers and the suits have changed enough already.

But the badge we kiss, is the crest we identify with most.

“We wear our Badge with Pride,

The Crest Burns with the fire of our Passion.

We Fight, Fight for the Cause

It’s Etched on the Soul of our Club.

We Remember the Flowers of Our Past,

We have endured All Hurts and met all Challenges.

Glory, Glory Manchester United,

We Will Never Die.”

 Remember…….

Our Crest, Our Soul > Than Any Player you Mention !!

Win:

As part of RedRants’ Summer of Give-aways we’re offering one lucky winner the chance to win one of these Fathead Wall Graphics.. Measuring 3’2″ x 3’2″ (that’s right…..50inch square!), this vinyl poster could take pride of place on either your bedroom wall, your kids bedroom wall, your office or even your front room if the wife’s ok with it!

The Fathead Manchester United Crest is a high definition image made of tough high-grade vinyl that’s tear and fade resistant, so you can be assured your eye catching centre-piece stays exactly that. And, if the thought of removing the crest makes you want to cry, don’t worry, because it uses a low-tack adhesive that can be easily peeled and reused without any damage to your wall.

For further information, product specifications and reviews head over to Fathead.com now!

To be in the hat: Which Manchester United player will be the first Manchester United player to score at this years European Championships?

This unbelievable prize could be yours simply by entering this simple sweepstake. One lucky winner will be randomly chosen from all the correct answers in the comments section below, our Twitter page @RedRants and on our Facebook page.

Good Luck

@JonyB007.