startup hustle

Local designer and close friend Gabe Shultz won the Best Identity at the CSCA’s Creative Best awards show for rebranding the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) soccer team. The rebranding was a side project that Gabe did for fun.

A recent conversation with Gabe was around the strength of the NY Cosmos soccer brand. A team that had a ton of success in the NASL in the 70′s. The team has been relaunched with the backing of Umbro and is selling a ton of merchandise, but is not part of a professional soccer league (rumors that they are trying to join the MLS are on and off). The brands success is based on the individuals involved (Pele, Eric Cantona, and Cobi Jones) and its heritage.

After progressing to the FIFA World Cup group stage of qualifying for the first time, the USVI soccer team was gaining a bit more publicity and caught Gabes eye for one reason, he is an avid soccer fan and two, he has been to the USVIs (and I assume liked his stay). This led to the opportunity to rebrand the team (and federation) that, if adopted by the USVI team, could potentially increase the income and provide better equipment and facilities. View Gabe’s full USVI proposal (PDF). Check out the rebranding design below.

USVI Jerseys

USVI Apparel

Customize USVI Apparel on mobile device