Ahead of the milestone 10th season of Europe's biggest club ice hockey competition, the Champions Hockey League has launched a striking new visual identity with the aim of moving the boundaries of European hockey further than anyone has before.
Hypercharged
"The hypercharged platform is the foundation of each element of the new visual identity, including colours, typography, graphic language and motion graphics," said Ed Reynolds from TwelfthMan, the authors of the new brand redesign.
One of the most eye-catching changes is the colour palette revamp, doing away with some of the traditional Champions Hockey League shades and introducing an adapted CHL Red and an all-new CHL Purple. Secondary colours add vibrancy, energy, power and intensity and will serve as accents to the primary shades.
The outgoing identity, that fans and teams had come to associate with the pan-European competition, was introduced by the league in 2017. "The redesign back then helped establish our mission, vision, values and positioning but we felt now was the time to introduce some more pace and energy!" revealed CHL CEO Martin Baumann.
"The new visual identity aligns perfectly with one of our most important values - unconventional."Philip Schuler, CHL Marketing & Events Director
And the new visual identity does just that, capturing the energy, emotion and raw power of Europe's very best hockey. It's alive, electrifying the atmosphere while playing to the rhythm, noise and drama of the game.
Equally impressive is the new CHL Hypercharged typography, specially created for the CHL, that represents everything the league stands for. It's bold, impactful and commands attention and will be present across social media graphics, TV overlays and video content.
However, throughout all the novelty, one dominant visual has remained - the CHL logo. Not only will the logo remain, but it served as a hugely important point of reference during the design process and many cues reflect its sharp edges and hexagonal shape. But get ready to see the logo in ways you haven't before!
And on that topic, it's paramount to introduce the special anniversary logo, commemorating the Champions Hockey League's 10th season.
The European Trophy will also remain as we know it, but its true form will only be reserved for real life as in this new digital visual identity, it has taken on an illustrative and contemporary style. A special CHL Final visual is also ready, aiming to highlight the uniqueness of the all-or-nothing event that decides history.
"This is hockey - amplified"Philip Schuler, CHL Marketing & Events Director
"The new identity is a more genuine reflection of our competition, capturing the excitement, dynamics and intensity of CHL hockey," said Philip Schuler, CHL Marketing & Events Director on the new visual identity.
"The new headline font, colours and visual identity bring a new, fresh and perhaps unexpected approach to the hockey industry - we're super excited to see our new identity in arenas across Europe!" he added.