A divided reaction on social media after Stoke City reveal the results of club crest fan vote, with the majority going for a new look.
For the last few months, Stoke has been engaging with supporters on the possibility of updating their club crest, exploring whether there’s an appetite for change, particularly as the 100th anniversary of their city coat of arms crest approaches in 2026.
Majority of the supporters fans have expressed a desire to incorporate elements of the club’s heritage, such as symbols tied to Stoke-on-Trent’s pottery industry or historical crests, to better reflect local identity.
Supporters were split on the one being proposed to them, so a vote was put to them.
Now Stoke have confirmed that they will have a new Club Crest from the 26/27 season after their fans voted in favour of change.
Inspired by the badge of 77-92 by popular demand, with a modernised take on the design, the new identity was ratified by a majority of 68% to 32%.
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CLUB STATEMENT:
Stoke City will have a new Club Crest from the 26/27 season after the Club’s fans voted in favour of change.
Inspired by the badge of 77-92 by popular demand, with a modernised take on the design, the new identity was ratified by a majority of 68% to 32%.
The vote, which was independently hosted and validated by sports industry data experts Two Circles, represented the final stage of an exhaustive consultation process which included surveys, fan assemblies and regular dialogue with the independent fan advisory committee, Stoke City Connect.
The rollout of the new crest will commence with the launch of the 26/27 shirts, as well as across the Club’s digital channels and selected high-profile locations at the bet365 Stadium, next summer. It will then continue, phased over several seasons, moving forward.
Chief Operating Officer Simon King said: “The crest is an integral part of the Club’s heritage and this will, therefore, go down as an historic moment for Stoke City.
“Our approach from the outset has been to put our fans at the heart of the process, allowing them to form an identity that truly represents them.
“Every supporter that has engaged, as well as those who have quietly put their faith in the Club, all have our sincere thanks.
“A huge amount of hard work has gone into bringing the project to this point, from within the Club, from our design agency Drummond Central and from Stoke City Connect whose check, challenge and guidance has been invaluable.
“We are also grateful to the FA and EFL for their guidance around the process to ensure that we comply with the relevant regulations around this change.
“The end result is something that represents the history and tradition our supporters are proud of, and for which Stoke-on-Trent is renowned, and I believe that’s the best place to be.
“We are looking forward to our new crest becoming an integral part of the identity of our club from the 26/27 season and for many years to come.”
Stoke City Connect Chair, Clare Beardmore, added: “The Club engaged with Connect from start to finish. Supporters’ voices were heard and acted upon, and a well-defined process was followed throughout.
“We are, of course, aware that no new design could ever please everybody. The aspiration was always for the Club to produce something that gained approval from the majority.
“With supporters having been asked for their opinions on what features should be included, and with the wishes of the majority incorporated as much as possible, we know the crest seeks to be representative of our Club and our City.”
As mentioned, there was a divided reaction on social media after Stoke City reveal the results of club crest fan vote…
@MattStark1991: Should have been the city crest, or just left alone.
@SCFCTOM20: What’s that 😭😭
@bhurnn: Looks like yous are copying Sunderland
@WillM_94: It’s not too late to make it look a bit better and less like it was done on Microsoft paint.
@ZHallam101: No one wanted this
@SCFCArchie: Current badge is clear what type of fans were voting 😭
@rd4venport: I actually rate it
@fumantew: Don’t fix something that doesn’t need fixing 👍🏼Terrible decision
@lmf20__: Bet half the people moaning on here didn’t even vote
@thorley_8: How can that many fans vote for an actual pretzel?
@JakeHall90: Further proof our fans are idiots.
@Glynandrews: £500k down the drain on something that didn’t need doing. Should have given that money to the community trust rather than forcing this through.
@UtchStokie: Great concept to involve fans, but terrible execution. The crest looks like a 15-year-old’s graphic design homework. Next time, accept fan designs rather than putting them in a so-called professional’s hands. There were many better designs put forward by fans
@pigeonman562: I’m fucking buzzing
@SCFC_18: It’s nice but it could be a lot better with a few more tweaks
@Coopppperr: The majority of fans wanted a new crest, and we got one, it’s just the design, it looks like it’s been drawn by a child in primary school, cheap and nasty
@puffpuff65: A rarity where the new crest is better than the current one imo. Good design
@bradr05: the rope style one that someone on here made was the one for me
@Ryanbentleyc: Wanted change but better to keep the current than move to that design that took 10 mins to whip up.
@potter2207: The right decision, given we only had 2 options. But “voted for by the fans” is disingenuous, given that there were only 2 options before it came to the vast majority of fans. Once again, a select few have made a decision most of us disagree with. Let us ALL vote from the start.
@nathphilk: I Must be in the minority of people who like this by looking at the comments. I love a badge that depicts some of the city’s heritage. The Staffordshire knot and a bottle kiln is who we are and I love it! Up the potters #SCFC
@OWaltonSports: You do worry for that 68%. I was in favour of the club having a new badge but this one is no better than the current iteration, if not worse.
@pigeonman562: Think people forget there’s also a hell of a lot of stoke fans not involved online who quite liked it. Hence the large majority
@potterscope_: Nice badge, actually quite happy about this change, but I HATE the font.
@StokieCooper_: Can’t believe we’ve now got this crest for the next 25-30 years at least. Our fanbase is far too sentimental and the votes were done with the 77-92 badge in their mind which has basically resulted in a 77-92 badge. Really should have done some adhoc designs to show fans with new/fresh ideas that may have made fans think ‘ooo yeah I like that actually’ instead of basically reverting back to a 1970s badge. Its not necessarily bad but its also not good, massive waste of an opportunity for me.
@RyanJosephJack: Weird one this. I never liked our current badge but it’s the one I’ve grown up with, seen us play in the premier league in, watched us in an FA cup final and Europa league with. Even tho I don’t think it’s a particularly good badge, I don’t really want it to go.
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