MLS 96 Collection

No surprise that they didn't use the old logo. The club got pressure to change from that logo before cancelling was cool. The DC united gear in the link is pretty uninspiring though.

 

Where is the Mutiny?

 

Replaced by the Sounders and Timbers which apparently are original '96 teams according to Fanatics.

 

Cancelling has always been cool. The difference now is social media, which has also made it relatively easy.

I thought I remembered that the original logo made it through the 96 season and was then changed for 97. Is that wrong?

Interestingly the logo patch for the Timbers is not the one the USL Timbers were using in 1996, it is rather the NASL-era (and a little past that, I think it stopped being used in 1990) logo. The Sounders, by contrast, appear to be using the USL logo from 96.

Yeah, it's familiar, but I can't place it. Pretty sure it was never a crest on a DC game shirt.

 

and the logo on this stuff is neither. It was used on merch only (some clothes, license plate frame, cups, bumper stickers, and a pennant or two and some other schlock), but was NEVER* a crest, let alone used on any official or replica kit wear (including field jackets, training kits, etc).

The only official logos on actual team wear were the 96/97 teutonic eagle with 3 soccer balls (representing DMV) and pontiac trans-am/firebird screaming chicken logo from 98-2015 followed by the current logo.

There was an even earlier logo used in the early promotional/marketing runup to the inaugural season in which the eagle's wings were straight horizontal with the feathers perpendicular rather than raised up in a 45 degree angle with curved feathers as in the 96/97 logo that was actually used on kits. But I have never seen it on any office staff polos or promotional gear, etc. let alone team wear.

It is weird they didnt use either of the 96 or 98 logos for this project since the team has sold merch with the 96 logo for the last several years. I am curious now why not? Of course, it's about money but I would like to hear the details.....

* I will allow it is possible there was some extremely limited issue use in actual team wear that I missed, but only minimally possible.

 

The gear really is a missed opportunity and should have been so easy to capitalize on. The template is there. They literally dropped the bag on this. It's incredible.

 

They could have re-introduced the original RapidMan.

 

At the bare minimum they should have released throwback jerseys. Seems like they would sell like hot especially iconic designs like the wizards.

 

Because it involves so many teams, I believe this was an NY/HQ-based initiative, not a DCU effort. I have to wonder why the vendor (M&N) wasnt able to get permission to use the old crests - maybe Leviathan was too greedy to result in a reasonable price (not that $100 for this offering is reasonable...)?

 

Its in the shadow pattern of the cat in the hat jersey and on a bunch of merch from way back in the day.

That said, DCU shit the bed here. Were I fan of any of the other teams that got this, I'd have been 2-3 pieces deep or more depending on what the wife might have wanted and if they had kids sizes... which they never do. Between this and 3-4 away Hanes2 away jerseys, I've saved myself easily $700 this year on DCU merch. The jackets they made for LAG were smokin hot ... I'd struggle to pick one of them if they'd made them for us.

 

I opened this thread just to see if they had...

 

They should have just reissued the '96 version of this (my '98 jersey). Would have been a huge seller.

 

Blue shirt with red sleeves and the three white stripes down the shoulders with the original 96 logo shown here.

 

LAG and San Jose have already sold out of their jersey. I wonder when I'll be able to turn my nose up at our shirt at $10.

And someone explain to me why Seattle and Portland got this line ... pretty sure neither of them were MLS teams until well after contraction.

 

25 Year old versions of these fetch $100 or so on Ebay. I have no doubt that a modern version will sell like crazy.

The worst part is fans will be blamed for not supporting this crap instead of the merchandising department admitting they put crap out.

 

NFW I am letting that narrative get very far. It's a hot pile of shit that anyone could think that is the case.

These humps don't listen. 2 years ago everyone went bonkers about the Hanes jersey in lieu of a variety of things that would have worked well. So this year they picked the lamest of the designs that Athletic called out and did a piss poor f_cking job of it and followed it up with this abomination.

 

I agree, they don't listen but I have no doubts that people in house are going to take any blame for this crap not selling.