Guest Opinion by John J. Custer Posted BY Brand New

A Mean Pegasus

Korinthos FC’s history began in the 1950s with the merger of two Greek teams of Corinth: Olympiakos Korinthos and A.E. Korinthos. Since then the team has powered through two more mergers combining the power of Aris Korinthos in 1964 and more recently joining forces with Pankorinthiakos in 2000. Since 2000, Korinthos FC has been competing in Greece’s semi-professional league Delta Ethniki, until 2010 when it was promoted to Gamma Ethniki (Football League 2), Greece’s third highest professional football league. With such fast growth and communal fans the football club was in need of a visual breath of fresh air that Portland, OR-based EIGHTDAY provided.

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Opinion BY Armin

Montreal Impact Earns a Crest

The Montreal Impact first played soccer in 1993 in the American Professional Soccer League. Despite finishing last in their inaugural season, they went on to win the championship the following one. They have been a staple of Canadian soccer ever since, most recently playing the in the North American Soccer League, and next year they will bump up to the big league as the latest expansion team of Major League Soccer. This, of course, warrants a new logo, designed by Montreal-based Pigeon*, who also designed the previous logo.

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Opinion BY Armin

Penalty to the Future

Launched in 1970, as part of Brazilian company Cambuci SA, Penalty is a comprehensive product line of soccer shoes, clothing, socks, accessories, and balls. From beach soccer, to indoor soccer, to field soccer, Penalty has everything a player would need, manufacturing all of its own products locally in Brazil. Penalty is a major sponsor of soccer teams in Brazil as well as in Argentina and is the official ball of various tournaments and leagues. Earlier this year, Penalty introduced a new logo implemented across all of its products designed by Sao Paulo-based Oz Design.

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A B-Side BY Armin

FOX Soccer

Launched in 2005, FOX Soccer, as its name implies, is a channel all about soccer operated by News Corporation’s Fox Entertainment Group. Earlier this month it introduced a new logo with “FOX attitude”. Press release here. More logo variations here.

Thanks to Gabe Shultz for the tip.

A B-Side BY Armin

Wichita Wings

Originally an indoor soccer team that played from 1979 to 2001, the Wichita Wings are getting a second chance and will begin playing in the 2011 – 12 season of MISL. Story here.

In other news: when Whataburger called to get its logo back, it did.

Thanks to J. Jason Smith for the tip.

A B-Side BY Armin

North American Soccer League

Set to begin play this week, on April 9, the North American Soccer League (NASL) is a new, second-tier (to the MSL), men’s soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico, consisting of eight teams. The NASL previously existed from 1968 to 1984 and the new logo is based on the last one used by the league. The new identity has been designed by 343RLP+ Creative Group. Brief story here.

Thanks to Roy Levitt for the tip.

A B-Side BY Armin

Fort Lauderdale Strikers

Prior to the 2011 season known as Miami FC, the newly renamed Fort Lauderdale Strikers are a soccer team that play in the North American Soccer League. The new identity has been designed by 343RLP+ Creative Group. Press release here.

Thanks to Roy Levitt for the tip.

Opinion BY Armin

The Kansas City Wizards’ Last Trick

As one of the original ten teams in the inaugural season of the U.S.’s Major League Soccer in 1996, the Kansas City Wizards is one of the most established teams in the league, winning the MLS Cup in 2000. Originally named Kansas City Wiz (no ards and featuring a super retro logo at the time) the team changed its name in 1997 and last week it announced that it wasn’t messing with iterations of the word wizard anymore and instead it was changing to Sporting Kansas City. This coincides with the move to a snazzy new stadium in 2011, bringing to an apex the changes ushered by new ownership that began in 2006.

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Opinion BY Armin

Vancouver’s Sharp Mountains

Earlier this week we covered the inclusion of the 18th team to Major League Soccer but, as some astute Canadian soccer fans had pointed out since last week, it was the 17th team to join MLS that had them excited: The Vancouver Whitecaps. Their story is quite similar to the Portland Timbers, originally established in 1973 playing in the North American Soccer League and most recently played in the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) Division 2 league. They will start playing in MLS in the 2011 season.

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Opinion BY Armin

Lumberjack Soccer

While the whole world has soccer in their brains I figured the timing might be right to feature a diminutive component that helps fuel this worldwide craze. From the deep, damp and cold confines of the United States’ northwest, the Portland Timbers have had a soccer team since 1975 when it competed in the North American Soccer League and most recently played in the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) Division 2 league, or, more bluntly, the minor league to the Major Soccer League (MSL) where the Timbers will be graduating to in the upcoming 2011 season, becoming the 18th team. In preparation for the move, the Timbers unveiled a new identity designed by Rare Design, a firm in Hattiesburg, Mississippi with plenty of athletic identity experience.

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