Everton have registered a trademark application for a modern version of the club badge used in it’s most successful era.
The club has applied for a trademark for the badge worn by the club between 1983 and 1991, when Howard Kendall’s team won the FA Cup, two First Division titles and the European Cup Winner’s Cup. The badge features the letters EFC above Prince Rupert’s Tower.
The badge was first introduced in 1983, when the club dropped the shield design for the more simplified version. It first featured on the Le Coq Sportif shirts of the mid-1980s and the Umbro designs from 1987 onwards.
It was dropped by the club in favour of a shield design in 1991 and has had several small changes since, including the ill-fated attempt to completely redesign the badge in 2013 under Roberto Martinez. Despite performances on the pitch delighting Everton fans the badge was hugely unpopular and was dropped after a year in favour of the club’s current shield design.
The timing of the application suggests the club is planning on using the badge on merchandise or even a third shirt in the 2025/26 season. It is not unusual for clubs to feature a different badge on away and third kits. This season’s away kit has the minimalist tower design badge, which the club trademarked in 2022.
Everton has trademarked older badges before. It trademarked the simple curled EFC badge used in the 1970s back in 2021 but it has only been used on club merchandise so far.
However there is an interesting link to the 1980s that could hint at the inclusion of the badge on an actual kit next season. The badge was used on four years of Umbro kits as the brand began a long association with the club throughout most of the 1990s.
Umbro returned to supply Everton’s kits under David Moyes’ first spell at the club, with the 2004/05 shirt a popular one with fans.
Interestingly Umbro has recently been bought by Castore, Everton’s current kit maker. Castore has recently confirmed it will replace its own logos with Umbro in its deal with Rangers. According to SportBusiness.com: “Castore executives believe that they will sell more Rangers shirts adorned with Umbro’s logo given the historic links between the two.”
Castore is pursuing a similar strategy with the England Rugby kits, which will be branded Umbro when they launch later this year.
Everton will not be switching to Umbro for the new Premier League season but the links between the brands and the trademark application for the 1980s badge could mean new retro Umbro merchandise, the relaunch of some of the 1980s kits or even an away or third kit design based on a classic kit from that era.
