Atlanta Silverbacks Unveil New Logo

Formed in 1995 as the Atlanta Ruckus, the Atlanta Silverbacks is the only professional soccer based in Atlanta, GA. The club plays in the North American Soccer League (NASL), the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The organization also has a women’s team that competes in the W-League, a reserve side and several age group-based youth teams.

On Wednesday night, the Atlanta Silverbacks unveiled their club logo. According to a press release from the team:

It may have been a long and winding road for the Atlanta Silverbacks and their fans, but the search for a new logo is over. The club unveiled its new logo at a party on Wednesday night at Brewhouse Café in Little Five Points, bringing a conclusion to a two-month-long process.

“We’re very happy with our new logo and we want to thank everyone who was a part of the process,” said Silverbacks Chairman Boris Jerkunica. “Getting everyone involved was a lot of fun, and I think it made the whole process much more enjoyable. Without the fan involvement, I don’t think we would have come up with such a great logo design.”

The Atlanta Silverbacks New Logo Competition Finalists

The new logo, designed by Wisconsin native Ryan Foose, was one of four finalists in the Silverbacks Logo Design Contest, which began in mid-November. Throughout the final round of the contest, people from all over the world voted for their favorite finalist via the Silverbacks’ website, and in the end, the club ended up receiving thousands of votes.

Jerkunica had the honor of unveiling the club’s new logo on Wednesday night, flipping over a large board containing the image all of the fans had been waiting for. The new logo was greeted with loud cheers from those in attendance, many of whom were members of the Atlanta Ultras, the Silverbacks’ largest supporters group.

The event doubled as the first ever Silverbacks Fan Forum. Following the logo unveiling, Jerkunica, General Manager Andy Smith, and Public Relations Manager Neal Malone hosted an interactive Q&A in which fans could ask any question they had about the organization. The session lasted about an hour, and the trio answered questions from those in attendance as well as those who had submitted questions through Twitter, Facebook, or email.

The new design puts an end to the 15-year run of the previous logo, which featured an image of a gorilla. The Silverbacks will not be eliminating the gorilla from its brand, however, and Jerkunica insists that the club is in the process of designing a secondary mark featuring an image of a gorilla.

“The Silverback gorilla is at the core of who we are as a brand, so it would be inappropriate to completely push that aside,” Jerkunica said. “Like many brands, we’re going to have a few secondary logos, and one of those will contain an image of a gorilla.”

With the new logo selected, the club is in the process of designing new merchandise, including apparel, soccer scarves, balls, and flags. The new logo will also coincide with a new club website, which is expected to launch within the next month.

The Silverbacks open the 2013 season on April 13 when they host the Fort Lauderdale Strikers at 7:30 p.m. at Atlanta Silverbacks Park. Single-game and season tickets are currently on sale through the ticket office at 404-969-4900.