The real reasons why EFL clubs are changing their badges right now | OneFootball

West Ham United have become the latest EFL club to explore, or commit to, a change of their club crest.

West Ham United have become the latest EFL side to give supporters a say over their identity, confirming on Monday that they will launch a formal fan consultation on the future 'direction' of the club crest.

It’s a move that, at first glance, looks like a club simply asking fans for their thoughts. But it’s another sign of a trend that has been gathering a lot of pace across English football in recent years.

From the Championship to League Two - and even the Premier League - clubs have been redesigning the crests that, of course, appear on their shirts, stadiums and digital platforms like Instagram and X.

So, even if the Hammers' proposed changes won't come into effect until the 28/29 season, FLW takes a look at why so many clubs are changing their badges right now.

Why EFL clubs are really changing their badges

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As per a report from The BBC, football finance expert Kieran Maguire believes that, for all the talk of pleasing supporters, the decision to redesign a badge is ultimately a commercial one.

"Clubs don't want to restrict themselves to just being seen as football clubs anymore," he said.

"Why restrict yourself to being just part of the football industry when, in theory, you can expand into a multi-sport or multi-functional brand?"

And, as already mentioned, Maguire's logic has gone all the way down the EFL pyramid.

When Peterborough United unveiled a simplified crest in June - a winged lion clutching a key against a blue backdrop - owner Darragh MacAnthony made little attempt to dress it up as anything other than a business move.

He described branding as a “massive part" of the club's evolution and argued that the new crest would help secure commercial deals.

Maguire then added, "It all boils down to if it will generate revenues and even act as a cost-saving measure too.

"From a design point of view, it's cheaper to produce shirts with simple crests too. It's also an opportunity to reinvent the club, to say it's moving in a new direction and that this crest represents its new values."

Elsewhere in the second tier, Stoke City confirmed their new crest ahead of the 26/27 season. The Potters' owner and chairman, John Coates, insisted the new emblem embodies the "history, traditions, work ethic, and togetherness" of both the club and the city.

"We can all look at the club crest and reflect that it truly represents what it means to be Stoke City," he said.

"We are determined that our new crest will come to represent a new and successful era on and off the field."

However, perhaps the most telling example of the whole trend being business-related, though, comes from League Two.

Salford City, who are co-owned by Gary Neville and Sir David Beckham, confirmed a new crest for 26/27 last December after 72 per cent of supporters voted in favour, having already reverted the club's home colour to orange.

Crucially, the Ammies' badge redesign was handed to Milk Agency, a New York-based agency who have carried out work for the likes of Red Bull and New Balance.

What EFL fans think about the 'modernisation' of club crests

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In truth, the overwhelming response to West Ham's proposed crest change is very positive, with many Hammers fans on X happy to 'get their club back'. This is because they don't like 'London' being used on their current one.

However, if the East London club get it wrong, they’ll almost certainly face the same kind of backlash Leeds United did when they tried to do something similar.

Back in 2018, the Whites spent six months on said project and consulted more than 10,000 people, only for the final design to be torn apart by fans and scrapped immediately.

Another Hammers fan thinks there's only one 'correct answer'.

As for Stoke City fans, one claims he's 'torn' on their new badge, describing it as 'AI generated and boring'.

Someone else, referencing a video game, thinks it's what "PES would use when they couldn’t afford the rights."