Brand identity
Ten years since its founding, New York City FC asked itself what it would take to reach the upper echelons of MLS clubs and New York City teams.
An ambitious plan that included a new soccer stadium in Queens and significant investment in player development was in the works. But to continue building a devoted base of hardcore fans while inspiring new ones to join would mean reframing what the club stood for beyond the game.
Any team that seeks to stake its claim to NYC needs to live up to the city’s colossal character. Our approach was to develop a visual and verbal identity that embodied the relentless hustle and eclectic spirit of the city.
To capture the spirit of our club and city, we developed The Five Borough Bond— a creative platform that serves as our core ethos and guiding metaphor. The Five Borough Bond embraces contrast and juxtaposition, a wild mix of ever-changing local flavors and iconic legacies. The relentless hustle and colossal scale of the city—edgy, tough and resilient— enriched by the pulsing rhythm and poetic beauty of everyday life, interwoven with unexpected moments made possible through eight million interlocking stories.
By forging bonds across all five boroughs and celebrating the stories of New Yorkers brought together by NYCFC, we are continuously building the future of our club, our city, and our game.
Gretel: Ryan Moore, Justin Au, Dylan Mulvaney, Andrea Trabucco-Campos, Etienne Murphy, Alaijah Hampton, John Choi, Hayato Yamane, Ian Beckman Reagan, Kasia Galla, Murad Assaf, Ian Chen
Frere-Jones Type: Tobias Frere-Jones, Nina Stössinger, Christine Bateup
New York City FC: Lauren Scrima, Milo Kowalski, Kylie Woyat, Nuria Tarré, James Wilkins