Arsenal Logo PNG
The Arsenal logo reflects the club’s strength, discipline, and military heritage. The cannon’s origins are referenced, and the red color conveys the team’s character. The modern design preserves its connection with the history of North London.
Arsenal FC began in October 1886, when David Danskin collected funds from workers at the Woolwich Arsenal to form Dial Square. The team played its first match on December 11, winning 6:0, and soon adopted the name Royal Arsenal. Early kits came from Nottingham Forest, establishing the dark red color.
In 1891, the club turned professional, and in 1893, as Woolwich Arsenal, it joined the Football League as its first southern member. Financial struggles and low attendance led to Henry Norris’s takeover in 1910. After the club’s relegation in 1913, he moved it to Highbury, and by 1914, the name was shortened to Arsenal.
In 1919, after World War I, Arsenal entered the First Division despite finishing fifth in the Second Division, replacing Tottenham Hotspur. The club has remained in the top tier since.
A turning point came in 1925 with the appointment of manager Herbert Chapman, who introduced the WM system, shirt numbers, and stadium innovations. Arsenal won the FA Cup in 1930 and dominated the 1930s with five league titles and two cups.
In 1971, under Bertie Mee, Arsenal secured a league and FA Cup double. The club’s only European trophy came in 1994 with the Cup Winners’ Cup. A major shift followed in 1996 with Arsène Wenger, who reshaped training and recruitment and brought in players like Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp.
The 2003–2004 season ended with 38 matches unbeaten, earning the “Invincibles” label, with Henry scoring 30 goals. The run extended to 49 matches. In 2006, Arsenal moved to Emirates Stadium, and Wenger’s tenure delivered three league titles and seven FA Cups.
Meaning and History
The club was founded in the London borough of Woolwich in 1886, home to the Royal Arsenal, the Royal Artillery Regiment, and numerous military hospitals. Arsenal played for two years without an emblem, then adopted the Woolwich coat of arms, which featured cannons. When the club moved to Highbury in 1913, the cannons remained on the logo as a hallmark. Initially, the barrel on Arsenal’s logo pointed east; later, it was turned west. Today, the barrel is pointed east again. Why? Nobody knows.
The motto “Victoria Concordia Crescit” (“Victory comes from harmony”) is the famous slogan of the London football club Arsenal F.C., which has featured on the club’s crests for many years, symbolizing the importance of unity and harmony in achieving success, and has become an integral part of its heritage.
What is Arsenal?
It is a football club with a history of over 130 years. It is based in London and is a member of the Premier League Limited football association. The club has dozens of cups and championships to its name. In 2020, Arsenal was included in the list of the world’s most valuable football organizations.
1888 – 1922 (Corporate logos)
An early emblem of the London club Royal Arsenal dates to around 1888. The team, formed at the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich, developed its own mark based on the military environment and the enterprise’s history.
The logo is centered on a shield with three cannons pointing straight up. At the base of each cannon is a lion’s head with an open mouth. The central cannon is larger than the two on the sides, while the outer cannons mirror each other in shape and proportion.
Two laurel branches surround the shield, raised upward and tied together at the bottom with ribbons. The ribbons carry a Latin motto in uppercase Gothic letters. On the left is CLAMANT NOSTRA TELA, on the right IN REGIS QUABELLA. The phrase can be understood as Our weapons speak in the king’s battles, emphasizing the emblem’s link to the Crown and the club’s artillery origins. The mark served as both a sports symbol and an emblem of the factory whose workers stood at the origins of what later became Arsenal FC.
1930 – today (Corporate logos)
In 1930, Herbert Chapman proposed a new mark for Arsenal that was used more broadly than a typical sports badge. Today, nearly a century later, the hexagon with interwoven initials is still associated with the club and its history.
The logo is executed in an Art Deco style and built around a rich red color. Its base is a hexagonal frame. Inside, two letters are combined. A large A forms the core of the composition, while the outline of the letter C runs around it. Both letters are constructed from broken lines and angles.
A stylized football is added at the center. Its image evokes early leather balls with lacing, as indicated by a combination of curved white lines.
This monogram existed not only as a mark for documents. For many years, the hexagonal emblem was displayed at the club’s home stadium, Highbury.
1949 – 2002 (Corporate logos)
In the second half of the 20th century, Arsenal used an emblem designed in a classic heraldic style. It was applied from 1949 to 2002 and stood out for its complex composition and many details.
The entire composition is contained within a black outline. The white background is decorated with a small repeating pattern of black ermine figures, a motif borrowed from medieval heraldry.
At the top of the shield, the name “Arsenal” appears in red. The typeface includes Gothic elements, sharp angles, and decorative serifs. Below is a cannon, a reference to the club’s origins, rendered in red and black, pointing left. The carriage, barrel, and spoked wheels are drawn in detail.
A green horizontal band crosses the shield, dividing the composition into two parts. In the lower section, a small shield is divided into four fields. Inside are various symbols: a cross, a lion, a bird, and a tree. Around it are golden yellow ornamental elements.
Below the small shield runs a ribbon with the motto DEUS PER OMNIA. At the very bottom of the large shield is a white ribbon with the inscription VICTORIA CONCORDIA CRESCIT, meaning Victory grows through harmony.
1927
Early football club emblems often date to the late 19th century, when football was still developing as an organized sport. Arsenal used a mark at this time that clearly reflects the era’s spirit.
The emblem is a red shield with a complex outline. At the top are three wave-shaped projections.
Inside is the monogram AFC, an abbreviation of Arsenal Football Club. The main letter A occupies the central position and is taller than the others. The letters “F” and “C” sit on the sides, partially overlapping “A” and meeting at the bottom to form a closed, balanced composition.
The monogram’s typeface is inspired by Victorian calligraphy. The lines are curved, with loops and small hooks typical of late 19th-century Old English writing. The red color is associated with the team’s origins among workers at the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich. The shield with the monogram preserves the memory of the club’s early period, when it was just beginning its journey.
1930
One of Arsenal’s early marks from 1930 stands out for its restrained and calm presentation. The emblem features a red shield.
At the top of the shield is a black cannon of an older type. The barrel points to the left, the carriage has a gentle curve, and the wheel is shown with spokes. Short strokes beneath the cannon indicate a base, suggesting its stable position on the ground.
Below is the abbreviation A.F.C. in red letters. The typeface is simple. At the bottom is the year 1930. The numerals follow a similar style but with more rounded forms.
The inclusion of the year refers to a specific stage in the club’s history. The cannon recalls the team’s working-class origins and the Woolwich factory, where Arsenal’s connection to artillery symbolism began.
1932
The next logo version is set within a strict hexagon outline. At the center is a monogram made up of the letters A, F, and C. The letters are interwoven and rendered decoratively, with smooth lines and thickened stroke ends. The main letter “A” sits in the center, with “F” to the left and “C” to the right.
Below the monogram is an old-style football. It is drawn in red lines, showing horizontal seams, with an imitation of a white vertical stitch running through the center, a feature typical of leather balls from that era.
Below that is the date 1932 in red numerals. All elements are neatly contained within the boundaries of the hexagon.
1936 – 1952
The next version of the logo used on the kit appeared more restrained. It was the same small red monogram placed on a white inner field. The composition is built around a vertically elongated letter A that supports the entire structure. The letter C is set inside it, wrapping around the A and partially overlapping it. Together, they form a shortened version of the club name, Arsenal Club. At the center, an image of an old football was added. It is round, with horizontal lacing and a simplified segmentation.
1967 – 1978
The 1967 Arsenal badge was made even simpler. A white cannon is shown on a red background, with no lettering or dates. The entire emblem is based on a single symbol: the cannon.
The cannon points to the left and refers to early artillery designs. The barrel appears heavy, the wheel has spokes, and the carriage is curved. The image is flat, without shadows or color transitions.
The emblem’s meaning is tied to the club’s origins. Arsenal emerged from a team of workers at an armaments factory in Woolwich, so the artillery theme is historically grounded.
1978 – 1990
In 1978, Arsenal updated the club badge, building on the previous version. The white cannon remained unchanged, while new elements were added to the lower part of the emblem.
Below the cannon, three small red circles with white outlines were placed. Inside each circle is a letter. A appears at the top, with F on the lower left and C on the lower right. Together, they form the abbreviation Arsenal Football Club, and the circles create a triangular arrangement.
The letters are set in a simple sans-serif typeface. In style, it is close to popular late 1970s typography and is often compared to Futura and Gill Sans.
This version of the badge retained the artillery theme through the cannon image while also adding a clear letter-based reference to the club.
1990 – 1994
During the early 1990s, Arsenal used a logo that aligned with corporate identity and heraldic traditions. Its base is a shield with a black outline. The white field is filled with a pattern of stylized ermine figures.
At the top is the word Arsenal in red Gothic lettering. Below it is a cannon. The weapon is rendered in red and black, pointing to the left. A green horizontal band runs between the upper and lower sections of the shield, visually dividing the composition.
In the lower section is a small coat of arms, divided into four fields and enclosed in a shaped, gold-colored frame. Beneath the small shield is the inscription DEUS PER OMNIA in red uppercase letters. At the very bottom of the shield is a white ribbon with the motto VICTORIA CONCORDIA CRESCIT.
1994 – 1996
In the mid-1990s, Arsenal introduced a more detailed emblem that combined club motifs with contemporary design principles. Its base is a multilayered shield with a rounded black foundation.
The outer layer is black. The next outline is traced with a thin yellow line. At the top, a red band runs with the nickname THE GUNNERS. The inscription is set in white uppercase letters. The typeface is close to Eurostile and Microgramma.
Inside is a red shield with a pattern imitating ermine fur. It bears the name “Arsenal” in white Blackletter type. Below is a cannon in a yellow-and-red color scheme. It features a large wheel with many spokes, a carriage with rectangular cutouts, and a long barrel with a thicker section.
A yellow-green line separates the lower part of the inner shield. Beneath it is a small coat of arms divided into four sections: a green field with a white cross, a white lion, a bird, and a cannon. At the very bottom is a curved white ribbon with the inscription VICTORIA CONCORDIA CRESCIT in red uppercase letters.
1999 – 2000
The updated Arsenal logo became simpler in structure. Instead of three nested shields, only two remained. On the outside is a classic shield. Along its edge runs a wide, light yellow border with black fill. At the top is the inscription THE GUNNERS in light beige letters, without the earlier red band. The typeface retained the technical style of the previous version and resembles Microgramma and Eurostile. Inside, the red shield from the previous logo version was preserved.
2001 – 2002
Over time, the Arsenal emblem was simplified. The outer shield with black fill and a yellow outline was removed, and the entire composition was concentrated within a single main red shield. At the very bottom, a white ribbon was added with the motto VICTORIA CONCORDIA CRESCIT set in red uppercase letters.
The internal elements were retained. The red field kept the white heraldic ornament. At the top, the name Arsenal remained, but its color was changed from white to yellow. The same yellow tone was used for the cannon and the outline details.
The cannon kept its left-facing orientation. It features a long barrel, a large wheel, yellow and red coloring, and a carefully detailed form.
A yellow-green line separates the lower part of the shield. Below is a small shield divided into four fields, each bearing a standard symbol: a cross, a lion, a bird, and a cannon.
In meaning, the elements of the emblem remained the same, with changes focused mainly on form and color treatment.
2002 – today
In the early 2000s, Arsenal changed its emblem. This decision was influenced by a new era, a move to a different stadium, and legal issues related to the old mark. The previous version could not be registered as a trademark, so the club began developing a new emblem almost from scratch.
From the past, the main symbol was retained, the cannon. Its barrel was turned to the right. The shield became vertically elongated, with a rounded top and a pointed bottom.
The color palette is built on red and burgundy tones, with white, dark blue, and golden olive added. The red field is divided vertically into two sections with different saturation levels. The shield outline is rendered in golden olive, with thin blue and white stripes running along the sides. At the top is the word Arsenal with the first letter capitalized. The typeface is sans serif, close to Myriad or Frutiger. The letters are white with a thin golden olive outline. Below is a simplified cannon with smooth lines and a wheel with six wide spokes. The cannon’s color matches the tone of the outline and the lettering border.
2011 – 2012
For its 125th anniversary, Arsenal introduced a commemorative emblem that combined the modern club badge with motifs from the late 19th century associated with 1888. This version was used on the playing kit during the 2011-2012 season.
The base was the current logo, with a red shield background, a golden olive outline, and a cannon pointing to the right. The Arsenal wordmark was kept in the same typeface.
The main difference was the decorative branches along the shield’s edges. On the right are fifteen oak leaves. They recall the founders’ meeting at the Royal Oak pub. On the left are fifteen laurel leaves, representing the sixpence contributions participants made to the common fund.
At the bottom, the branches meet and turn into a ribbon. On it are the dates 1886 and 2011, with the word “FORWARD” centered in uppercase. The leaves, numbers, and text are all rendered in the same golden olive color. The word is associated with military tradition and an army slogan known in the United Kingdom.
Font and Colors
The main element of Arsenal Football Club’s emblem remains an artillery cannon. It first appeared on the logo in 1888, when the club used the Woolwich coat of arms as a graphic. But then the weapon looked different: it was pointed upwards, and its lower part was decorated with lion heads. Over time, artists modernized the design, making the cannon two-dimensional and turning it sideways to the viewer.
The military theme reflected in the football team’s name and emblem stems from the proximity of two strategically important sites: the Royal Artillery Regiment and the Royal Arsenal, both of which were located in the area where the club was based. Another traditional element of the emblem is the heraldic shield, a triangle with rounded corners.
Arsenal FC’s logo is written in a sans-serif font reminiscent of Clearface Gothic Roman. Designers adapted Morris Fuller Benton’s original font, created in 1984, and changed the design of individual characters.
The developers paid equal attention to the graphics. The club’s sign seems voluminous thanks to a successful color combination. In the middle of the shield, burgundy and red combine, while the edges are white and blue. The word “ARSENAL” is also white. The contours of the letters, the cannon, and the frame around the shield are grey-brown.