Aston Villa Logo PNG
In 1874, the oldest British football club was founded as “Aston Villa,” whose logo reflects elements of the Scottish royal coat of arms. It symbolizes bravery and strength, reflecting the club’s rich history and achievements.
The football club “Aston Villa” was founded in 1874 by members of the “Villa Wesleyan Cross” chapel, who were cricket players seeking a sport to train in during the off-season.
It is one of England’s oldest and most titled clubs: Aston Villa has seven First Division titles and seven FA Cup victories. Aston Villa is among the five English clubs to have won the European Cup. Aston Villa has a rich heritage, as one of the twelve clubs that founded the Football League in 1888.
Aston Villa’s main rival is Birmingham City, with whom it plays the Birmingham derby. The club’s traditional colors are claret shirts with azure sleeves, white shorts, and azure socks. The club’s emblem features a golden lion standing on its hind legs against a blue background, with the motto “Prepared.”
The most common nickname, “Villans,” comes from the club’s name. The football club “Aston Villa” was named after the “Villa Cross Wesleyan” chapel, which churchgoers founded in 1874. The nickname “lions” is quite straightforward, as this predator is depicted on the club’s emblem, but compared to other nicknames, “lions” is used much less often.
Fans of other clubs contemptuously call Aston Villa “the village.” Another nickname is “seals,” which translates as “seals.” This nickname stems from the club’s history and the stadium. In ancient times, when normal roads were rare (in some places, even today), getting to Villa Park was, to put it mildly, not easy, and fans slapped it like seals. The nickname “nasty game” plays on the club’s name, which translates to “nasty game.”
Meaning and History
William McGregor, the club’s first president, played a crucial role in shaping Aston Villa’s image. He was Scottish and recognized the team’s connection to Birmingham’s Scottish community, so he decided the emblem should feature a lion from the Scottish royal coat of arms. Lions have long symbolized bravery, courage, and strength. That is why a lion became the main symbol. But in the previous version of the logo, fans felt the lion lacked fierceness. So they decided to redraw it. The new lion’s silhouette changed, with added claws and teeth.
What is Aston Villa?
Aston Villa is one of Britain’s oldest professional football clubs. Founded in 1874, it plays in the Premier League. The team is based in Birmingham. The team has won numerous prestigious trophies and awards, including 7 Football League First Division titles, 7 FA Cups, 5 League Cups, 1 European Cup, and 1 UEFA Super Cup.
1878 – 1886
The Aston Villa name comes from a Georgian-era house in Birmingham. The building gave its name to the surrounding area and the nearby Aston Villa Wesleyan Chapel. A cricket club operated out of the chapel, and in 1874 its members formed a soccer team to stay active in winter, keeping the cricket club’s name. “Aston” referred to the historic parish, while “Villa” preserved the connection to the local house.
The team first wore a lion on its jerseys in 1878. William McGregor purchased heraldic lion patches in Scotland for the black shirts. The symbol connected the club to McGregor’s homeland and Birmingham’s Scottish community. The red lion stood on its hind legs with its front paws extended. An open mouth, sharp claws, and a curved tail completed the heraldic pose. In a standalone version, the red figure appeared against a white background.
The original patches faded in the wash. To replace them, McGregor ordered lions set within shields that framed the original animal.
1886 – 1956
A quartered shield drawn from Birmingham’s civic heraldry appeared early in Aston Villa’s history, accompanied by the motto “Forward.” In the 1886 version, heraldic patterns replaced the Scottish lion. Blue fields with diagonal chains of gold diamonds alternated with sections split red and gold by a black, jagged line. A white ribbon beneath the shield carried “FORWARD” in black lettering.
A similar emblem appeared on the jerseys of 6 players in Aston Villa’s victorious 1887 FA Cup final. It identified them as members of the Birmingham & District Football Association representative team, which had faced the Sheffield Association a month before the final. The badge preserved their connection to the team representing Birmingham and the surrounding district.
1956 – 1969
The lion returned to Aston Villa’s jerseys in the 1956/57 season as part of a crest worn during the team’s FA Cup campaign. The claret figure faced left from the viewer’s perspective against a light blue field. Both the lion’s orientation and its depiction style changed. The shield had a shaped top and concave sides, edged with a light brown-tinted gold border.
A light blue ribbon beneath the shield carried the motto “Prepared.” Uppercase letters followed its curve, and its border matched the shield’s frame. Wearing the new crest, the team reached the 1957 FA Cup final and won the trophy.
1969 – 1973
Manager Tommy Docherty’s 1969 uniform change brought a simpler emblem. The shield and ribbon disappeared, leaving a standalone light blue lion with raised paws, a mane, and a long tail. Large serif letters “AV” appeared beneath it, reducing the club’s name to 2 initials. The lion and lettering shared the same color.
Another version used a rectangular shield with a pointed base. A yellow heraldic lion stood against claret-and-blue stripes that echoed the uniform colors. The full name “ASTON VILLA FC” occupied the top of the shield, while a ribbon below carried the motto “PREPARED.”
1973 – 1992
Aston Villa introduced a circular badge in 1973. It accompanied the team through its 1981 English league championship and 1982 European Cup victory. The badge remained in use until 1992, and memories of the European triumph later inspired a return to the circular format.
A claret lion stood on a light blue disk inside a thick claret ring edged in gold. The club’s name treatment changed along with the colors. “ASTON VILLA” followed the upper arc, while “F.C.” occupied the bottom. Thin uppercase letters framed the figure, leaving open space around it.
1992 – 2000
In 1992, Aston Villa returned to a shield, drawing on the 1970s emblem with a yellow lion against a striped background. The circle gave way to a shield with vertical claret-and-blue stripes. The yellow lion stood out against the stripes and matched the border and lettering.
“ASTON VILLA F.C.” appeared in a blue rectangle at the top, set in narrow, bold, uppercase sans-serif letters. A separate ribbon with the motto “PREPARED” returned beneath the shield. Light brown replaced the blue ribbon from the earlier version.
2000 – 2007
In 2000, Aston Villa brought the lettering and lion together inside the shield. The separate ribbon was removed, and “PREPARED” moved onto the striped field beneath the animal’s paws. In the top panel, the name was shortened to “Aston Villa” and set in a serif typeface. A gold frame connected the upper panel to the emblem’s main field.
The shield’s lower section became pointed, and the light blue stripes grew paler. The enlarged lion received more detailed artwork, including individual strands in its mane and a large tuft at the end of its tail. Its figure filled most of the space between the club’s name and motto.
2007 – 2016
In 2006, American businessman Randy Lerner acquired Aston Villa Football Club. To mark this event, the football team introduced a logo to herald a new era: a shield with a raspberry outline filled with blue. At the top, a blue lion stands on its hind legs. At the bottom of the emblem is the club’s motto: “Prepared.” The club management approved this emblem on May 2, 2007; it largely retains continuity with the previous emblem. Traditional elements include blue and raspberry, along with a golden lion. The lion refers to Scotland’s coat of arms, which inspired the club’s founders, George Ramsay and William McGregor. The club’s full name, “Aston Villa,” is now represented by the acronym AVFC (Aston Villa Football Club). A white five-pointed star was added to the left of the lion’s head. It commemorated the 1982 European Cup victory over Bayern Munich.
2016 – 2023
Fan feedback informed Aston Villa’s 2016 crest update. Participants suggested enlarging the lion within the shield and adding claws. The agency SomeOne commissioned artist and engraver Christopher Wormell to redraw the figure. He gave the lion extended claws, a more detailed mane, and sharper contours around its paws.
The motto “Prepared” was removed to make room for the larger lion and initials. The light blue background, claret border, and white star remained, keeping the new version close to its predecessor. Most of the changes involved the proportions and the lion’s artwork.
The updated crest appeared on the team’s uniforms beginning with the 2016/17 season. The club spent £100,000 to develop the logo. The expense came during a difficult year for Aston Villa, marked by relegation from the Premier League.
2023 – 2024
Dragon Rouge began developing a crest for Aston Villa’s 150th anniversary in 2022 and consulted fans. More than 21,500 people voted in November, with 77% supporting the circular option. Unveiled that same month, the logo recalled the 1973 design and the team that won the European Cup in 1982. Discussions with supporters also influenced the wording. The full Aston Villa name returned, replacing AVFC.
A claret lion appeared on a light blue field inside a thick, purple-tinged claret ring. The figure was turned to face right from the viewer’s perspective, bringing it closer to the club’s early 1878 image. The paws and mane received more detailed contours. A smaller five-pointed star sat above and to the right of the lion’s head, facing the same direction. Claret replaced white for the star, which continued to commemorate the 1982 European trophy.
Yellow was retained for the lettering around the ring. “ASTON VILLA” followed the upper arc in bold uppercase letters with short serifs. The club’s founding year, 1874, appeared at the bottom. The full name and date framed the lion inside the circle.
The crest appeared on match uniforms and training apparel for the 2023/24 season. The club kept the previous shield in use elsewhere in its branding. Throughout the season, Aston Villa used both versions while assessing fan reactions.
2024 – today
Aston Villa returned to a shield-shaped crest following another fan survey. Participants supported retaining the club’s full name, founding year, and star commemorating its European triumph. The updated crest was unveiled on May 31, 2024, for the 2024/25 season.
The yellow lion returned to a light blue field, facing left from the viewer’s perspective. An offset shadow appeared behind its silhouette, while the white star remained part of the emblem. The shield’s upper edge curved outward, and claret and light-colored lines formed a layered border around its perimeter.
White numerals reading “1874” appeared beneath the lion, marking the club’s founding year. The full name “ASTON VILLA” moved to the bottom, following the curve of the shield’s base. The lettering used claret uppercase letters with flared stroke endings.
Font and Colors
The lion originally became the main symbol of “Aston Villa” and has remained on the logo ever since. This tribute reflects Scotland’s royal coat of arms and Birmingham’s Scottish heritage. Designers have changed only the animal’s color, style, and position, and experimented with its visual context.
The heraldic lion was most often depicted on round or rectangular shields with a pointed base. The team’s motto, “Prepared,” complemented it and has been used since 1878. Now, the motto is absent; the developers simplified the logo to fit the trendy minimalist aesthetic.
The abbreviation adorning the top of the shield is done in a serif font. The font is Stempel Garamond Bold, a French Oldstyle. Parisian printer Claude Garamond created it in the first half of the 16th century.
The logo reflects the official colors of “Aston Villa”: burgundy (#670E36) and blue (#95BFE5). Bright yellow (#FEE505) complements these and has been used for the lion since 1992.