Borussia Dortmund Logo PNG
Gold medals and cups that’s what the club is waiting for; the Borussia Dortmund logo is a symbol of victory. The team is always ready to please its fans. The emblem shows they know how to handle the ball and regularly hone their skills.
On December 19, 1909, 18 young players who had left a church team founded Borussia Dortmund in a Dortmund tavern. The name came from a local brewery. The first official match in 1911 ended with a 9:3 win over VfB Dortmund.
World War I halted activity in 1917–1918, and half of the founders did not return. The club was formally registered in 1919 and gradually climbed the league system. Its first major success came in 1956 and 1957 with back-to-back German titles.
In 1963, Dortmund became a founding member of the Bundesliga. Friedhelm Konietzka scored the first league goal against Werder Bremen. In 1965, the club won the DFB-Pokal, and in 1966 defeated Liverpool to claim the Cup Winners’ Cup.
The 1970s and 1980s brought limited success, with competition from Schalke 04 and financial instability. A revival came in the 1990s under coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, with Bundesliga titles in 1995 and 1996. Matthias Sammer won the Ballon d’Or in 1996.
In 1997, Dortmund beat Juventus 3:1 in the Champions League final and later beat Cruzeiro in the Intercontinental Cup. After Hitzfeld left for Bayern Munich, results declined.
The club went public in 2000 but faced debt despite winning the 2002 title. Recovery began in 2008 under Jürgen Klopp, with league titles in 2011 and 2012 and a domestic double in 2012. Dortmund lost the 2013 Champions League final to Bayern Munich.
In later years, Dortmund developed and sold players such as Erling Haaland and Christian Pulisic, and reached the 2024 Champions League final, losing to Real Madrid.
Meaning and History
Borussia Dortmund did not officially adopt its first emblem until after World War II. Before then, the team was in an uncertain status: it had emerged from the youth section and later merged with three other Dortmund organizations. As a result, the old logos used before 1945 no longer refer to the professional football club Borussia Dortmund but to its predecessors.
What is Borussia Dortmund?
Borussia Dortmund is the short form of the German football club Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund. This professional-level club is based in North Rhine-Westphalia and participates in the Bundesliga. The team has won the league championship eight times, the DFB-Pokals 5 times, and the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, Intercontinental Cup, and UEFA Champions League once each.
1913 – 1919
The earliest emblem contains no complex elements. It depicts a black sans-serif “B” in regular type on a white background.
1919 – 1945
In 1919, a new logo appeared, marking the first in a cycle of round badges featuring the words “BVB 09”. The letters abbreviate the first words of BVB (Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund). The number abbreviates the year the club was founded: 1909. The inner circle is orange, and the frame is black, with thin khaki outlines.
1945 – 1964
The club was restored immediately after its disbandment. When it returned to service, it received a new name: SG (Sportgemeinschaft) Borussia 1899 Dortmund. Despite this, the abbreviation “BVB” has never disappeared. Along with the number “09”, it remained inside the circle, which has now turned yellow.
The wide black outline was replaced with a narrow one, creating more open space. This allowed the word “DORTMUND” to be added to the already existing “BVB 09” lettering. It sits at the bottom and uses the same font as the main text.
1964 – 1974
In 1973, the club won the championship title. To celebrate this greatest event, he repainted his logo black – the color of strength, leadership, and indestructibility. In this case, the image became multi-part. In the center was a small yellow circle with the letters “BVB” and the number “09”. It is located within a large black circle. A yellow ring separates it from the word “BORUSSIA DORTMUND.” It is unknown how successful the design was: despite the symbolic color, the team got only one title over these ten years.
1974 – 1976
In 1974, the background turned yellow again, and the inscription was black. All characters are widely spaced, with more free space because the word “DORTMUND” has disappeared. Several black-and-yellow rings frame the circle.
1976 – 1978
In the second half of the 1970s, the team experimented with its image, using the Samson trademark instead of the logo. This was the main condition of the sponsorship agreement. As a result, the black circle’s center featured the tobacco manufacturer’s main symbol: a lion with a shaggy mane. The artists depicted an animal’s head and surrounded it with the inscription “BV BORUSSIA 09 e.V. DORTMUND”.
1978 – 1993
To fans’ delight, the lion logo lasted only two years. The agreement with Sansom ended, and the club returned to the yellow background badge used in 1974-1976.
1993 – today
In 1993, designers simplified the circle’s edging by removing some of the rings. The initials and the founding year remain unchanged.
Font and Colors
Borussia Dortmund has used a simple yellow-and-black badge for many years, which is traditionally circular. Inside are the words “BVB” and “09”. The numbers are clear: they reflect the year the club was founded. However, the abbreviation can be deciphered in different ways. If you believe the official version, “BVB” stands for “Ballspielverein Borussia.” However, fans disagree; they believe “BVB” stands for “Borussen vom Borsigplatz” because the team’s founders used to drink Borussia beer at Borsigplatz.
The lettering is in a geometric sans-serif font, used since 1909. The color scheme is simple: black elements are placed on a yellow background. This distinguishes the Borussia Dortmund logo from other German football clubs’ badges.