California-Irvine Anteaters are student sports teams that play for the University of California, Irvine. They participate in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and the Big West Conference. Compete in Division I NCAA. The name Anteaters is inspired by a mascot chosen in 1965 during a vote. Students preferred an exotic anteater to a golden bison, sea hawk, and unicorn.
Meaning and History
Most California-Irvine Anteaters logos are abbreviated as “UCI,” which is short for the university’s full name. Until 2009, it was combined with the image of an anteater. For example, from 1984 to 1990, the inscription “UCI” was depicted on his blue T-shirt. Then the artists moved the letters to the background, and the anteater was reduced and pushed forward. The style of drawing has also changed: in the new version, the animal looks more menacing.
1984 – 1990
1998 – 2008
2009 – 2013
2014 – present
In 2009, the emblem of the sports department survived another redesign. The university’s talisman disappeared from her – only the abbreviation in the form of a monogram remained. The capital letter “U” is located behind, “C” – in the middle, “I” – near. The palette has changed several times. From 1988 to 2008, yellow predominated, and the contours were blue. In 2009, on the contrary, blue took the main place. In 2014, the shades became darker. The combination of yellow and blue corresponds to the official gamut of the University of California.
