A new era for St Kilda Football Club has begun, with the club today unveiling its modernised club Crest to take the red, white and black into 2025 and beyond.
An enduring symbol of the Saints for over 90 years, the Crest has long been a treasured and integral part of the club’s identity, having featured on every St Kilda guernsey in various shapes, sizes and iterations since 1933.
“We’re incredibly proud to reveal our new Crest as we look to set ourselves up for a strong and prosperous future,” St Kilda CEO Carl Dilena said.
As the club with the oldest logo in the competition, with the outgoing iteration being instated in 1995, groundwork for creating a refreshed Crest commenced in September 2023, with extensive research, conceptualisation and consultation among a randomised selection of members and fans, current and former players, key club personnel and the Board arriving at the striking new look seen today.
“We understand the significance of modifying such an iconic symbol, so ensured we engaged in a thorough consultation process with a range of stakeholders from a cross-section of our diverse supporter base,” Dilena said.
“Through these focus groups, clear themes were identified as integral for our club’s logo. Most importantly, retaining the Crest itself was a non-negotiable.
“We fully understand how important the symbol is to everyone affiliated with St Kilda and hope this change to a modernised and updated Crest continues to uphold what our club proudly stands for.”
Among the key revisions in the latest Crest are the incorporation of the words ‘St Kilda’ in place of the former ‘St K.F.C.’ to reflect pride in the club’s origins and sense of place, along with a more compact ribbon — now connected to the Crest as one joint symbol as opposed to sitting separately — which features the club’s establishment date of 1873.
Additionally, the shape of the Crest is identical to the iteration widely used over the past 30 years, while bolder key lines and a more prominent cross — reminiscent of the original design from 1933 — enable a stronger visual identity and presence.
Due to the unified nature of the new logo, the Crest is now able to be enlarged in key areas, such as on the front of the guernsey, and also minimised to better suit a raft of digital placements in the modern age; a key consideration during initial ideation.
The club’s motto of Fortius Quo Fidelius, which was previously housed in the ribbon of the Crest over the years, will now reside within the hemlines of all St Kilda guernseys moving forward.
“By having our club name and year of establishment front and centre, it paints a very clear picture for football and non-football people alike,” Dilena said.
“While we are looking forward as a club in pursuit of success, we will always respect tradition and honour the past to acknowledge the journey we have been on for over 151 years and Fortius Quo Fidelius will remain at the heart of our club, undoubtedly.”
St Kilda’s Crest originated in 1933 and was immortalised into club legend later that same season in the aftermath of the famed ‘Crest Game’; a match wherein an undermanned and injury-ravaged Saints outfit — with just 15 players on the field — toppled a ruthless and full-strength North Melbourne in one of the club’s most stirring triumphs.
In commemoration of the achievement, then-President Fred Arlington-Burke commissioned medals adorned with the Crest to be struck for every player who took part in that game. The Crest has since embodied a legacy of resilience and perseverance no matter the odds; traits synonymous with the Saints over the past 151 years.
St Kilda’s Crest will be featured on all club on-field and off-field apparel for Season 2025, with the home, away and clash guernseys for the upcoming season to be unveiled in the coming days.
