Fansided

30 most iconic logos in sports

By Jeremy Lambert

TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 23: A general view of George M. Steinbrenner Field as players and coaches from the Detroit Tigers and the New York Yankees line-up during the National Anthem prior to the Spring Training game at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 23, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. The Yankees defeated the Tigers 3-1. (Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL - FEBRUARY 23: A general view of George M. Steinbrenner Field as players and coaches from the Detroit Tigers and the New York Yankees line-up during the National Anthem prior to the Spring Training game at George M. Steinbrenner Field on February 23, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. The Yankees defeated the Tigers 3-1. (Photo by Mark Cunningham/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /
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Sales clerk Melanie Crete, left, bags up a Hartford Whalers T-shirt for Carolina Hurricanes fans Lawrence Miller, second from right, his wife Jennifer Miller, right, and their daughter Avery Miller, 9, at The Eye before the Hurricanes play host to the Montreal Canadiens at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C., on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018. It’s the first time items from the team’s former identity are being sold, a change brought about by the Canes’ new owner, Tom Dundon. (Chris Seward/Raleigh News & Observer/TNS via Getty Images)
Sales clerk Melanie Crete, left, bags up a Hartford Whalers T-shirt for Carolina Hurricanes fans Lawrence Miller, second from right, his wife Jennifer Miller, right, and their daughter Avery Miller, 9, at The Eye before the Hurricanes play host to the Montreal Canadiens at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C., on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018. It’s the first time items from the team’s former identity are being sold, a change brought about by the Canes’ new owner, Tom Dundon. (Chris Seward/Raleigh News & Observer/TNS via Getty Images) /

Hartford Whalers

The only throwback logo on the list. Throwback logos are fun to wear on your clothes for a day before you get tired of kids asking you, “What team is that?” Learn some history, kid.

There are a few throwback logos that come close to iconic status, but the knock against throwbacks are that they don’t stand the test of time. They aren’t around today, and while that’s not the fault of the logo, the logo must suffer all the same.

The Whalers logo is here because it’s remained iconic despite the team moving to Carolina. You know a logo is iconic when the current team has been in existence longer and has been more successful, yet people still long for the days of the older team. If the Hurricanes moved back to Hartford, hockey fans would be in the streets celebrating.

There’s a lot to love about the Whalers logo. Hovering above the W is the famous whale tail. Both are colored in and represent the nickname and mascredot of the team. But do you notice the negative space? It’s an H to signify Hartford. The use of negative space is a lost art in logo making. The Washington Capitals are about the only team to pull it off nowadays.

The Whalers logo was ahead of its time.

Adam Sandler put the Whalers logo in the his movie Grown Ups. It wasn’t as prominent as another time he used a hockey logo in a movie, but at least it wasn’t beaten up by a game show host.

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