The Arizona Cardinals are one of the oldest teams in the NFL, dating back to the league’s inaugural football season in 1920. A lot has changed in the game of football since then, and the Cardinals’ team is no different. Not only has the team made many changes and many locations changes over the years, so has their primary logo! Let’s take a look at how the Arizona Cardinals’ primary logo has evolved with their distinctive cardinal logo and how it came to be what is known today.
To begin our search into the Arizona Cardinals logo history, we have to start in the city of Chicago. In 1898, Chicago building contractor Chris O’Brien established an amateur athletic club football team named the Morgan Athletic Club. In 1901 he bought for the team used faded maroon “University of Chicago” jerseys that the faded color was described as “Cardinal red,” referring to attire of the Catholic Cardinals. The team was renamed to be known as the Chicago Cardinals by the time the NFL was created in 1920, the Cardinal name still stands today.
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present
2005 - Present
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in black.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #2
2005 - Present
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #3
2005 - Present
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in white on a black background.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #4
2005 - Present
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red on a black background.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #5
2005 - Present
A red cardinal with a wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in black.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #6
2005 - Present
A red cardinal with a wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #7
2005 - Present
A red cardinal with a wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #8
2005 - Present
A red cardinal with a wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in black.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #9
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a black background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in white.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #10
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a black background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #13
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a yellow background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in black.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #14
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a red background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in white.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #15
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a red background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in black.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #16
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a yellow background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #11
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a black background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in white.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 2005 – Present #12
2005 - Present
A red cardinal on a black background. Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in red.
Font: Freight Sans Blackhttps://fontslogo.com/arizona-cardinals-logo-font/
Arizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 1994 – 2004 #2
1994 - 2004
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in bold red capital.
Font: UnknownArizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 1994 – 2004
1994 - 2004
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in bold black capital letters. The Cardinals logo of the head of a cardinal is replacing the letter “O” in the wordmark “ARIZONA.”
Font: UnknownArizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 1994 – 2004 #3
1994 - 2004
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in bold white capital letters. The Cardinals logo of the head of a cardinal is replacing the letter “O” in the wordmark “ARIZONA” on a black background.
Font: UnknownArizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 1994 – 2004 #4
1994 - 2004
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in bold white capital letters. The Cardinals logo of the head of a cardinal is replacing the letter “O” in the wordmark “ARIZONA” on a red background.
Font: UnknownArizona Cardinals Wordmark Logo 1994 – 2004 #5
1994 - 2004
Double lined wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in bold black capital letters. The Cardinals logo of the head of a cardinal is replacing the letter “O” in the wordmark “ARIZONA” on a yellow background.
Font: UnknownArizona Cardinals Concept Logo
Arizona Cardinals Alternate Logo
Arizona Cardinals Primary Logo
2002 - 2004
The state flag of Arizona logo, worn on the sleeve of the Cardinals uniform.
1994 - 2001
Wordmark “ARIZONA CARDINALS” in white and the Cardinals primary logo on the state flag of Arizona.
Arizona Cardinals Primary Logo
2005 - Present
In January 2005, the team unveiled its first major changes in a century. The red cardinal head logo was updated to look sleeker and meaner than the previous cardinal head. The beak was changed from gold to yellow, heavier black outlines were added and this bird is significantly more aggressive looking than the previous bird. Numerous fans had called the previous version a “parakeet.”
1994 - 2004
Slight changes as the city Phoenix changes to the state of Arizona. The Cardinals become the “Arizona Cardinals.”
Phoenix Cardinals
1988 - 1993
Slight variation of the cardinal head in 1988 for the move to Phoenix.
St. Louis Cardinals
1970 - 1987
In 1970 the logo came to be what is today the streamlined version of the a cardinal head with an attitude. The Cardinals logo was designed by Verlander Design.
1960 - 1969
In 1960 the Cardinals logo changed to a red muscled Cardinal carrying a football in football uniform running past the St. Louis Arch.
Chicago Cardinals
1947 - 1959
Starting in 1947, the Cardinal’s logo is a brown and black cardinal perched on the stitches of a white with black outline football.
Chicago Cardinals/Pittsburgh Steelers
1944
In 1944 the Steelers merged with the Chicago Cardinals and were known as “CARD-PITT” and informally known as the “Car-Pitts” or “Carpets.” The Steelers went solo again for the 1945 season.
1920 - 1934
The 1920’s Chicago Cardinals logo had an interlocking “CC” logo with a wishbone “C” and a regular “C” in red.