Cardiff City are suffering an identity crisis as the club's owners start a rebranding campaign, most notably in the difference of kit colours. The board of directors have sold the Bluebird's 104 year old soul to Malaysian investors in order to clear debt and raise a few bob. They'll now play in red which apparently will appeal to a wider market than their century old blue - presumably to offer them off as the Welsh Man United to oriental audiences (despite playing in an inferior league to country rivals Swansea). Perhaps more likely CCFC will appeal now because the dragon is a big cultural icon in the Far East - or is that a touch racial? I just can't believe that a board would sell the clubs identity and history just because the colourway doesn't fit in with what a couple of foreign millionaires want for their plaything. Actually I can believe it, it's all about the money even at Championship level. Sounds like they were dangling a big gold carrot - change the colours and get the wad.
Fans obviously protested when it was first mooted a month or so ago, and the plans seemed to be dead in the water, but today it became reality as it was pushed through quickly. The Bluebirds are no more. It's now the Red Dragons, with the national Welsh symbol taking pride of place on the new club badge. Sky Sports News editing only showed slightly disappointed fans who grudgingly admitted if it keeps the club afloat then they'll take it. But there'll be a real hardcore dead against it cursing the board as yet another club sells itself out losing its identity. And that's just the Cardiff fans - it's yet to be documented what original welsh reds Wrexham think about it?
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| A Traditional Reds vs Blue Subbuteo clash |
However football fans are a fickle lot and as Simon Jordon pointed when asked about the subject - ''if they win the Championship next season the fans won't care will they?''. Which proved to be the point in Leeds in 1962 when Don Revie abolished the traditional 43 year old blue and yellow colours and changed it to all white, in order to emulate the great Real Madrid. It seemed to work as two years later they won the title and then set on a decade long spell dominating English footie like Liverpool and Man Utd did in the 80s and 90s respectively. I bet the Leeds fans couldn't remember what colour they originally played in after all the champagne consumed after yet another trophy triumph. The same couldn't be said for Millwall in 1999 when they went all white and ended up in League One. Come 2001 they changed back to royal blue and went back up to the Championship.
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| Leeds Home shirt (without Revie history) |
However there's also the opposite end of the scale where you get the impression clubs should have changed their colours. About ten years ago our old sparring partners Darlington had safe cracker jack owner, the Sunderland born Georgie Reynolds, attempt to change their colours from black/white to red and white stripes after his beloved. The fans went apeshit but given their recent plight perhaps they'd have been better off as Sunderland B. And what about Notts County? The oldest football (league) club in the world have had a fairly mediocre time of it post war, especially when compared to their cross-city neighbours. And they gave their colours to help set up a newly formed Italian outfit in 1929, Juventus going on to become a massive club and making a major impact on Europe. On the other hand County are playing second fiddle to Forest on making an impact in Nottinghamshire. Change to blue anyone? Of course that would mean losing the moniker 'Magpies', but then the nickname 'Bluebirds' has just become available.
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| Magpies vs. Eyeties |
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