After more than a quarter century of separate identities for their football team and the rest of their varsity sports teams, the University of Regina’s athletics program is uniting the two under a new visual brand system.
The U Sports program based in the Saskatchewan capital unveiled the new brand identity late last week, which brings the Rams football team and the school’s other teams, nicknamed the Cougars, under a single visual umbrella.
“We’ve created something that feels fresh, strong, and true to who we are today,” said U of R Director of Sport, Community Engagement and Athlete Development Lisa Robertson on the school’s website. “We’ve had a growing need for a more consistent and unified identity across our two varsity programs, and now, with this rebrand, we’re creating something that better reflects who we are today while building on the deep pride our community has in the Cougars and Rams.”
While the Rams retain their separate nickname, the new brand aims to bring them and the Cougars closer together through cohesive design elements and a shared colour palette of green, gold and white. The reimagined logos for both are intended to be modern while honouring their respective legacies.
“This isn’t just about logos. It’s about unifying how we tell the story of U of R Varsity Sport. From merchandise to digital content, signage to social media, the refreshed brand will provide consistency, visibility, and new energy.”
— Lisa Robertson, Director of Sport, Community Engagement and Athlete Development, University of Regina
According to Canadian football new site 3DownNation, the Regina Rams began as a Canadian Junior Football League team in 1954, but reached an agreement with the U of R in 1999 to come under the university’s control while maintaining the Rams nickname. “As such, they have always been the only team in U Sports to have a separate name, logo, and colour palette from the rest of their school’s athletic teams,” they explained.
The new Cougars logo depicts a gold-and-green pouncing cougar with white teeth and claws. “With sharpened lines and untamed energy, the new logo reflects the Cougar’s strength, speed and fearless drive — the very qualities that fuel our student-athletes in every moment of competition,” the school says.
Meanwhile, the school’s new Rams logo depicts a gold-and-green ram with white horns rearing up on its hind legs. “The logo was reborn to embody the relentless speed, unshakable strength and fearless spirit of the Ram — the same fierce qualities our student-athletes summon with every stride on the gridiron.”
The process of developing the new identity began last year and involved branding agency Trajectory. Student-athletes and coaches were first consulted, followed by a campus-wide survey. Alumni, fans and community stakeholders were also invited to share feedback.
The rollout of the new identity will be “thoughtful, paced, and reflective of budgets and schedules,” the U of R says. “New visuals will start showing up in key places such as digital platforms, uniforms, and high-traffic signage with additional updates to follow over time.”
“The Cougars and Rams are still the Cougars and Rams,” Robertson said. “What we’ve done is create a cleaner, more unified brand system so we can represent both programs with strength and clarity, on campus, on the field, and in the digital world. This is an exciting new era and with this refresh our teams are ready to roar.”
