After asking their supporters to select their favorite redesigned crest from three eerily similar options, Newcastle United has revealed the winning option.
The English Premier League club unveiled the new crest on their website and social media platforms on Thursday, October 1. It will be used in digital applications starting immediately, “and will be put in place progressively across physical signage and digital and broadcast platforms over the coming months” before appearing on the Magpies’ kits in the 2027-28 season.
More than 27,000 supporters responded to the poll, with winning crest being the preference of 64.8% of them. All three options had the same shield, banner, castle and flag-waving lion, with slight variances in the hippocampi on either side of the shield. The winner features hippocampi with rounder heads, more pronounced manes and less shading under their jaws.
“I have never worked anywhere that feels as proud and passionate about its crest than the way this club does, so this body of work is an enormous privilege and responsibility for all of us.
“The club has asked supporters questions that we did not know the answers to, and they told us plainly: protect what we have, keep the elements we love, and do not start again.
“Every decision after that has been made inside the margins our fans drew, and it is only right that our fans have had the final and decisive say on the outcome.
“Our crest came from the city’s own coat of arms, and it still does. It honours where we have come from, it represents who we are now, and it will become an iconic symbol for generations of supporters around the world who believe in it and unite behind it.”
— David Hopkinson, CEO, Newcastle United Football Club
When Newcastle first announced they were considering altering their crest in May 2025, they said a change was because the previous version, introduced in 1988, had an “intricate design doesn’t always translate well in today’s digital world. And it’s difficult to reproduce it clearly and consistently.
“As football and the world changes, so too must the symbol that unites us.”
Like the version it replaces, the new Magpies’ crest derived from the City of Newcastle upon Tyne‘s coat of arms, which also features hippocampi and a flag-waving lion in a castle. The club wore the actual coat of arms on their black-and-white striped kits at various points in their history — as early as 1910 and mostly for FA Cup finals — but officially adopted it as their emblem in 1969. They wore it until 1976, when they switched to a round crest with a magpie in front of Castle Keep. In 1983, Newcastle unveiled a modern, circular crest with bold “NUFC” lettering and a magpie at the bottom that, despite only being worn for five years, is a cult classic among fans.
“As a lifelong fan, our crest was the thing I covered my schoolbooks in. It’s the crest I watched my heroes playing in during the 80s and 90s, so helping to shape the future of our crest is an incredible honour.
“I’ve been lucky enough to work on some of the biggest design projects in world football during my career, and none of them came with pressure like this because of my roots and my passion for the club.
“That pressure has come from the thousands of fans we have engaged with, but also from my family, from the people I sit with in the stands at St. James’ Park, and from a group chat with friends that has shown me no mercy for two solid years. I have been asked more than once, and not always politely, whether I understand the importance of this work, and I absolutely do.
“Our new crest has been crafted with the utmost respect for our heritage and identity, and with our vision and ambitions in mind. Every line has been drawn, redrawn, reviewed, and tested across so many formats, textures and platforms, and it delivers.
“Nothing has been changed simply because it could be. The message from fans has been consistently clear, and every element is geared towards producing a crest that will continue to connect and inspire people for many years to come.”
— Kenneth McIver, Chief Creative Officer, Newcastle United Football Club
