A crowd at Snapdragon Stadium on Oct 20 came to witness the official unveiling of the new San Diego MLS team name, colors, and crest as it prepares for its first season starting in 2025. The event also included a second $100,000 donation to the San Diego Foundation matching what the team made at a public event on July 11 at Modern Times Beer in Point Loma.

“Our brand identity has been co-created with our fans and supporters over the past six months,” said San Diego FC CEO Tom Penn. “We believe our crest truly reflects the essence and spirit of San Diego. Our club strives to become the epicenter of football excellence and innovation in North America.”

The crest comprises a shield in the club’s official colors — chrome and azul — surrounded by a gradient band of blue, red, orange, and yellow. At the center of the shield is a circular design, named “The Flow,” with 18 lines that represent the 18 cities of San Diego County. At the top of the shield is an arch with the “San Diego” wordmark, representing monumental signs that adorn the city’s neighborhoods.

San Diego FC contracted with Pupila, a Costa Rican design consultant, to develop the club’s identity. A series of secondary logos with “The Flow” and an “SD” wordmark were also part of the unveiling. San Diego FC had been used as a working name and placeholder at the time of the expansion announcement in May 2023 and is now the 11th team in MLS to use the “FC” suffix.

The name and crest were leaked by The Athletic a day prior to the event garnering widespread attention locally and across the nation, particularly through social media. San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado, who is also part owner, was also present at the event on Oct. 20 and repeated the words of former teammate Jorge Alfaro as he addressed hyped up the crowd of passionate supporters with the famous “Let’s f**** go San Diego.”

Among those attending the event were supporter groups from the various professional and amateur soccer clubs across the county including San Diego Wave, San Diego Loyal, Albion San Diego, and the San Diego Sockers.