FC Burlington

Icarus is a sponsor of this column, but had nothing to do with the subject choice for this article. They are just really good at what they do.

The Casa Soccer League is one of the large local soccer leagues that are gaining traction all over the country. Originally founded in Philadelphia in 2005, the league is now a powerful regional league, with 10,000 members in over 300 registered teams in 2019. According to the league website, Casa is now “the largest independent amateur soccer league in the USA.” But many leagues like CASA slip under the radar of the national soccer media due to our overfixation on the large national leagues. Today, we take a look at one Casa club that just got a brand new look thanks to a big name in grassroots soccer kit design. I sat down with Saulo Loor, co-founder and team manager of FC Burlington, to discuss his club and their kit redesign.

“The team started of as an idea between me and my friends Allan Loor (my brother), Robert Bell and Devante. We all were talking about creating a soccer team to play so we looked into at first just making an indoor soccer team but as we were asking people to join we realized that we got more responses of people willing to join the team than we thought, so we decided to join casa soccer as an outdoor league team. So from there we created the team and started our first season in casa as Burlington Sporting Club, we named the club after our town we live in Burlington Township.” After a season under their belt, they followed the naming tradition of so many American clubs: following the European model. “We just went to a name change to Football Club Burlington to make it sound a little more elegant and make more European sounding.”

Burlington’s old kits were pretty solid. But they wanted a big change.

With a new name, the team decided to go for a new look. And after being contacted by Icarus FC, it just made sense to collaborate with them. Because of Icarus’ work with so many other grassroots soccer club, the proof of the quality of work is all over regional and local league all over the country. For Saulo, it just took a quick visit to his phone. “After looking at their Instagram page, seeing all those awesome designs they brought to life, it was a no brainer that we wanted to work with them.”

The kits that Icarus designed really pop and will stand out in any league, but especially in a league that features so many other clubs fighting for attention in Casa League. The plan for the redesign began with the club founders meeting to discuss ideas. “We sat down one day and brainstormed ideas about how we could make a kit that was classy and simple so we decided on the colors of our own high school (Burlington Township HS) so that’s how we ended up with black/gold kit and the white gold kits.” Connecting the kit design to a local, establish color-palate is a smart move, the third “alternative” kit was chosen for less obvious reasons. “The olive green jersey idea came from us just thinking about sick colors that you don’t see to often on soccer jerseys so we thought why not an army/olive color and we ended up deciding that would be our third kit this season something different than the norm.”

What catches the eyes of soccer fans all over the world is their logo, featuring a fierce black dog. For Saulo, this was also drawing from local inspiration, REALLY local. “Our dog logo and dog outline on our jersey actually is about my schnauzer Beamer that I got 2 years ago. I always wanted a schnauzer and 2 years ago I finally got one and thought it would be pretty funny to incorporate him in my soccer team some way so I ended up putting him in the club badge and since then he’s been the team mascot. The badge was designed by my cousin Abraham Olmedia and my father Saulo Loor sr. So shout out to the team for bringing my idea to life.”

For the players on the club, the new look was exciting and they couldn’t wait to throw the new kits on. Particularly from Saulo’s perspective, the new design is really all about the many people involved in its creation and the club itself. “I just want to thank everyone that has helped out over the years to make this soccer team a possibility because once you find out how much you need to put in to run a soccer team you understand how much goes into it. I couldn’t imagine the stuff GMs go through for a professional team, it’s probably insane.”

As with all the designs we highlight on this site, you can contact the club to purchase one.

Their social media is here.

Rebranding for Authenticity

For clarity, Icarus FC does advertise with our site. It just so happens they keep making the freshest kits!

If you are not living in the Philadelphia area, you would be forgiven for thinking Lone Star FC was a Texan club. However, anyone in and around Philadelphia could tell you that Philadelphia Lone Star FC is an absolute institution in the city. The club was founded as Junior Lone Star FC in 2001 by Liberian immigrants, whose heritage is drawn on as inspiration for the “Lone Star” name referencing the lone star on the Liberian flag. The club has come to be known as one of the foremost professional development clubs on the east coast, growing from a single squad when it was founded to a club that fields teams in the NPSL’s Keystone Conference and the UPSL’s Northeast Conference. They’ve provided Philadelphia’s amateur footballers, and in particular those of African descent and heritage, with countless opportunities for further development in the sport.

This connection to Philadelphia fueled the club’s desire to rebrand last year and they adopted the name Philadelphia Lone Star. The club adopted a new crest to go along with its new name, ditching a “Barcelona”-shaped badge in favor of a cleaner pointed shield. The crest is not only a slick design, but it also does a simple design in a way that does not feel overly generic or unimaginative. The Liberty Bell is a simple homage to the city these players now call home but the club has not abandoned its own history in the process.

Lone Star FC took this connection to their city a step further as they prepared for the 2019 season by linking up with local kit designer Icarus Football. “Philly Lone Star is a big name around here,” said Icarus when asked about the partnership. “We really wanted to make sure we put together kits that would reflect their stature in the community.”

Based on the badge above, it would have been fairly simple for Icarus to look at this as a straightforward project. Red, white, blue...there’s 10000 high school, college, amateur, and professional soccer teams (not to mention the National Teams) in the US that use the same color scheme. Lone Star getting the template treatment that we see so often in major club and international football would have been simple. Icarus did not take that route whatsoever as they produced four fantastically unique kits.

Home

The impressive thing about this home kit is that it feels both familiar and unique all in one effortless stroke. Wearing sky blue with white shorts could have been a chance to look like a Manchester City copycat, but the Liberty Bells down the sleeves and sides of the shorts evoke a Philadelphia version of the classic Kappa designs from Serie A. The red trim pops in a way that you might not expect against the light blue, while the sublimated Star design makes it so Philadelphia Lone Star is embodied throughout the kit. An impressive effort from top to bottom.

Away

The Away Kit is another stunning effort. The red-over-red with the sublimated stars ties this design back to the home kit but it is the pattern on the sleeves and down the shorts that is the true star of the show here. We have seen, especially with Nike’s recent templates, the effort to make different colored sleeves the unique element of a kit. Icarus has taken that idea and cranked the creativity through the roof, implementing a pattern inspired by West African fabric patterns to create something truly splendid.

Third

Philadelphia Lone Star’s Third Kit serves the dual function of being gorgeous and aiding a worthy cause. During the middle of the NPSL season, Lone Star will wear this kit in conjunction with a campaign to raise money for juvenile cancer research. Such a campaign should succeed on its own merits, but this design is a fantastic advertisement. The pink and black color scheme has an extremely modern feel to it without it feeling garish. The black and white version of the crest is, quite frankly, badass. The star details down the sleeves and shorts add a nice touch, but the sublimated design again steals the show, with a lovely hoop design culminating near the collar in the Philadelphia skyline. A kit that accomplishes this much both aesthetically and in helping those in need is extremely admirable and I hope this kit gets the attention it deserves.

Fourth

There is something so striking about a well-executed white kit. When that kit has a sublimated spotted print and a unique pattern down the sleeves, you have something special on your hands. The aforementioned pattern extends from the collar, down the sleeves, and down the shorts, with the numbers on the kit itself containing the pattern as well. This kit again brings Lone Stars African roots to the forefront. This celebration of the club’s heritage is evident in each design but this particular design feels like a celebration in and of itself. I, for one, am extremely here for it. This kit will act as a fourth kit for the NPSL squad and will serve as the UPSL squad’s home kit. This may be premature, but I would shortlist this kit for one of the best in UPSL for the Spring Season.

Philadelphia Lone Star FC are embarking on a new chapter of their history in 2019 and with this new identity that links their current home to the club’s African heritage, the club is emphasizing what we all love and idealize about the United States and the game of soccer: The opportunity to succeed no matter your background. This club is admirable for its ideals and history, and now we can all look on and admire the kits as well.

- Phil Baki