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Rumors have been out there for months that D.C. United that D.C. United will be soon making changes to its badge for the first time since 1998. Some rumors state that it could be coming as soon as November, though I would think that they would wait until after the playoffs to make any such announcement. However, it seems like the team is teasing the new badge on its social media platforms. This is the current image that graces the team's Facebook and Twitter accounts, which were changed this morning:
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At first glance, it looks just like the same D.C. United logo, but look right in the middle: the gold fill of the star has been removed, leaving only the outline. Teams do not do minor changes like this on a whim; this is the first ever change to United's Facebook profile picture, which had previously been exactly the same since 2012. The current badge has been in use since 1998 and is the second oldest badge still in use; only the New England Revolution have played since 1996 with the same one.
What does this mean? Gold has never been a color for D.C. United: the star in the middle symbolized United winning the first MLS Cup in 1996, and gold highlights have never been used in any team uniform. Taking it away helps streamline the badge into United's primary colors and makes it look a little less cluttered.
We will have to see if D.C. United teases any other changes over the coming weeks. What do you think?