But the NFL Draft tradition of draftees donning their new franchise’s hat after being selected is a fun one. And, each year, the NFL and its merchandise partners take great care in designing headwear that matches the current styles in sports merchandise and fashion. So, it makes it a good time for promo suppliers and distributors to look at what a good sports hat should look like.
In past years, New Era has gone with maximalist designs, like layering a city and team name using the two teams’ colors, or leaning into the trucker hat renaissance.
This year, the designs are a little more understated, but largely play on the theme of local pride and teams’ geography.
The front of the hat features the team logo with sort of an echo design, where it looks like the logo is popping out thanks to some embroidery tricks. On the side, each team features the outline of the team’s home state, along with some sort of franchise-centric slogan.
Like, for example, the Jaguars get “Duuuuuval,” the Eagles get a Liberty Bell motif and “Go Birds,” and the Cowboys get a crying face and “We’re the worst.”
Just kidding about that last part. It actually says “America’s Team,” which is a first for the promotional products industry: Lying via apparel decoration.
Go Birds!
What’s interesting, though, is that some franchises stray from the theme slightly. For example, the Las Vegas Raiders, which until recently played in Oakland, doesn’t have an outline of Nevada or anything. It just has a little star, and says “Once a Raider, Always a Raider.”
Also, while we’re being nitpicky, both the Giants and Jets have both New York and New Jersey included on the side. Classic New Jersey trying to mooch off of their neighbors. Have I mentioned Go Birds?
Jokes aside, taking a look at these hats gives clues to what end-users want in their sports merchandise, not just football products. Embroidered logos in multiple locations create an opportunity for branding with more dimension. Adding pops of color with the layered effect allows for including the whole brand identity using color. And, touching on some aspect of either local pride or the brand’s culture makes people even more likely to want to wear the product. They’ll feel connected to it, whether it’s a sports team, a business, a school, or anything else you could decorate on a hat.
For the fit itself, New Era also gave the options of the classic fitted look, as well as the more flexible “Dad hat” style that has been popular in recent years.
