Creating the Brand for Player Development in Canada

On this amateur sports branding project, we once again had the privilege of working with our long-time associate, Derek Johnston. This time on yet another exciting project for the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA). Our project together involved developing a new brand name and logo, as well as a host of marketing and collateral materials for the CSA’s Long-Term Player Development (LTPD) program.

Representing thousands of hours and many years of research, development, and refinement by coaches and technical directors, the LTPD program is a comprehensive approach to developing soccer players in Canada.

It follows seven stages starting with players getting involved with the game at an early age through to the national team and professional players.

LTPD sets out the course that players can follow to reach the highest levels of competition or, simply enjoy the beautiful game for a lifetime.

Our team of Stephen McGill and Nadine Buckley joined forces with Derek Johnston and Lara Mills. We worked closely with the communications team at the Canadian Soccer Association as well as Technical Directors, Coaches, and Senior Executives to develop and present initial concepts.

Eventually, after a couple of rounds of fine-tuning, we recommended  Canada Soccer Pathway as the program name and Your Goals. Our Game. as the tagline. It was quickly approved by the Canadian Soccer Association communication team and senior management. It was launched at a special event in Toronto.

Your Goals. Our Game.

Among the materials developed were:

• A series of coaches toolkits

• An introductory video
• An interactive graphic of the seven stages
• Visual brand standards