What's the typeface on England's World Cup jerseys?

June 12, 2010 12:52 PM

What typeface is used for the player names on England's World Cup jerseys? Looks helvetica-esque, but thinner and more sparse. Thanks!
posted by interocular to Media & Arts (8 answers total)

other than being sans serif it doesn't really look much like helvetica - the 1 is a single line, the O's very wide (distinct from 0's), the 8 is bubbly, and there are angled ends rather than everything being perpendicular. Closest I can come up with is Gills Sans, though it could easily be something more obscure or unique to their team.

Anyone have a jersey with a J on it? That'd be a giveaway....
posted by mdn at 1:24 PM on June 12, 2010

Second Gill Sans.

Apart from being the first one that came to mind, it was also used in the 20's/30's by LNER, so it's very 'English' and ties in with the retro style of strip.
posted by Nugget at 1:30 PM on June 12, 2010

Response by poster: Gill Sans is a definite contender, thanks!

Googling that led to a discussion of the KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON poster, which led to Avenir 65 Medium, which has a similar British retro feel.

There are pictures of the jerseys in question here, here, and here.

Any strong feelings on which is closer, Gill Sans or Avenir 65 Medium?
posted by interocular at 3:59 PM on June 12, 2010

Looks to be neither Gill Sans nor Avenir 65 Medium to me. Looking at this jersey, the middle of the M drops too far down and the R is not flared enough to be Gill Sans, but then the middle of the M drops not far enough to be Avenir 65 Medium.
posted by danceswithlight at 6:40 PM on June 12, 2010

Other than the cap R, I'd say it's an adaptation of P22 Underground, which is a modern authorized adaptation of Samuel Johnston's original font for the London Underground.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:03 PM on June 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Edward Johnston.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:04 PM on June 12, 2010

Look at this one and compare the J, C and O. Not Gill Sans, Avenir or P22 Underground.
posted by AlsoMike at 7:27 PM on June 12, 2010

It is not any of the fonts mentioned here so far. None of them are even particularly close. I am drawing a blank with it, though. It is not any of the fonts with a straight-leg cap R that I can think of off the top of my head.

It could be custom. It could be a set of carelessly-applied hardware store stencils.

If the mefi hive mind fails you, maybe this one will prove more helpful.

Is it asking too much for a national team to kern their jerseys properly? My eyes won't unsee "LAMP ARD"
posted by zjacreman at 12:06 AM on June 13, 2010