Legacy Illustrated
Field: Sports
Client: Clubul Sportiv al Armatei "Steaua" Bucuresti - football team
Year: 2021
Creative Concept
Illustration
Print Design
Co-Written Content
DTP
Steaua Bucharest, founded in 1947, is one of Romania's most iconic football clubs. Known for its rich history and passionate fanbase, the club has won numerous domestic titles and made a significant impact on European football. Steaua's most famous achievement came in 1986 when they became the first Eastern European team to win the European Cup (now the UEFA Champions League). The club is recognized for its tradition of developing talented players and maintaining a strong presence in Romanian football.
Summary
For the 35th anniversary of Steaua Bucharest's historic European Cup victory, we had the honor of designing a commemorative album featuring illustrations of all the players and coaches from that magical evening in Seville, in which Steaua Bucharest and FC Barcelona met in the final of the European Champions Cup . We crafted the entire visual concept for the celebration, including the album, OOH displays, and print materials. Additionally, we produced a limited-edition club magazine, handling everything from illustrations to text and DTP. Many of these illustrations remain iconic and continue to be displayed around Steaua Stadium, celebrating the club's monumental achievement.
Challenge
One of the primary challenges was to accurately capture the distinct traits of each player, which required us to obtain high-quality reference photos. We needed to delve deeply into the details of that historic night, meticulously studying images from the 1985-1986 season to ensure our illustrations truly reflected the spirit of the occasion. Crafting the cover presented another significant challenge; we aimed to symbolically capture the atmosphere and significance of the victory in a way that resonated with the essence of that night. Additionally, the client requested that we illustrate representative images for each player, balancing historical accuracy with artistic interpretation. While most illustrations were based on actual match footage, we also created some from conceptual sketches to fill in gaps and enhance the visual narrative.
Solutions
The album was envisioned as a nostalgic homage to classic Panini albums, reimagined through my unique illustrative style. It is divided into three sections: player portraits, depictions of key game actions, and a narrative recounting the 1985-1986 European Champions Cup season. Each player is featured with a distinct illustration and a text page detailing their role and career. Additionally, each player is associated with a memorable on-field scene from that iconic night. The cover pays tribute to Andalusian graphic artist and painter Daniel Puch Rodríguez-Caso, reinterpreting his 1970 poster, "Semana Santa Y Feria," which captures the essence of Seville. This homage blends elements of Seville with the atmosphere of the European Champions Cup final, highlighting key moments such as Duckadam's gloves, the missed penalties, the dramatic shot off the bar, Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium, and the Champions Cup itself.
