Rugby fans have mocked the new logo for the men’s Six Nations, after a rebrand has ditched the well-known colourful rugby ball which is symbolic with the competition.
The Six Nations has announced what it calls a ‘reimagined and recharged brand identity’, swapping the rugby ball shaped like a number six in the colours of all six competing nations, with some text worded ‘M6N’ in front of a red rugby ball.
The rebranded is to ‘signpost rugby to a younger audience’, organisers have said.
A press release for the tournament said: ‘Connecting its rich heritage with the modern game, and articulated through a distinctive and bold new brand, it is designed to resonate with everyone from new and existing fans to the players and unions competing in this iconic Championship.’
It said the ‘bold visual designs’ reflects ‘how fans feel about the sport’ and the ‘distinctive orange’ colour signifies ‘the optimism fans feel when they come together at the end of winter to experience the Six Nations together’.
Fans took to X, formerly Twitter, to poke fun at the new logo.
Some users likened it to a Mars bar, another asked if a nine-year-old won a competition to design it.
Other fans poked fun at the competition’s sponsor Guinness, who feature on the new logo.
The new Six Nations logo features the letters M6N in ‘distinctive orange’ in front of a red rugby ball
The old logo features a number six in the shape of a rugby ball, featuring the six colours of the competing nations
One said: ‘If I were Guinness, I’d want my money back’.
A fan said it was the ‘ugliest thing they had ever seen’.
Explaining why the logo has changed, the organisers said: ‘Rich in heritage and returning bigger and better each year, the Guinness Men’s Six Nations celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025, but its roots reach back to 1883, when the Home Nations competition was first founded.
‘It’s the heritage of the Championship that separates it from other forms of entertainment vying for the attention of fans, but a new brand identity offers the opportunity to better engage new fans, whilst exciting existing ones. The impact can be to close the generational gap within fans, signposting rugby to a younger and more diverse audience.’
It is the first major rebrand for the Six Nations logo since 2003, when sponsorship changed from Lloyds TSB to Royal Bank of Scotland.