EssentiallySports

In 2014, EssentiallySports was founded as a blog by three college friends who were deeply passionate about sports. By the time ES came to us in 2025, it had developed into a media outlet with a social reach and subscriber count well into the tens of millions. It was at a turning point and needed a visual refresh that would suit the breadth of its growing offerings, and ultimately better serve its audience.

The identity we built embodies what sports fans come to ES for—the bold on-the-pulse stories and unique perspectives. The headlines are the brand. From that basic concept, the system followed almost naturally:

Our primary form—rectangles highlighting the text they contain. Bold but simple. Dynamic but consistent.

Our primary typeface—Acumin. It is our refined version of Impact, the font that defined the look of classic memes.

Our color palette—a pared-back core of bright blue and neutrals, supplemented with the whole gamut of sports colors, from league to team to individual uniform. Nothing rouses emotions and holds meaning like your favorite team’s colors do.

Some of our main direction—draw focus to the content that matters and don’t overcomplicate. Remember, at the end of the day, sports are fun.