Rebrand sees Halifax Panthers hunting down younger fans

As one of the rugby league’s founder members, the historic West Yorkshire club - approaching its 150th anniversary - feels the bold change is vital for not only its survival but its ability to grow.

It comes 17 years after Halifax famously abandoned its old nickname of the ‘Blue Sox’, which it retained for six years between 1996 and 2002, after a backlash from fans.

The Championship club - whose last major trophy success was the 1987 Challenge Cup - has ditched the town’s coat of arms badge again but this time it insists there will be no turning back.

Halifax managing director Dave Grayson said: “Digitally, the world is changing; we’ve seen in lockdown that a lot’s changed.

“We had to change. I don’t think we could survive long-term as we were.

“It’s trying not to lose the heritage of the club but also put us in position to move forward and capture a younger audience.

“We might have lost a generation - if not two generations - of fans before.”

Halifax Panthers media and marketing director Lee Kenny said: “The new Panthers brand provides a fantastic platform from which we can launch our vision of bringing the glory days back to The Shay.

“Halifax is one of the most famous names in the sport and the club is a huge focal point of our region, but it’s now more than 30 years since our last major trophy and as a business we simply cannot afford to stand still.

“The new moniker, logo and wider brand will open up many new opportunities for marketing and engagement that simply weren’t there under our old identity.

“We are confident that our fans, sponsors and other stakeholders will embrace this as a positive and significant day in the club’s 147-year history.”

A number of Super League clubs have launched new, sleek brand identities recently including Huddersfield Giants, Salford Red Devils and Wigan Warriors.

Halifax coach Simon Grix is a fan of his club’s new look.

“We are in a digital world now and everything is online so having a more modern brand is more attractive for younger people,” he said.

“It’s then easier for us to get into schools and communities with this.

“I coach Siddal Under 11s and some players down there are not talking about Halifax unfortunately.

“It’s a stone’s throw away really. But they are talking about the (Huddersfield) Giants, (Castleford) Tigers and (Wigan) and so on.

“This opens a few more doors to us. It's exciting.”