01 — The Brief
A pregame poster that tells a story without saying a word.
The Grizzlys Catalans were heading to Marseille to face the Blue Stars at Stade Delort. The objective was clear: design a pregame communication poster that creates excitement and anticipation. The challenge was more subtle — convey that this was an away game, in hostile territory, without ever stating it explicitly.
02 — Process
Step 01
The starting point
I started from raw action photography taken during training sessions — dynamic, authentic, and owned by the club. The image needed to carry energy on its own, before any graphic treatment.
Step 02
Finding the anchor — Notre-Dame de la Garde
The key insight: since the match was played at Stade Delort in Marseille, the backdrop needed to tell the story. Notre-Dame de la Garde — “la Bonne Mère” — immediately stood out as the perfect visual anchor. Instantly recognizable, rooted in Marseille's identity.
I browsed multiple angles and distances of the monument to find the composition that would sit naturally in the background, appearing as if genuinely visible from the field.
Step 03
V1 — Structure before typography
Before committing to display typography, I validated the image composition. The player throwing the ball with Notre-Dame perfectly framed in the background. The blue sky and white clouds dominate the palette — a deliberate tension against the Grizzlys' usual dark gold identity.
Step 04
The final touch — Watson
WATSON was selected as the display typeface for its bold, cinematic weight. Recognizable, ownable, strong enough to compete with the photography without overpowering it — and distinctive enough to become a recurring identity asset across the season's communications.
Match details — league, kickoff time, date, venue — were set below in a restrained tracked sans-serif, letting the image and the headline carry the visual load.
03 — Color Strategy
Playing in Marseille's colors — on purpose.
The Grizzlys' brand lives in dark tones — black and gold. Yet for this poster, I deliberately selected a photograph dominated by blue sky and white, the exact colors of Marseille's identity. This creates an implicit narrative: the team is playing in foreign, hostile territory. No caption needed.
04 — Result