In short
In May 2026, the hopeful co-founders of the Northern Super League's (NSL) first expansion team, Desiree Scott and Rob Gale, were looking for ammunition for their pitch.
They had a clear vision for the team—rooted in community, conviction and the hustler mentality of Winnipeg as an "underdog" city—and they needed a brand story to help them package this to the league.
With their pitch fast-approaching, we used our early conversations and a brand workshop to form the foundation for their brand—a story culminating in a proposed team name, tagline and visual direction. We got them "game-ready" and they headed into the pitch further ahead than other provinces, getting awarded a team in July 2026, with the league backing them as majority owners as they get their start.
Methodology
When it was time to make the news public, we weren't ready to announce a team name, but we still had a big job to do. We needed to announce Winnipeg as home to their first professional women's sports team. We needed to build early fandom and launch the team with enough vigour to ensure it gained sustained interest and support. And we needed to display the professional backing and longevity of this club out of the gate. In short, we needed the launch to be a success.
So, we went to work designing a temporary visual identity for the club's launch, working on a set of responsive design assets that could be used to add excitement, context and energy to each of the launch assets, guided by messaging and symbolism speaking to the legacy and historic milestone of this club.
The launch event started as a community-and-media event on The Forks' grounds, bringing government dignitaries and NSL team members to the forefront to share the news of the expansion, while letting Scott's local community club team and their parents in on the secret. We had two 3-v-3 blow-up soccer pitches set up for youth, limited-edition merch for sale, a "draw the mascot" and guess the name contests and of course, A-frame signs pointing to the club's newsletter and season ticket deposit links.
Later, the step-and-repeat for media doubled as a photo backdrop at the King's Head for a post-announcement party, inviting team backers and the wider community to celebrate the new team.
Strung with branded banners and speckled with tent cards to mimic the pub's typical décor, we set up the King's Head to be an extension of our brand launch, bringing "The Destroyer" cocktail to life alongside the "Northern Super Lite Lager" as thoughtful flourishes to ensure the brand, team and vibe shone through the event.
Anchoring the announcement was the launch video, shot and filmed in-studio with Desiree Scott, and assembled with archival and game footage, as well as tourism assets of Winnipeg projected onto the studio walls, giving the shoot a mixed-media feel and aesthetic. The video earned cheers and hollers, setting the tone for the team's reception ahead.
Challenges
Before the team had an identity of its own, we needed a temporary ID and aesthetic to launch the team with energy. Originally conceived for the limited-edition merchandise, we pulled our merch design system (designed in collaboration with Deskwork Studio) into each of the launch event materials, bringing consistency and a bespoke feel to the team's inception, while tying our efforts to the NSL's colour palette to ensure we didn't reveal future team colours or hints.
We also had to balance secrecy with attendance goals, so we invited a limited VIP list of local players, soccer insiders and team backers to the formal media launch. Once the news was out, we opened the King's Head invite more widely to include community members keen to celebrate, as well as influencers to spread news of the club.
Execution
Beyond the launch date, we needed to continue to build up the club with momentum.
We were engaged to create and run social, PR and community engagement strategies, alerting media as more news and milestones came up (i.e. the stadium announcement, one of a handful of purpose-built stadiums for professional women's sports in the world) and news of the first president of the club. We also "pop up" at soccer-related and other relevant community events, bringing merchandise sales and club activations to life.
Our social strategy leverages the design system and helps build the team's cultural relevance, personality and spread news of the league and club alongside reels typically shot and edited with Desiree and Rob as featured participants.
With our hands in all owned channels for the team, we're able to treat each announcement and milestone like a mini campaign, generating intrigue and interest that converts.
Outcome
While ongoing, the news of the team launch reached all the people it needed to. We made national news, with CBC and TSN launching with exclusives right out of the gate.
All provincial media attended our morning announcement, and overall media pickup generated 161.7 million impressions, the equivalent of approximately 26.9 million USD in paid advertising. The launch video reached 242,777 views, generating 395 comments, 1,976 shares and 7,500 likes on Instagram.
Since launch, our social strategy has helped turn the announcement into an engaged, growing community. Between July 14 and September 20, 2026, Instagram content generated 1.5 million views, reached 247,000 users and grew the account to over 4,500 followers, with more than 17,700 reel engagements and 5,800 shares.
Most importantly, we're close to meeting the goal of 1,000 season ticket deposits ahead of the team brand and name announcement.
Lessons Learned
Launching a brand-new team is much like a start-up. We're working swiftly and we're able to do that well by bouncing ideas directly off the team's two co-founders, making sign-offs quick.
With the league as majority owners, we also have the leadership of the league president and their internal team as resources to assist with things like the team website and to let us know about things like league sponsor exclusives (a lesson we'll only have to learn once).
While working at a tenacious pace, we're working with a partner who's racing alongside us to give professional women's sports the launch they deserve in this market—work that's well worth doing.
