TAMPA, Fla. — Planning has been underway for the Super Bowl in Tampa years in advance, even down to the smallest of details.
A former intern for a Tampa Bay area advertising and branding agency had a hand in designing a logo now seen across Tampa.
“I came here in the U.S. as an exchange student,” said Patchanit Sriviroch. “I had no idea about American football. My understanding about football was the one that you call soccer.”
After going to her first Bucs game, Sriviroch says she's been a fan ever since. In 2019, she worked as a graphic design intern at Schifino Lee, an advertising and branding firm in Tampa. As an intern, Sriviroch found herself presented with a unique opportunity for the Tampa Bay Super Bowl LV host committee.
“It was actually the first day that I got to the internship, and they literally handed me the brief and were like ‘Hey, we have a big project going on. Do you want to be a part of it?’ said Sriviroch. “I opened the brief, and it was like ‘Super Bowl host committee logo,’ and I’m like, ‘Wait is it for real?’ And they said, yeah it’s kind of more like an exercise for our interns right now."
After researching and sketching, ultimately, her original concept design was selected. The Schifino Lee creative team along with their clients at Tampa Bay Sports Commission then refined and modified that concept into the logo seen today.
“I still can’t wrap my head around it. It’s just so unreal,” said Sriviroch.
After the host committee logo was unveiled in September 2019, the advertising firm explainedthe red and pewter represent the Bucs, while the blues represent the Riverwalk and Water Street, further explaining, “the pirate ship draws from Tampa’s history of Gasparilla, the five sails on the ship represent this being Tampa Bay’s fifth Super Bowl, and the five football laces stand for Derrick Brooks’ Forever 55 social initiative.”
“It’s always fun to see the work that you did in the market and being consumed by consumers on a daily basis,” said Schifino Lee co-founder Paola Schifino. “It brings us a lot of joy, and it’s the reason that we do what we do.”
Sriviroch says she got a lot of inspiration from the Bucs, hoping now along with many fans that they can turn the community's excitement into a magic moment.
“I think if the Bucs win Super Bowl LV, it will make this logo even more special,” said Sriviroch.
