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Colour clash: Sydney rebuke Melbourne Heart's play for sky blue

Melbourne City host Sydney FC, with both sides spluttering their way to season's end. (AAP Image/Joosep Martinson)
15th April, 2014
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Sydney FC have reportedly lodged a formal complaint with Football Federation Australia after Melbourne Heart applied to change their colours to those of their new owners Manchester City.

Fairfax have reported that Heart have applied for a name change to Melbourne City, and a kit change to reflect their owners: a sky blue shirt with white socks and shorts.

Sydney FC, who play in sky blue shirts and socks with dark blue shorts, are keen to remain the keepers of the ‘Sky Blue’ in the A-League with Chairman Scott Barlow lodging a complaint to the FFA.

He told Fairfax: “Sky blue is much more than just a colour for Sydney FC, it’s central to our identity. Sky blue represents our club, our harbour city and is the traditional colour of NSW.

“We’re extremely concerned about the proposed use of sky blue by Melbourne Heart, and we’ve made our concerns very clear to the FFA.”

Barlow points to the size of the competition as a reason that Heart’s new owners should look at other colours if the club were to rebrand.

“In a competition with only 10 teams, the idea of two teams wearing sky blue is nonsensical especially when sky blue is so closely associated with NSW. I believe it’s critical to the integrity of the A-League that clubs have identities that are also in representation of where they come from,”

The reaction to Sydney FC’s complaint has been mixed, with Roar expert Vince Rugari pointing to the case of Gold Coast United entering the competition with similar colours to Central Coast Mariners.

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Barlow continued on to says the he believed colours were central to the club’s identity and culture; Sydney FC being founded a decade ago and Melbourne Heart in 2008.

“In football, club colours are sacred, and they should represent where a club comes from and not the identity of its owner,” Barlow told Fairfax.

“Melbourne Heart fans understand and value the history as to why the club wears red and white, and understandably they would want to protest that.”

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