In Darkness We Dare
For the Tottenham Hotspur x Nike 2025/26 kit campaign pitch, I developed the Darkness We Dare creative route for the Away kit.
The concept positions the club’s dark side as a source of power, an alter ego defined by boldness, intensity, and unapologetic confidence. Inspired by night-time football, street culture, and the atmosphere under floodlights, the creative direction embraces an edgy, high-impact aesthetic where daring self-expression thrives in the shadows.
I led the visual development and design direction for the pitch, shaping the proposed photography and styling that brought the alter-ego narrative to life.
The concept also provided a cohesive framework to showcase both the Home and Away kits within a unified campaign.
The route was ultimately selected as the winning pitch, ahead of proposals from some of the industry’s leading agencies.
CLIENT
Tottenham Hotspur
ROLE
Graphic Designer
DELIVERABLES
Concept & visual design for winning pitch
YEAR
2025
Pitch Phases
Phase 1. Opposites
An exploration of visual duality, focusing on binary contrasts such as black and white, light and shadow, and opposing spatial directions.
Phase 2. Emergence
Visual exploration of the white kit emerging from the black kit through smoke and heat, expressing the transformation between the club’s two identities and reinforcing the “dark side” alter-ego narrative.
Phase 3. Motion Blur
The smoke explorations informed the introduction of motion blur and more dynamic player poses, enhancing the sense of intensity and movement. The visual language began to shift beyond the pitch, placing players within environments that reflect Tottenham’s neighbourhood culture and urban identity. This approach brought the athletes closer to the community and audience, grounding the campaign in the spirit surrounding the club.
Phase 4. Double Exposure
Building on the previous explorations, double exposure was introduced to visualise the transition between the two kits. The white kit appears as a transitional state, while the black kit dominates the composition, leading to further experimentation with layered imagery and dynamic poses.
Phase 5. The Glitch
Experimentation with paint textures led to the introduction of a glitch effect to express the transition from the Home kit into the black Away kit. Retaining elements of the double exposure, the players appear transformed within the glitch, replacing the earlier smoke concept.
Final Pitch Visuals
