Hampshire FA conducted an art competition, welcoming children to design the association’s official mascot in 2020 during the pandemic. Three years on, the Hampshire FA Foundation stepped in to bring the drawing to life by fully funding the mascot.
Hampshire FA conducted an art campaign allowing children between the ages of 5-15 to draw the association’s official mascot. The art campaign provided an opportunity for the association to gage with its members at a time when the pitches were bare, and the lights were off in line with the restrictions placed on outdoor sports during the pandemic.
The competition launched on Monday 2nd of April 2020 and concluded on 30th of April 2020. Children were asked to send in their drawings of their own Hampshire FA mascot (with minimal parental guidance) through to Hampshire FA’s Communications team. The winning drawing was judged by a committee made up of internal and independent members that had reviewed the designs put forward and selected the chosen mascot based on imagination, creativity, design, and detail.
The winning design was Hammy the Hammerhead Shark. Hampshire FA conducted audience research including face-to-face surveys and online surveys to determine the views of children and whether the shark, was representative of Hampshire FA enough to become the association’s official mascot. The results confirmed the decisions made by the committee and as such, a plan was put in place to take the drawing, improve, and enhance the concept and to bring Hammy from sea to turf, as the official representation of Hampshire FA.
Hammy the Hammerhead Shark will make an official appearance next season now that the digital assets and strategy for the mascot have been produced and implemented. The mascot will also support youth engagement activities throughout the year, with appearances made at Hampshire FA youth cup finals, tournaments and even the association’s end-of-season award ceremony in July 2024. Alongside youth engagement activities, the mascot will support the association’s safeguarding activations. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility however, to ensure the message is targeted in a way that children are also aware and understand the importance of being safe, and Hammy will provide that angle. A variety of games, quizzes, stories and even competitions will be produced on dedicated safeguarding pages across Hampshire FA’s website with the message embedded and as always, at the forefront of these activities – the importance of safeguarding children.
