Can match day programmes go digital without losing tradition? BPRFC’s sustainable rebrand argues yes, with pride.
Birkenhead Park RFC, a club that comes from 154 years of rugby heritage in Wirral, England, knows a thing or two about tradition.
Backed by a legacy stretching back to 1871, BPRFC has been honouring the match day programme ritual for generations, but during this time, the format began to lose its relevance, unable to truly reflect where the club stands today and what it offers to its community. Printed programmes were costly, environmentally wasteful, and exclusive. Fans who couldn’t make it to the ground simply missed out. Their content delivery was conservative and didn’t stand out in an increasingly digital landscape. It had gone through various inconsistent iterations over the decades, creating a disjointed brand experience match to match. That’s where I came in. To reimagine the rugby club’s match day programme system entirely.
My work was cut out. I needed to craft a programme system that reflected BPRFC’s pride in being one of England’s oldest rugby clubs whilst embracing modern accessibility. The work began with understanding what match day programmes actually meant to fans, not just as printed artefacts, but as connection points to the club they love.
This led me to position BPRFC as a club moving confidently into the future whilst respecting its roots. All the elements I created (the dynamic diagonal gold brush strokes, the bold Racing Engine typography, the navy and red palette) backed into this ethos of heritage meeting energy, tradition meeting momentum. Each element played an integral part in conveying that programmes really do matter.
Here’s why that positioning mattered: many clubs see programmes as outdated relics or necessary evils. Fans have started to expect generic PDFs at best. Match day programmes have been left out of the digital conversation entirely. BPRFC was ready to bring true innovation to the format whilst maintaining what makes them special. My job through the digital refresh was to represent BPRFC as a proud, confident leader in the space, and help convince fans that digital doesn’t mean disposable, it means accessible, sustainable, and permanent. The resulting programme system celebrates, owns and preserves 154 years of rugby heritage.
During discovery, what I felt most was the palpable pride in the BPRFC volunteers and committee about the club’s history. Working with clubs means working with communities, and earning the confidence of volunteers who’ve dedicated years to the club was critical. Keith Thompson, Vice President (Marketing) at Birkenhead Park RFC, reflected on the process: “We employed Hashtag to tackle the transition from a paper match programme to an online version. Jade’s vast experience was crucial. She quickly gained the confidence of the volunteers, is punctual, reliable and adds a creative flair which was absent from our previous output.”
I translated that pride into the programme design, honouring the club’s heraldic crest (featuring the silver lion rampant, ceremonial mace, and bold “1871” founding date) whilst pairing it with contemporary, high energy design elements. As the most immediate moment of impact for each programme, the masthead feels monumental, active and timeless all at once. Strong, bold, and uniquely ownable to BPRFC.
The custom programme template is built on Racing Engine typography (a bold, italicised, speed inspired font family that captures rugby’s physicality) paired with Inter, a clean sans serif optimised for digital readability. The assertive construction of the Racing Engine headers gives the programme an unwavering sense of gravitas, whether seen on mobile screens in the clubhouse or read at home on tablets.
Inter handles body copy, player profiles and match statistics, pulling the programme into the contemporary realm through its clean, modern, highly legible form. I structured the colour palette around BPRFC’s traditional navy, red, and gold, used for headers, dynamic diagonal accents, and throughout the layout. When showcasing heritage elements, these colours speak directly to the historic side of the club.
Whilst I was essentially bringing BPRFC’s programme format right up to date, it was equally important to underscore its 154 year history, reminding supporters of its legacy. This was achieved through the content strategy, where I brought in archival imagery across the programme’s historical sections and social media presence, giving credence to BPRFC’s storied past as one of England’s oldest rugby clubs. I wanted a mix of contemporary action photography showcasing current players alongside archival photography from different eras, connecting the dots between where BPRFC has been and where they’re going.
The digital delivery system (anchored by prominent QR code posters throughout the clubhouse) eliminates printing costs and environmental waste whilst creating a permanent, searchable archive of every match. Fans anywhere in the world can now access programmes, whether they’re in the stands, watching from elsewhere, or revisiting memorable matches months later. It’s not just a programme anymore. It’s a living record of the club’s ongoing history.
