The Los Angeles Rams have a new home in 2016, but the team will have to wait on a new look for now.
Kevin Demoff, the Rams’ executive vice president of football operations, told the Los Angeles Times the team would have to wait until the 2019 season to change its uniforms.
NFL rules only allow a small window from January to March for teams to ask permission to redesign their uniforms. If permission is granted, then the team must still wait two years before the changes are implemented. Demoff said the team will introduce the topic at Tuesday’s NFL owners’ meetings, but does not plan to submit a proposal until 2017.
While the Rams will play in Los Angeles, their permanent stadium home will not open until the 2019 season. They will play at the L.A. Coliseum in the meantime, and Demoff says the timing of the stadium and uniform changes are meant to align.
“I know there are fans that want to see us go back to our old L.A colors,” Demoff told The Times. “It’s not as simple as that.”
“Our focus has always been on introducing new uniforms the year we open a new stadium,” he said. “That’s the opportune time to shape your brand.”
In the 1960s, the Rams wore blue and white uniforms and eventually added yellow by the ’70s. It is the latter that is most synonymous with the Rams’ previous stint in Los Angeles. The franchise won Super Bowl XXXIV wearing the yellow and blues despite calling St. Louis home, but eventually swapped out yellow with gold — colors the team still dons today.
The Rams are allowed to wear throwback uniforms for two games each NFL season, and that process only takes one year to approve. Demoff said the team would explore that possibility, so fans could see the familiar Los Angeles Rams uniforms on at least a temporary basis sooner than expected.
