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An illustration in a green and blue Art Deco style. It features the text “15 Nations Fall” and “The Story of Euro 2012” set within geometric frames, flanked by two stylised footballs.

Illustrator Lee documents Euro 2012 with excellent graphic project 15 Nations Fall

Words
Rob Alderson
—
Date
19 June 2012

The best thing football provides is melodrama, an excuse in an increasingly cynical and coolly unimpressed world to revel in glory, failure, trump and disaster. It’s why the highlight of any major tournament is the England-knocked-out-montage a collection of heart rending clips set to something mournful by a band like Embrace.

Illustrator Lee has certainly got into the spriti of things with his evolving project “15 Nations Fall” which documents the destructions of different nations’ crests as they are eliminated from Euro 2012. But this is much more than just a clever idea with some lovely illustrative touches on display – I particularly like the fallen Russian eagle and the Swedish badge which looks like it’s been roughed up.

Scroll down to see the before and after images of the crests and, if you’re English, keep your fingers crossed that our sad three lions stay off the site for a few more days.

A graphic of the Swedish Football Association crest on a grey background. The yellow and blue shield features the letters “SvFF” and a football emblem above it reading “Svenska Fotbollförbundet”. Small text at the top reads “Sweden” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Sweden)

A minimalist illustration of a yellow and blue shield, tilted as if falling. The shield contains fragmented blue shapes and the letters “SVFF”. Text at the top reads “Sweden Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Sweden)

A graphic poster featuring a stylised orange double-headed eagle above a football. Text at the top reads “Russia” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”. The football is encircled by orange Cyrillic text that reads “РОССИЙСКИЙ ФУТБОЛЬНЫЙ СОЮЗ”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Russia)

A graphic poster on a grey background features an orange double-headed eagle falling towards a football. Text at the top reads “Russia Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Russia)

An illustration of the Croatian Football Federation crest, featuring a red and white checkered shield with a blue central stripe. The letters “HNS” are written vertically in white, and a yellow football sits at the base. Text at the top reads “Croatia” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Croatia)

A minimalist illustration of a red and white checkered football shirt and a blue rectangular banner lying flat. A yellow football sits beside them. Text at the top reads “Croatia Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Croatia)

A red and white circular logo for the Danish Football Association, featuring the letters “DBU” in the centre. The surrounding border reads “Dansk Boldspil Union 1889”. Above the logo, small text reads “Denmark” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Denmark)

A minimalist poster on a grey background reads “Denmark Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”. Two red circles are arranged as if one is falling away from the other, with the letters of “Dansk Boldspil-Union” tumbling down the side of the larger circle. The smaller circle contains a stylised “DBU” logo.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Denmark)

An orange graphic of a stylised lion wearing a crown, set against a grey background. Text at the top reads “Netherlands” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”, with the letters “KNVB” below the lion.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (The Netherlands)

A minimalist poster on a grey background features an orange stylised lion in the bottom right. Text at the top reads “Netherlands Falls” above the smaller line “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (The Netherlands)

A graphic poster for Poland featuring a red and yellow abstract logo shaped like a football. A small yellow crown sits atop the design, with the text “PZPN” written in bold red letters below. At the top, smaller text reads “Poland” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Poland)

A minimalist poster on a grey background features a red abstract shape topped with a small yellow crown. Text at the top reads “Poland Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”. The word “PLAN” appears in red at the bottom.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Poland)

A graphic poster for Ireland featuring a shield-shaped emblem in mint green and orange. Inside the shield, the word “Ireland” sits above a stylised football. Small text at the top reads “Ireland” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Ireland)

A minimalist poster on a grey background features a curved, cream-coloured shape outlined in orange and mint green. Inside the shape, stylised orange and mint green letters are tumbled and rotated. Text at the top reads “Ireland Falls” and “15 Nations Fall – The Story of Euro 2012”.
Above

Lee: 15 Nations Fall (Ireland)

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Further Info

www.leeleelee.com/15NationsFall

About the Author

Rob Alderson

—

Rob Alderson is a freelance writer, editor and strategist. He was previously editor-in-chief of It’s Nice That and WePresent, and editor of Design Week. He publishes the newsletter Undo, which tries to make sense of how AI is changing design work, the design process and the design industry.

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