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Charlotte FC collaborated with Puerto Rican designer Kevin Ortiz to create a design that celebrates Hispanic and Latino Culture in the Carolinas. Born and raised in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, Kevin's art has a creative impact akin to street art and is inspired by his cultural roots.
Scroll to hear from Kevin as he discusses the inspiration behind his design and what Hispanic Heritage means to him.
Sitting in a small side room at Atrium Health Performance Park, Kevin Ortiz paints a picture – with words, rather than his usual images.
He remembers watching his late grandfather hand drawing the Flamboyan tree that is common in Puerto Rico, complete with its resplendent red leaves. One of these drawings still sits in his uncle’s house and serves as Kevin’s favorite reminder of the creative roots of his family.
It’s clear that Puerto Rico means a lot to Kevin, both as a person and as a designer. He has a passion for his culture that greatly influences his design work and ultimately led him to a collaboration with Charlotte FC for the Club’s Hispanic Heritage Month campaign, Por La Cultura. This partnership created a unique design, tying together and honoring the diverse Hispanic and Latino communities found across the Carolinas.
Ortiz’s design, created in close collaboration with the CLTFC creative team, was mainly aimed at creating a Club scarf for Hispanic Heritage Month. However, the design palette also touched many things outside the scarf, from tie-ins at the pre-match Fiesta Por La Cultura to in-stadium presentation for a more all-encompassing tribute to Charlotte’s Hispanic and Latino community.
When talking to Ortiz about the design process, the scarf laid out on the table in front of him, he pointed to various colors, patterns, and images as he excitedly talked about his inspiration, which ranged from the colorful buildings of San Juan – the capital of Puerto Rico – to daily sights and sounds in Colombia while on a trip. He points out his favorite part of the scarf, the Flor de Maga, included as an homage to his home country.
However, for both Charlotte FC and Ortiz, it was vitally important that the design reflect a wide range of Hispanic and Latino cultures, rather than just the experience of one person. So, while the inspiration used was somewhat specific to particular countries, Ortiz intentionally focused on the one universal element that could represent all Hispanic and Latino cultures – color.
“I wanted to tackle the combination of culture through colors,” Ortiz explained. “Why? Because, realistically, all our cultures are so different… The consistent thing across it is colors. It’s super hard to tie in every Hispanic and Latino through anything except for color.”
Ultimately, Ortiz hopes that the scarf makes people feel “proud” and “stoked to wear it”. Beyond that, though, he wants people to find nods to their own heritage. Whether it be through the design, the colors, or the textures, he intended for the scarf to inclusively represent various cultures.
Really, then, Ortiz’s ideal scenario is that the scarf becomes a “topic of conversation”, serving as a jumping off point for people to share their own cultural experiences.
For him, that’s walking around the colorful buildings of San Juan, getting ice cream and flying kites with friends. That’s earning his graphic design degree from the University of Puerto Rico and hustling on the side to self-teach sports design.
For someone else, it may remind them of their hometown. It might dredge up a long-forgotten memory of a different place in a different time. Maybe, it simply makes them smile at a familiar color or pattern.
Whatever that may be, it’s all about a Hispanic and Latino culture that is vibrant and thriving here in the Carolinas – and at Charlotte FC.
© 2026 Charlotte FC
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