04/15/2026
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The Forgotten German Caricaturist Behind One of the World’s Most Famous Logos.
Lutz Backes, a talented German caricaturist often known by his pen name Bubec, is the mastermind behind one of the most recognisable symbols in sports history: the Puma leaping cat. In 1967, his former schoolmate Gerd Dassler, son of the company’s founder, asked him to modernise the brand's identity. Backes sketched a minimalist, powerful silhouette of a predator in mid-leap. Interestingly, he used a black panther as his visual reference rather than a puma, believing the panther’s leaner frame offered a more elegant and dynamic aesthetic for a sportswear brand.
Despite the logo's eventual global success, Backes famously missed out on a massive fortune. When offered a royalty of one pfennig per item sold, he declined, preferring a flat fee. He instead accepted a one-time payment of 600 Marks, along with a sports bag and a pair of running shoes. His design officially debuted on the world stage at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City. Today, the leaping cat remains virtually unchanged, serving as a testament to the timelessness of Backes’s clean, athletic vision.
