Reno-maru
There does not seem to be any particular significance to Renofa's choice of a lion as the team mascot. At the time Reno was created, no other J.League team had an official mascot based on a lion, so the choice may have been intended as a way to distinguish Renofa from other J.League rivals. Unfortunately, Nagano Parceiro had selected a lion as its unofficial mascot many years earlier, and at almost exactly the same time that Renofa registered Reno-maru, Parceiro made their lion mascot official as well, with the launch of not one but three lions -- Raioh, Raito and Paruru.
Although Reno does have a certain cuddly appeal, many people fail to recognize the character's identity as a lion. Some have suggested that it looks a bit like Juanito -- the mascot from the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. The colourful circular "mane" does inteed look more like a sombrero than a furry collar, but at least it is cute enough to make Reno a good source of merchandise sales.
Old Uniforms
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