Emerald City Supporters
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Emerald City Supporters (ECS) is an independent
supporters' group A supporters' group or supporters' club is an independent fan club or campaign group in sport, mostly association football. Supporters' groups in continental Europe are generally known as ultras, which derives from the Latin word ultrā, mean ...
for
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
's
Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...
. The ECS is known for large choreographed
tifo Tifo () is the phenomenon whereby tifosi of a sports team makes a visual display of any choreographed flag, sign or banner in the stands of a stadium, mostly as part of an association football match. Tifos are most commonly seen in important m ...
displays.


History and name

Emerald City Supporters was founded in 2005 by the supporters of the now defunct
Seattle Sounders Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...
soccer team that played in the
United Soccer Leagues First Division The USL First Division (usually referred to as USL-1) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States and Canada from 2005 to 2010. During its existence, it formed the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer league system b ...
. The name first appeared on a banner used as early as 2003 by a now defunct supporters' group known as The Pod, and was adopted by the new group upon its formation between the 2004 and 2005 seasons. The name reflects city pride, as Emerald City is a well-known nickname for the city of
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
. When the arrival of a new MLS franchise in Seattle was announced in 2008 and it was clear that the USL Sounders were going to fold, the ECS decided to become supporters of the new club. When the name of the new club was decided by vote, the ECS was very active in rallying votes for the Sounders moniker. When the Sounders played in the USL the ECS had fewer than a hundred members. The arrival of MLS in Seattle resulted in a rapid growth of ECS membership, and by the inaugural game of
Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began ...
in March 2009 ECS had about 600 members. By the end of 2009 the membership had risen to 1,400. In June 2010 the membership had passed the 2,000 mark. In 2012 the annual paid membership was about 2,700.


Gameday

ECS occupies sections 121–123 at
Lumen Field Lumen Field is a multi-purpose stadium in Seattle, Washington, United States. Located in the city's SoDo neighborhood, it is the home field for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL), the Seattle Sea Dragons of the XFL, the ...
, the home ground of the Sounders. These sections are general-admission sections located behind the goal at the south end of Lumen Field, also known as ''The Brougham End''. On the day of a home game the ECS congregates at bars in the Pioneer Square area, and marches together the half-mile distance from Occidental Park to Lumen Field. During games the ECS contributes to a supporters atmosphere through standing, singing, and
tifo Tifo () is the phenomenon whereby tifosi of a sports team makes a visual display of any choreographed flag, sign or banner in the stands of a stadium, mostly as part of an association football match. Tifos are most commonly seen in important m ...
. Songs are led by a capo with the aid of a PA system and
megaphone A megaphone, speaking-trumpet, bullhorn, blowhorn, or loudhailer is usually a portable or hand-held, cone-shaped acoustic horn used to amplify a person's voice or other sounds and direct it in a given direction. The sound is introduced into ...
s.


Songs

Emerald City Supporters are vocal and seek organized and forceful expressions during games. Their style of cheering would normally be reserved for teams in
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
or
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
. The European influence shows in songs that involve coordinated movement, such as
pogoing The pogo is a dance in which the dancers jump up and down, while either remaining on the spot or moving around; the dance takes its name from its resemblance to the use of a pogo stick, especially in a common version of the dance, where one keeps ...
and scarf waving, and in many traditional British
football chant A football chant or terrace chant is form of vocalisation performed by supporters of association football, typically during football matches. Football chanting is an expression of collective identity, most often used by fans to express their p ...
s such as ''Sounders Till I Die'' and ''Guinness Boys''. In addition, the ECS has adapted some punk rock songs such as the
Cock Sparrer Cock Sparrer () is an English punk rock band formed in 1972 in the East End of London. Although they have never enjoyed commercial success, they helped pave the way for the early '80s punk scene and the Oi! subgenre., Their songs have been cov ...
song "Take 'Em All" and the
Sick of It All Sick of It All is an American hardcore punk band formed in 1986 in Queens, New York City. The band's lineup consists of brothers Lou and Pete Koller on lead vocals and guitars respectively, Armand Majidi on drums, and Craig Setari on bass. Sick ...
song "Us vs. Them"'. At kick-off, the ECS sings the first verse of the
Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...
song "
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
".


Sub-groups

Several sub-groups are designated by the Emerald City Supporters on geographical, cultural, or occupational lines. To be considered an official regional sub-group there must be at least 25 ECS members affiliated with the group; groups based on a common cause other than geography (such as La Barra Fuerza Verde and Pride of the Sound) require 50 ECS members to be officially recognized. Among the largest sub-groups is 253 Defiance, representing the Pierce County area; the Armed Services Group; La Barra Fuerza Verde, representing the Latino community in the Northwest; Dry Side Supporters represent central and eastern Washington (Yakima being the center of DSS); Bellingham Nightwatch, representing Whatcom and the surrounding northern border counties; West Sound Armada, representing Kitsap County and areas west of Puget Sound. Major subgroups across the country include: the Heartland Horde representing the Midwest and Rocky Mountain region; Tropic Sound, representing Florida, the coastal south, and the Caribbean Islands; Seattle Sounders East, representing the Northeastern states; Anchor n Rose 48, standing strong in rival territory Portland, OR.


Rival groups

*
Timbers Army The Timbers Army is an independent supporters group of Portland Timbers, a soccer club in Major League Soccer—the top tier of the United States soccer pyramid. Its members are known for their loud, enthusiastic support and the raucous atmos ...
*
Vancouver Southsiders The Vancouver Southsiders is an independent supporters group for Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer. The group was created in 1999 by soccer fans from Vancouver and its greater metropolitan area to support the former Vancouver Whiteca ...


References


External links


Emerald City Supporters
{{Seattle Sounders FC Major League Soccer fan clubs Seattle Sounders FC 2005 establishments in Washington (state)