The Portland Timbers were an American professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

team based in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, United States. Founded in 2001, the team played in various leagues at the second tier of the

American Soccer Pyramid The United States soccer league system is a series of professional and amateur soccer leagues based, in whole or in part, in the United States. Sometimes called the American soccer pyramid, teams and leagues are not linked by the system of prom ...

, including the

USL 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 ...

and the

USSF Division 2 Professional League The USSF Division 2 Professional League (D2 Pro League) was a temporary professional soccer league created by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) for the 2010 season. The twelve-team league was formed as a compromise between the feuding Un ...

, until the end of the 2010 season. On March 20, 2009,

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 ...

commissioner

Don Garber Donald P. Garber (born October 9, 1957) is an American sports executive who has served as the Commissioner of Major League Soccer since 1999. Garber is also the CEO of Soccer United Marketing and a member of the United States Soccer Federation ...

announced an

expansion team An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also ...

had been granted to the Portland area and would retain the Timbers name. The new team began play in MLS in 2011. The team played its home games at what was then known as PGE Park (now known as

Providence Park Providence Park (formerly Jeld-Wen Field; PGE Park; Civic Stadium; originally Multnomah Stadium; and from 1893 until the stadium was built, Multnomah Field) is an outdoor soccer venue located in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. ...

, the home of the current MLS team). The team's colors are green and white. The team also had a development team,

Portland Timbers U23s Capital FC is an American soccer team based in Salem, Oregon, United States. Although founded in 2008 as part of the development system for the Portland Timbers USSF D2 organization, beginning in 2011 they were part of the development system ...

, which won the

Premier Development League USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental association football, soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United Stat ...

championship in 2010 and is currently affiliated with the MLS team.

History

This incarnation of the Timbers is the third in US soccer history. They took the name of the original franchise that played in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

(NASL) from 1975 to 1982.

Timbers I: North American Soccer League

In 1974, the

awarded an expansion franchise to

. The new team, named the Timbers, began play in the 1975 season. In their inaugural season, the Timbers went to the championship game

Soccer Bowl The Soccer Bowl was the annual championship game of the North American Soccer League, which ran from 1968 to 1984. The two top teams from the playoffs faced off in the final to determine the winner of the NASL Trophy. From the league's founding ...

but lost to the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...

2-0. It was during this magical season that the Timbers endeared themselves to the City and Portland became known as "Soccer City USA". While the Timbers boasted some of the league's best fan support, they sometimes struggled on the field. Despite going to the championship game in their first season, they missed the playoffs in 1976 and 1977. In 1978, they went to the Conference Finals before falling to the

New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independe ...

. The team folded at the end of the 1982 season as player salaries outpaced team revenue. These Timbers established soccer as a sport in the greater Portland area. Their legacy lives on in the current Timbers following and the many thousands who continue to play and follow the game. Many of these Timbers continued to live in the area after their playing careers and helped establish the soccer as a vital local sport.

Timbers II: WSA/APSL

In 1985, a local amateur Portland club,

F.C. Portland FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Paki ...

, became a charter member of the

Western Soccer Alliance Western Soccer Alliance was a professional soccer league featuring teams from the West Coast of the United States and Western Canada. The league began in 1985 as the Western Alliance Challenge Series. In 1986, it became the Western Soccer Alli ...

(WSA). In 1989, the team adopted the name Portland Timbers, becoming the second Timbers team and the WSA became the Western Soccer League (WSL). This time the Timbers lasted only two years, 1989 and 1990, before folding. However, in 1990, the WSL merged with the American Soccer League to form the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

the predecessor of the A-League. While this iteration of the Timbers lasted only two years, it had five significant players,

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exam ...

goalkeeper and

University of Portland , mottoeng = The truth will set you free , established = 1901 , type = Private university , religious_affiliation = Catholic (Congregation of Holy Cross) , endowment = $218 million , president = Robert D. Kelly , students = 3,731 (fall 20 ...

alumnus,

Kasey Keller Kasey C. Keller (born November 29, 1969) is an American former professional soccer player who played in Europe and the United States, as well as being the starting goalkeeper for the U.S. national team. He is a four-time FIFA World Cup partici ...

; former NASL Timbers player John Bain, who also coached the team;

Scott Benedetti Scott "Benny" Benedetti (born November 13, 1966 in Portland, Oregon) is an American retired soccer player. He began his professional career with the semi-professional F.C. Portland in 1986 and ended it with the U.S. second division club Portla ...

who would return as a star of the A-League/USL Timbers; future MLS player

Shawn Medved Shawn Medved is a retired American soccer forward and midfielder. Currently, he coaches youth soccer. Youth Medved was born and grew up in Issaquah, Washington. His father, Ron Medved, was a noted American football player for the University of ...

; and finally

Peter Hattrup Peter Hattrup (born March 31, 1964) is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in Major League Soccer and the USL A-League. Player Youth Hattrup was a four-year starter as a star player for the Seattle Preparatory School boys ...

who is best known as a member of the

Seattle Sounders Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club w ...

Timbers III: United Soccer Leagues

Through the 2003 season, the Timbers compiled an inconsistent record, qualifying for league playoffs two out of the three years. They did, however, established themselves as one of the best-drawing teams in the A-League, averaging attendance above 5,000 in each of their four years of existence. In the 2004 season, the Timbers finished first in the Western Conference, with a record of 18 wins, 7 losses, and 3 draws (57 points). However, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by their long-standing rival, the

. 2005 proved to be a bittersweet year for the Portland Timbers. A sweet end of the year playoff run ended by a bitter playoff loss once again to arch-rival

. However, many exciting moments went along with the 2005 season, including a 6-1 thumping of the

Atlanta Silverbacks The Atlanta Silverbacks FC were an American professional soccer club based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1998 as Atlanta Ruckus, the club played in many leagues over the years before folding after the 2015 season. The team played its home game ...

on September 8, 2005; Portland being the only team to give the Montreal Impact a home loss, and Timbers players Scot Thompson, Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar, and

Dan Antoniuk Daniel Antoniuk (born January 23, 1981, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American soccer player who last played for the Tacoma Stars in the Major Arena Soccer League. Career College Antoniuk attended Wheaton College, playing on the men's ...

winning league awards. 2006 was a very disappointing season for many reasons for the Portland Timbers, and their fans. The team finishing tied for last in the table with a franchise worst 7-15-6 (27 points) record, the Offensive production was last in the league as the club only netted 25 goals, and the Timbers lost their derby with heated rival

. 2007 had many moments for the Timbers. Portland finished second in the league, with first going to rival

. They enjoyed successful friendlies against

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

(2-1),

Club Necaxa Impulsora del Deportivo Necaxa S.A. de C.V. (); often simply known as Necaxa, is a Mexican professional football club in Liga MX based in the city of Aguascalientes. It plays in the Estadio Victoria. History Foundation (Light and Power Company ...

(1-0) and

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

(4-1) while drawing even with the

A.C. Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional Association football, football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 ...

Primavera squad (1-1) and winning on penalties, and went unbeaten at home during the regular season. 2008 was a disappointing year to most Timbers' fans for many reasons, although this was offset by the record high season attendances. The team finished dead last with a 7-13-10 record, scored a league worst 26 goals, while conceding 33. However, the 2008 Portland Timbers attendance grew 25.5% averaging 8,567 spectators (second in the USL-1 behind Montreal Impact), and

Cameron Knowles Cameron Knowles (born 11 October 1982 in Auckland) is a New Zealand football coach and former player who is currently the head coach of MLS Next Pro side Minnesota United 2. Playing career College and Amateur Knowles played college soccer f ...

won an All-League Second Team spot. On November 21, 2008,

Amos Magee Amos Hart Magee (born September 7, 1971) is the Director of Player Personnel for Minnesota United FC. As a player, he is the Wesleyan University Cardinals all-time leading scorer, won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 1993 Maccabiah Games ...

was named Director of Soccer Development for the Timbers. 2009 was a record setting season for the Timbers. They went unbeaten for a USL-1 record 24 matches in a row, which started following a 1-0 loss to Vancouver in the first game of the season, and ended with a Sep 3 defeat to Rochester Rhinos at PGE Park. They finished their season at the top of the table (16-4-10 58 points) winning The Commissioner's Cup and a first round bye in the playoffs. With their 3-1 victory over the Miami FC Blues, the Timbers also were the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the 2009 season. The Timbers were eliminated from the playoffs in their first two games (1-2, 3-3) on goal aggregate to Cascadia rival

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer team based in Vancouver. They compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March ...

List of seasons

This is a complete list of seasons for the USL franchise. For a season-by-season history including the current

Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional men's soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The Timbers have played their home games at P ...

MLS franchise, see

List of Portland Timbers seasons This is a list of seasons played by the Portland Timbers in American soccer, from 1975, when the original club first competed in the North American Soccer League, through the most recent completed season. All four incarnations of the Portland T ...

. 1. Avg. Attendance include statistics from league matches only.
2. Top Goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in League, League Playoffs, U.S. Open Cup,

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...

, and other competitive continental matches.
3. Points and PPG have been adjusted from non-traditional to traditional scoring systems for seasons prior to 2003 to more effectively compare historical team performance across seasons.

Honors

A-League Championship A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professionalism in association football, professional men's association football, soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Austral ...

** The Commissioner's Cup: Western Division Champions (1): 2004 *

Regular Season Champions ** The Commissioner's Cup: 2009

Head coaches

* Bobby Howe (2001–2005) *

Chris Agnello Chris Agnello (born 1968) an American soccer coach who co-founded and coached the Utah Blitzz of the USL Second Division in 2000. Career Agnello was the 1985 Gatorade Utah Player of the Year. He attended Warner Pacific College, playing on the ...

(2006) *

Gavin Wilkinson Gavin Wilkinson (born 5 November 1973) is a former New Zealand footballer who served as general manager and President of Soccer for the Portland Timbers from 2009 to 2022. Prior to this position, Wilkinson was manager of Portland Timbers in th ...

(2007–2010)

Stadium

* PGE Park;

Portland Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

(2001–2010)

Club culture

Fans

The

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 atmosp ...

is the center of fan support, and the Timbers with a number of rousing choruses. There are many other groups that occupy the North End (Woodshed) of Providence Park, some who are a part of the Timbers Army, and some who are not. The team mascot is currently Timber Joey, the replacement for

Timber Jim Jim Serrill, known as Timber Jim, was the mascot for the United Soccer Leagues Portland Timbers soccer team. A fan favorite from the earlier North American Soccer League Portland Timbers, he came back in 2001 to join the new Portland Timbers. On ...

who retired in 2008, a lumberjack who wields a live chainsaw around the field, cutting off a slab of a log each time the team scores.

Club rivalries

Portland Timbers have rivalries with their Pacific Northwest opponents

and

. All three teams traditionally compete in the three way

Cascadia Cup The Cascadia Cup is the name of the trophy created in 2004 by supporters of the Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders, and Vancouver Whitecaps, which is awarded each season to the best soccer team in the Pacific Northwest. The cup is named for the ...

derby, although in 2009 Seattle moved to the MLS as

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 ...

, so for two years (2009–2010) the Cascadia Cup was a two-team derby. The three way rivalry was resumed in 2011, when Vancouver and Portland joined Seattle in the MLS.

Mascot

The team's mascot was a grizzled

lumberjack Lumberjacks are mostly North American workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to loggers in the era (before 1945 in the Unite ...

named

(aka: Jim Serrill). On January 24, 2008, Jim announced his retirement. His final farewell was a game played against

Puerto Rico Islanders Puerto, a Spanish word meaning ''seaport'', may refer to: Places *El Puerto de Santa María, Andalusia, Spain *Puerto, a seaport town in Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines *Puerto Colombia, Colombia *Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela *Puerto Galera, Orient ...

on April 17, 2008, the Timbers home opener, which was won 1-0. Having served as the unofficial mascot every game starting the second home game of the season, on June 14, 2008, Timber Joey was inaugurated as the new official mascot at an exhibition game vs Juventus Primavera, a game the Timbers won 1-0.

Kit sponsors

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Portland Timbers (2001-2010) Portland Timbers Association football clubs established in 2001

Timbers Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

USL First Division teams A-League (1995–2004) teams 2001 establishments in Oregon 2010 disestablishments in Oregon Association football clubs disestablished in 2010 Defunct soccer clubs in Oregon Soccer clubs in Oregon