ECS Tifo 2014

 
Every year around the country, the debate continues between cities vying to call themselves "Soccer City USA".  We aren't just a city of soccer, we are a region of soccer, rich in history and support.  
 
We are Seattle.  We are the West Sound.  We are the South Sound.  We are the Eastside, and the North Sound.  We are Olympia, Tacoma, Everett, Bellevue, Bellingham, Vancouver, Spokane.  We are La Barra Fuerza Verde, we are the Pride of the Sound.  We are the Black Hills, the 253 Defiance, the Armed Service Group, and the Bellingham Border Boys.  We are the Anchor'n'Rose, the Heartland Horde, the Socal Sound, the Seattle Sounders East, 509 prime, and Fog City Faithful.  We are the blue, we are the green, we are the Emerald City Supporters, we are the Seattle Sounders, we are the Sound of Soccer.
 

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This tifo was conceived to be a simple, but loud message of our supporters’ expectation for our team in the Cascadia Cup competition. We have a glorious past, rich in history and success, especially against our Cascadian rivals. But it’s been two years since the cup has been with us and it’s time to change that. It’s time to no longer be level with these other clubs. A club of greatness such as our Sounders deserves to be above the rest, and by a stretch. With our team’s heart and skill, buoyed by our never ending support, we must get our first Cascadia cup win today. This tifo shows our players our expectations for this match and the remainder of this year’s Cascadia cup competition. Time to show we are the Cascadian Masters.

The tifo is comprised of three elements:

  • A blue and green sunburst card display spanning 7 sections and made up of over 4200 cards.
  • Two vertical 8 ft by 60 ft text banners, reading “CASCADIAN MASTERS”
  • A cutout overhead of the Sounders FC crest measuring 140 ft by 90 ft, believed to be the largest version of the Sounders crest ever made. We’re willing to bet that crest could be seen from space, we just hope someone was up there looking down.

The display required 5 days of production from over 60 ECS members who helped in painting, drawing, sewing, and cutting cards. We thank you for your support and contributions of your time to one of the greatest joys in being part of a supporters club: making tifo. If you want to help in the future please stay in the loop by following @weareecs and @ECSTifo or by signing up to our newsletter and by joining the conversation on our forums.  If you would like to help financially, you can donate in our store

 

Up the Sounders, Up the ECS!

ECS Tifo and Leadership

 

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In the 55th minute of the Sounders match versus San Jose, we had a choreo display protesting the ticket prices for the Sounders match at San Jose in August. The display depicts the 49ers CEO Jed York, MLS commissioner Don Garber and Earthquakes owner Lew Wolff together in a bed identified as the “Bank of Fan Loyalty”. The trio is surrounded by bags of money and loose coins while getting cozy under the blankets. In case there was any confusion, a long text banner stated “ALL WE ARE IS MONEY TO THEM”. This is the 2nd protest tifo we have done with regards to the trend of increased ticket prices. With several more matches at inflated prices coming up over the next few months, you can be sure that the ECS will continue to stand up for ourselves and soccer fans across the country. For more information about our protest read the Soccer For All article we wrote after being sanctioned for our protest banners during the first Portland away of 2014. Please use #SoccerForAll on twitter to further discuss the issue and see the opinions of other fans and supporters.

40 years is a great milestone for any club, and we wanted to celebrate the beginning of our 40th year with something that reminded our players of the history of the Sounders, and inspired them to add their time with the club to that history.

The Concept
A multi staged deployment consisting first of a bookshelf with notable players named on the bindings, and small trophies celebrating our 4 championships.  Second, a book of Sounders history with pages for each era, NASL, USL, and MLS, and a blank page with a quill and ink suggesting to continue the Sounders legacy.

Players
Choosing players we wanted a combination of different types of players and what they meant to the club.  NASL was filled with a number of legendary players like Geoff Hurst and Bobby Moore.  We thought a reminder of the caliber of player that put on the jersey was fitting for this era. 

For USL we wanted to acknowledge the work horses of the club, the players that would give their all for the crest and, while may not have had the name recognition as their NASL counterparts, were just a vital to the club’s history.

For MLS we decided to do a mixture of both of the previous eras, along with something acknowledging each ECS Player of the Year for their commitment to the supporters and the city. 

Production
We started sewing the material together in early February. Over the course of two days we sewed together all 28,000sqft which was over 1.5 miles of seams. We used up to four sewing machines at a time, each with a team of 3 or 4 to complete the assembly.

Painting the display took 3 weeks, with over 40 volunteers puting in as much time as they could afford, usually working about 8hrs a night. Fun (totally coincidental) fact, this display took 74 gallons of paint. The card portion of the display took 2 nights to prep with each of the 7,500 cards hand cut by volunteer ECS members.

The level of ingenuity, creativity, and efficiency our volunteers bring is something to behold. We’re truly grateful for all their help. These couldn’t happen with their loyal support and love for the Sounders.

Deployment

Pulleys, ropes, and brute strength were required to raise the bookcase and open the book to show the club's history.  We'll let the display speak for itself.

 

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