^{Photo Credit: @PNWmf on twitter}

The “Pride In Each Other” artwork collection was co-created by eight supporter groups across five North American soccer leagues and Louisiana-based artist Thomas Wimberly. ECS and the seven other supporter groups are taking part in Common Goalʼs Play Proud program, which unites professional clubs, supporter groups, and community organizations in the effort to make soccer a safe and welcoming space for everyone, with a special focus on the LGBTQ+ community. At a time when LGBTQ+ rights are under attack across North America, this artwork aims to amplify the message of inclusion.

For this display, we took the original artwork, and two variations of the "Pride in Each Other" sentiment from the original creation - "Pride In The Game" and "Pride In Our Club" and turned them into Sounders-colored 8' x 8' displays held up on PVC. We added the "Pride is 24/7/365" text banner as we deployed this display at the July 1 match, a day when companies who have historically rainbow-washed their logos and social media for Pride Month in June often remove such appearances of support.

Additionally, the original artwork was printed on a 4x6 card that was distributed in cup holders across the Brougham End to provide additional context for fans.

The second half of the 2023 Play Proud program will be hosted by New Mexico United in September.

You can find the Sounders' press release about the Play Proud program here.