Emerald City Supporters
Encyclopedia
| Emerald City Supporters | |
 |
|
| Motto | No Equal |
| Team | Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional soccer club based in Seattle, Washington. The club competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Sounders FC was established in November 2007 as a MLS expansion team, making it the 15th team in... |
| Location | CenturyLink Field sections 121-123 |
| Established | 2005 |
| Website | WeAreECS.com |
Emerald City Supporters (ECS) is an independent supporters' group
Supporters groups
Supporters groups or supporters clubs are independent fan clubs in association football, particularly in English speaking counties.Supporters groups in Europe are generally known as Ultras which derives from the Latin word deriving from ultrā, meaning beyond in English, with the implication that...
for Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
's Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional soccer club based in Seattle, Washington. The club competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Sounders FC was established in November 2007 as a MLS expansion team, making it the 15th team in...
.
History and name
USL First Division
The United Soccer Leagues First Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico....
. 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. 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 FC
Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional soccer club based in Seattle, Washington. The club competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Sounders FC was established in November 2007 as a MLS expansion team, making it the 15th team in...
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.
Gameday
ECS occupies sections 121–123 at CenturyLink Field, the home ground of the Sounders. These sections are general-admission sections located behind the goal at the south end of CenturyLink 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 CenturyLink Field. During games the ECS contributes to a supporters atmosphere through standing, singing, and tifoTifo
Tifo, originally the Italian word for the phenomenon of supporting a sport team, is mostly used as a name for any spectacular choreography displayed by supporters on the terraces of an arena or stadium in connection with a sport event, mostly a football match....
. Songs are led by a capo with the aid of a megaphone
Megaphone
A megaphone, speaking-trumpet, bullhorn, blowhorn, or loud hailer is a portable, usually hand-held, cone-shaped horn used to amplify a person’s voice or other sounds towards a targeted direction. This is accomplished by channelling the sound through the megaphone, which also serves to match the...
.
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 EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
or Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
. The European influence shows in songs that involve coordinated movement, such as pogoing
Pogo (dance)
The pogo is a dance in which the dancers jump up and down, while remaining in the same location; the dance takes its name from its resemblance to the use of a pogo stick, especially in a common version of the dance, where an individual keeps their torso stiff, their arms rigid, and their legs close...
and scarf waving for Dale Cavese and many traditional British football chants such as Sounders Till I Die and Guinness Boys, whereas the presence of drums in the ECS sections as well as the occasional song in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
are Latin American influences. In addition, the ECS has adapted some punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
songs such as the Cock Sparrer
Cock Sparrer
Cock Sparrer are a punk rock band formed in 1972 in the East End of London, England. Although they never enjoyed much commercial success, they are considered one of the most influential streetpunk bands, helping pave the way for the late-1970s punk scene and the Oi! subgenre...
song "Take 'Em All" and the Sick of It All
Sick of It All
Sick of It All is an American hardcore punk band from Queens, New York. Formed in 1986, the band consisted of brothers Lou Koller on vocals and Pete Koller on lead guitar, Rich Cipriano on bass, and Armand Majidi on drums. There have been only two member changes since their inception, with Max...
song "Us vs. Them"'. At kick-off, the ECS sings the first verse of the Perry Como
Perry Como
Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943. "Mr...
song "Seattle
Seattle (song)
"Seattle" is a song written by Hugo Montenegro, Jack Keller and Ernie Sheldon. It was used as the theme for the 1968-70 ABC-TV U.S. television show Here Come the Brides. Late in the show's first season, singer Perry Como recorded a version of the song, which became a Top 40 hit for him on the...
".
Sub-groups
Emerald City Supporters is one of seven recognized Sounders supporter groupsSeattle Sounders FC supporters
Seattle Sounders FC supporters are the supporters of the Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders FC which was established in 2007 and played its first MLS season in 2009...
and currently the largest supporters group. The group has several subgroups. The most notable ones are 509 Prime, Bellingham Border Boys, Black Hills Militia, Brougham Boys '74, City of Rain Supporters, and the SoCal Sound.
509 Prime
The 509 Prime is a regional subgroup based in Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. The number "509" is the area code
Area code 509
North American area code 509 is a state of Washington telephone area code. 509 covers central and eastern Washington, including Spokane, the Tri-Cities, Yakima, Walla Walla, and Wenatchee...
for Eastern Washington
Eastern Washington
Eastern Washington is the portion of the U.S. state of Washington east of the Cascade Range. The region contains the city of Spokane , the Tri-Cities, the Columbia River and the Grand Coulee Dam, the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and the fertile farmlands of the Yakima Valley and the...
, including Spokane.
Armed Services Group
The Armed Services Group is a subgroup for veterans and active duty military members.
Bellingham Border Boys
The Bellingham Border Boys is a regional subgroup based in Bellingham, Washington
Bellingham, Washington
Bellingham is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is the twelfth-largest city in the state. Situated on Bellingham Bay, Bellingham is protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the Lummi Peninsula, and opens onto the Strait of Georgia...
.
Black Hills Militia
The Black Hills Militia is a regional sub-group based in Olympia, Washington
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
. The group started off as a few people getting together to watch Sounders FC matches when they were on the road and has now grown into a group, that at the current time, is 250 members strong.
Brougham Boys '74
An ultras
Ultras
Ultras are a type of sports fans renowned for their fanatical support and elaborate displays. They are predominantly European followers of football teams...
subgroup that is invite only.
City of Rain Supporters
The City of Rain Supporters is a subgroup based at Seattle University
Seattle University
Seattle University is a Jesuit Catholic university located in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, USA.SU is the largest independent university in the Northwest US, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs within eight schools, and is one of 28 member...
The aim of the group to make soccer fans into supporters for not just the Sounders but for University teams as well. The group holds various soccer related events such as FIFA tournaments, pick-up games, and sells match tickets to raise money and gain membership for the club and ECS.
253 Defiance
253 Defiance represent Tacoma, Puyallup and all of the surrounding areas covered by the 253 area code. The origin of the name comes from Point Defiance Park
Point Defiance Park
Point Defiance Park in Tacoma, Washington is one of the largest urban parks in the United States. The park includes Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, the Rose Garden, Rhododendron Garden, the Camp 6 Logging Museum, beaches, trails, a boardwalk, a boathouse, a Washington State Ferries ferry dock for...
, the local area code
Area code 253
Area code 253 is a telephone dialing code in Washington for the suburbs south of Seattle and of the southern Puget Sound area, centered at Tacoma and extending to include the areas around Gig Harbor, Auburn, and Roy...
, and behavior.
SoCal Sound
SoCal Sound is a regional sub-group based in Southern California that attends Sounder's games played at The Home Depot Center
The Home Depot Center
The Home Depot Center is a multiple-use sports complex located on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills in Carson, California. It is located approximately 10 miles south of Downtown Los Angeles. Its title sponsor is hardware retailer The Home Depot. The $150 million complex was...
in Carson, California
Carson, California
Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, Carson had a total population of 91,714. Located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately 14 miles away from the Los Angeles International Airport, it is known as a suburb of the city....
. The group also follows the Sounders tradition of March to the Match, throws tailgate parties, and attends Sounder's matches in San Jose.
Seattle Sounders East
Seattle Sounders East is a sub-group representing all ECS Members on the east coast. The sub-group aims at attending away matches at New York, New England, Philadelphia, DC, Toronto, and Columbus.
West Sound Armada
West Sound Armada is a regional sub-group based in communities located west of Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
.