Soccer in the Pacific NorthwestRiley Johnson | johnsori@oregonstate.edu | Oregon State University
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Soccer is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States. Following the 1992 World Cup, the United States saw the creation of Major League Soccer. Since its founding the league has seen tremendous growth, 22 teams now make up the current league with expansion planned through 2020 and beyond. 2009 saw the beginning expansion into the Pacific Northwest, with Seattle Sounders FC. A year later, Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Portland Timbers FC joined MLS, quickly forming the most intense rivalries in the league. The performance on the pitch is merely one facet of the game. The success of these franchises, must pay its dues to their unparalleled fanbases. The fans, consistently sellout their stadiums and have such an invigorating passion for the sport of soccer in the United States. The roots of these teams trace back more 40 years, continuing this rich tradition and passion into the modern era. As we trace the history of soccer in the Pacific Northwest, we begin with Seattle Sounders FC.
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Riley Johnson | Oregon State University
Email: johnsori@oregonstate.edu
Phone: (253)-569-0056
Location: Covallis, Oregon
Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC have been the premier soccer team representing the Seattle metropolitan area but, the Sounders as we know them today evolved from the original team born in 1974. The original Seattle Sounders formed after being awarded a franchise to the then Tier-1 soccer league the North American Soccer League (NASL). The name Sounders was chosen following a "name the team" contest. While the exact origins are unknown it is likely to represent someone who live in the area sound Puget Sound, the dominate geographic feature in the region. They began play at Memorial Stadium on May 5th with a staggering 12,000 fans in attendance. This far surpassed the league average of 3,000-5,000 in the other cities. The team hit the ground running pushing the existing teams in the NASL for a spot in the playoffs. While the did not make the playoffs in their inaugural season the Sounders managed to sellout the stadium, the first stadium sellout for a soccer game in the United States. In 1976 the Sounders moved to the Kingdome in order to meet the growing attendance. They remained at the Kingdome until 1983 when the team folded in the struggling league. The NASL eventually folded as well in 1985.
Numerous teams tried to fill the void the Sounders left. FC Seattle Storm formed in 1984 and began play at Memorial Stadium as well until 1995 when the team join the amateur Pacific Coast Soccer League (PCSL). Seattle SeaDogs an indoor team began play in 1995 at KeyArena. The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) folded in 1997 along with the SeaDogs.
The second incarnation of the Seattle Sounders came in 1994 when it joined the United Soccer League (USL), once again at Memorial Stadium before moving to the Starfire Sports Complex in 2008.
The Seattle Sounders of today joined Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2009 becoming the leagues 15th team.
The original Vancouver Whitecaps were founded on December 11, 1973 and during the 1970s and 1980s played in the North American Soccer League (NASL).
After playing at Vancouver's 32,000-seat Empire Stadium for most of their existence, the team moved into the brand new 60,000-seat BC Place Stadium in 1983. The Whitecaps set a then highest all-time Canadian attendance record of 60,342 spectators for a professional soccer game, on June 20, 1983, Vancouver Whitecaps FC – Seattle Sounders at BC Place.[2] However, the subsequent demise of the NASL in 1984 meant the Whitecaps – along with the other teams in the NASL – were forced to fold.
The Vancouver 86ers Soccer Club started operations in November 1985 by the community-owned West Coast Soccer Society. Tony Waiters, Les Wilson and Dave Fryatt were the first franchise holders granted the rights for Vancouver on July 26, 1986. The Vancouver 86ers were so named because of the year of the team's founding-1986, the 86 principals underwriting the club, and to commemorate the year the city of Vancouver was founded (1886). Several attempts were made to purchase the Whitecaps name; however, the name was not for sale or the owner wanted too much money for the cash strapped community-owned club.
In 2001, the team began to use the old Vancouver Whitecaps moniker (signifying both the 'white caps' of the nearby mountains, and the waves of the Pacific Ocean). Vancouver was officially named an MLS expansion city on March 18, 2009, and joined the league in 2011. They began their inaugural MLS season at Empire Field, a temporary stadium built at the former site of Empire Stadium, and moved into BC Place Stadium when renovations to the stadium were completed.
In January 1975, the North American Soccer League awarded an expansion franchise to Portland, Oregon. The name was selected on March 8, 1975 from more than 3,000 entries in an open contest. They began play in 1975. In their inaugural season, 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. 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.
In 1985, F.C. Portland joined with three other independent clubs, the U.S. based F.C. Seattle and San Jose Earthquakes and the Canadian Victoria Riptides in a home and away round robin tournament, known as the Western Alliance Challenge Series. The four teams also played the Canadian Edmonton Brickmen and the Canadian national team. F.C. Portland had the honor of hosting the first game of the series, against Seattle. The game, played in Portland’s Civic Center, attracted 2,906 fans.
In 2001, the team played in various leagues at the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, including the USL First Division and the USSF Division 2 Professional League, until the end of the 2010 season.On March 20, 2009, Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber announced an expansion team had been granted to the Portland area and would retain the Timbers name. The new team began play in MLS in 2011.
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.[1] The Timbers, Sounders, and Whitecaps have roots dating to the days of the original North American Soccer League. It was first contested in 2004, and was claimed by the Whitecaps. In 2011 the competition continued with the now Major League Soccer (MLS) sides Portland Timbers, Seattle Sounders FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
The Canadian Championship—known as the Amway Canadian Championship for sponsorship reasons—is an annual soccer tournament contested by premier Canadian professional teams. The winner is awarded the Voyageurs Cup and Canada's berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. It is currently contested by MLS sides Toronto FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, and Montreal Impact, NASL side FC Edmonton, and USL side Ottawa Fury FC. Starting in 2018, the champions of League1 Ontario and the Première Ligue de soccer du Québec will join the competition. The tournament is sponsored by Amway Canada and organized by the Canadian Soccer Association.
The Pacific Northwest has been at hotbed for soccer in the United States. The success of the Timbers and Sounders gave rise to establishment of the women's game in the Pacific Northwest coatailed from the massive success of the United State's Women's National Team. Numerous professional women's leagues have been created since 1995, but have folded due to lack of public interest and financial problems.
Despite the struggles of establishing a consistent league for women to play in, women's teams in Seattle and Portland have genereally had great success in attracting public interest and often boast some of the largest crowds for women's soccer just the mens' teams do for men's soccer.
The Seattle Reign FC is an American professional women's soccer team based in Seattle, Washington.In November 2012, it was confirmed that a Seattle-based women's professional soccer team owned by Bill Predmore (founder and CEO of Seattle-based digital marketing agency, POP) had been accepted into NPSL. During the inaugural season of the NWSL, Reign FC played at Starfire Stadium in Tukwila, Washington. In February 2014, it was announced that the team would be moving to Memorial Stadium, located at the Seattle Center.
The Portland Thorns FC is an American professional women's soccer team based in Portland, Oregon. The formation of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) was announced on November 21, 2012, with Portland selected as a host for one of the eight teams and Portland Timbers' owner Merritt Paulson would own the team. The team name was announced as the Portland Thorns FC on December 13, 2012. The Portland Thorns play at Providence Park located in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland, Oregon.
The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a professional women's soccer league, run by the United States Soccer Federation. At the top of the United States league system, it represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The NWSL was established in 2012 as a successor to Women's Professional Soccer (2007–2012) which was the successor to Women's United Soccer Association (2001–2003). The league began play in 2013 with eight teams; four of which were former members of Women's Professional Soccer.
The expansion of the National Women's Soccer League began with the league's sophomore season in 2014, when the league expanded to a ninth team in Houston, and is an ongoing process that currently has seen two expansions and one relocation. The NWSL is currently at 10 teams with plans to expand to 14 by the year 2020. The league has expressed interest to expand in pairs for scheduling reasons. In early 2015, six groups had expressed interest in gaining entry into NWSL.
The success of the United States women's national soccer team in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup jump-started expansion interest again, with the number of interested groups ballooning to twelve. The first result of this post-WWC-boom was the expansion into Orlando for the 2016 season. Atlanta, New York, Canada, California, Salt Lake City, Dallas, Indianapolis, and Pittsburgh are where the current markets of interest are. FC Barcelona, one of Europe's major soccer powerhouses has also expressed interest in establishing a Women's team in the United States in either San Francisco or New York City.
Soccer in the Pacific Northwest continues to grow in popularity. The three major teams the Seattle Sounders FC, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, and Portland Timbers have helped establish a rich soccer culture that is unlike any other in the United States. However, while we continue to support these three teams it is important to recognize that we should also support our more local teams as well. This map provides a glance at the expanse of soccer in the Pacific Northwest. Included in this are all the Professional and Amateur Men's and Women's teams and where they play in the Pacific Northwest.
Universities and colleges are included in this map because of the significance that college sports has in American culture. However, due to limitations only universities and colleges that have both and men's and women's program are included as well as colleges that offer 4-year degrees. While, community colleges are not displayed on this map it is important to note the many community colleges have soccer programs for both men and/or women.
While only a very small percentage of people will go on to play professional soccer, everyone has the opportunity to be apart of the sport by either supporting local teams or perhaps joining a local team and playing on the pitch.
