MLS Seattle Update

So after receiving 13,500 season ticket desposits, MLS' yet to be named Seattle club is getting a name. Under the banner of "democracy in sports", the Seattle brass has announced that the fans will be selecting the name of the team that will start play in approximately 1 year from now. The names were leaked and picked up by the blog MLS Rumors, amoung other sources. The choices consisted of Seattle Alliance, Seattle FC and Seattle Republic and even came with a handy explanation of thier meanings.

• Seattle Alliance - A bond or connection; an association to further the common interests of the members. Seattle Alliance brings together fans, coaches, and players to form a unified group to celebrate the game of soccer.
• Seattle FC - FC is a common international soccer acronym that stands for football club.Seattle FC is a global seal to encompass all fans, coaches, and players in the World’s Game.
• Seattle Republic - An association in which supreme power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote; a body of persons freely engaged in a specific activity.Seattle Republic represents a call to all fans, coaches, and players to unite.

If you've ever cruised the message boards on bigsoccer.com, you'll know there has been a lot of support for keeping the Sounders name. Adrian Hanauer has expressed his interest to move towards a rebranding of the club, and even Don Garber has made similar statements. The Seattle owners might have actually heard the people, as the names have been revealed as rumored but also included is a "write in" option. I'm assuming this is to gauge the interest in the Sounders name.

There is some irony in naming them Republic (and possibly being called Republicans, if you know the political climate of Seattle). Alliance is a weak effort. FC might win by default (if there is no clear winner of writeins).

Personally, I'm not anti-Sounders, but out of the choices I'd take Seattle FC. Its simple, easy as that. The team can still have a nickname of the Sounders, but it doesn't have to be official...sort of like the Gunners or Red Devils. But if Sounders if chosen, I'm not going to be disappointed. Lets get on with it. Lets see the jersey and crest!

And speaking of jersey and crests...In breaking news, goalseattle.com (who does fantastic work) has posted a pic of the shirt/crest design prototype (from a source at luminouscreative.com).

Not bad. I dig the vertical stripes, as I was afraid that the home shirts would be all green. All green would be nice from a fashion standpoint, but would look washed out on the field. The crest is simple, and I love the Sealth logo, though I wish it was bigger. And can they really put the 4 stars for championships won on the MLS badge? I get the nod to history, but what happens when they win MLS cup? If they add a 5th, it will be apples and oranges if you ask me. Regardless, these official announcements are creating exciting times.