Seattle Sounders' march to their 50th anniversary in 2024

The biggest takeaway from last week's Annual Business meeting was the 2022 General Manager Vote, which was in favor of retaining Garth Lagerwey. (As we wrote though, his future with the club is still unclear at this stage.)

However, there was also other important information shared at the meeting. More specifically, in respect of the Rave Green's March to the 50th Campaign.

In 2024, the Sounders will reach the 50-year mark in their existence. This important milestone will be marked by celebrating their history and also looking to the future.

This is obviously a significant achievement for a club which has come a long way since starting life in 1974, as part of the North American Soccer League. Today, the Rave Green proudly sit as the first ever MLS team to win the CONCACAF Champions League.

The Seattle Sounders provided a further update on the Rave Green's March to the 50th campaign, during last week's Annual Business meeting at Longacres in Renton.

As part of the upcoming celebration, the Sounders debated if they should update their brand and if so, how. In line with their ongoing transparency and commitment to the area, the discussion involved speaking to a variety of sources including the fans, Alliance Members and club stakeholders, as well as greater Seattle and Washington State communities.

Seattle's majority owner Adrian Hanauer talked about the matter during the Annual Business meeting. As per the Sounders communications department, he said:

"We said this back in February when introducing this project, and we say it again now: ‘our club is what our fans say it is. Listening was always the most important part of this process, and over the past eight months, we have actively heard from our fans and community about who the Sounders are, what the Sounders stand for, and why this franchise stands apart. We have been humbled by the feedback and interest that we’ve received and are excited to continue these discussions. As we look ahead to 2024 and celebrating 50 years of Sounders soccer on Puget Sound, our goal is to evolve our brand in a way that honors our proud history while also setting a strong foundation for the future."

A new crest

Essentially, the Sounders confirmed a brand evolution will take place, including a new crest and associated marks. The initial response from this writer was one of concern about the announcement.

As a traditionalist and someone who believes in the philosophy of 'if it isn't broke, don't fix it', the thinking was to wonder why anything needed to change? However, it can be appreciated from an objective perspective that various possibilities must be considered.

In any event, one voice doesn't matter if the majority of the group spoken to are in any favor of updating the brand. (More than 10,000 people took part in the survey.) Thankfully, it doesn't sound like there will be any dramatic alterations.

In this respect, consider this summary by Jeremiah Oshan of Sounder at Heart. In particular, there will be a new crest in 2024, but the colors and name are essentially off-limits and will only be slightly altered (if at all).

Overall, you can tell the Sounders have seriously considered this matter and they deserve credit for getting so many people involved. The club is a credit to Seattle and MLS and continues to do things the right way.

What's your take on the Seattle Sounders' intent to update their brand? Are you on board with this or not, and why? Let us know in the comments section below.