How do I join ECS?
Easy. You can buy a membership package starting at $20 either online or in the concourse behind the ECS section up to 30 minutes before every home match (Section 123). Your membership is valid for the entirety of the 2023 season - just be sure to carry your membership card with you to receive your discounts at our partner bars!
Where can I find ECS on matchday?
In Seattle, you can find us at our pregame bar Temple Billiards. Come on in and introduce yourself – as long as you are there to support the Sounders!
One hour prior to kickoff, our members leave the bars and gather in Occidental Park for our traditional March to the Match.
At the stadium, you can find our membership table in the concourse behind section 123 from gates open until 30 minutes prior to kickoff. Come on over and ask us any questions you might have!
During the match, you can find us in the ECS Section, sections 121-123. Seats in lower 121, 122, and 123 are general admission, so find a spot that you think you’ll enjoy, introduce yourself to your neighbors, and be prepared to stand and support for the full match! Remember that in the ECS section, participation is the expectation!
Outside of Seattle, we have organized viewing locations all over the country for every home and away match. Take a look at our Subgroups page to find your local subgroup, and join other ECS members in supporting the Sounders!
Do I need to stand in the ECS section/live in Seattle to be a member?
Not at all! While ECS members are always welcome and encouraged to join us in voice in the Brougham End when they are able, we have many members who support from other sections in the stadium, from home, or from cities and towns around the globe. What unites us as Emerald City Supporters is our shared mission of providing the Sounders with the best support in Major League Soccer. Your membership dues help us to grow the size and caliber of our matchday displays, and your involvement helps to grow and strengthen our community. If you are not local, we encourage you to check out our Subgroups page to identify viewing parties and community activities in your area of the country. Otherwise, keep an eye on our members only emails to learn about non-matchday activities and community events!
Who can join ECS?
We welcome any new members who are dedicated to supporting the Sounders. Speech or conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive supporting environment for Sounders FC fans and supporters based on their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or transgender status, race, religion, disability, ethnic origin, national origin, or age will not be tolerated in the Supporters Section or at any ECS-sponsored events, and we actively discourage such language and behavior. If you experience someone violating these standards in our section, please talk to a capo (the individuals on elevated stands throughout the section) who will flag ECS Security to help resolve the issue.
Do I have to be a paid member to be in ECS?
As ECS is 100% member driven and funded, we encourage all supporters who support the mission of ECS to become a paid member if they are able. With membership options starting at just $20, it is our goal to limit the financial burden on members, while still operating at our highest capacity. Membership comes with many benefits that quickly add up, often totaling far more than the cost of the membership itself by the end of the season. If you love the atmosphere and competitive edge that your fellow supporters bring to the match every gameday, consider becoming a paid member today!
What is the history of ECS?
The ECS was formed in 2005. Back then we supported the Seattle Sounders of the USL Division 1. We look at Seattle Sounders FC as a direct continuation of the same soccer tradition that the USL club was a part of. We are the largest Sounders supporters group and one of the largest in Major League Soccer. We follow our own model for support which, based on the multinational spread of our members, aims to fill the terrace with large flags, vocal chants, and pride for the city of Seattle and the Puget Sound.
Can I bring kids into the ECS section?
ECS is a community of members of all ages, and we encourage you to get your family in on the action if they are interested in supporting! We do advise that the kids would have to be able to handle colorful language and folks jovially drinking, jumping, and singing. As always, please note that participation IS the expectation in the ECS section, whether you are 8 or 80.
Do I have to sing in the ECS section?
YES. Participation is the expectation. This is the main requirement of the ECS section: if you stand with us, we expect you to sing and will strongly encourage you to do the same. To the same effect, the use of cell phones during the run of play is strongly discouraged. We are counting on you to help us create the best atmosphere in Major League Soccer at every match. Don’t know the words to our songs? Find a capo (the folks facing you on elevated stands with megaphones) for a card with our song lyrics!
If you do not support from the ECS section, we encourage you to make it your personal mission to help spread the supporter culture throughout the section (or bar) you are in! It is this initiative from our non-South End members that led to our group becoming the first and only in MLS to get the entire stadium to regularly participate in chants (Come On Seattle and the Boom Boom Clap, as examples). So we ask that ECS members not in our section spread our songs and culture and to take initiative on this matter!
Can I join you for away games?
Absolutely. Away travel is a favorite part of ECS membership for many. ECS purchases an allotment of tickets to every away match. We encourage ECS members to purchase their tickets with us, ensuring that they are surrounded by other Sounders fans. By grouping our away travelers, we are able to create more cohesive support and to better protect the safety of our members. A benefit of being a paid ECS member is that you will receive discounts on away tickets purchased through us here. We also arrange a pregame meet-up at a bar or a tailgate for all away games. For bigger trips we may also arrange a group rate at a hotel, bus transportation from the pregame meet-up to the stadium (if transit options are not good), and additional meet-ups besides the pregame one. For more information about away trips head to away trip forums here. Join us on the road in 2023!
What’s Tifo?
Tifo is short for the Italian word tifoso, meaning supporter. It is used as a general term to describe flags, banners, confetti, balloons, paper rolls, smoke, flares, scarves, and any display that supports your club. We encourage all of our members to make and bring tifo to the match. For big matches, we often create larger displays or choreographies in a more organized fashion. We are always looking for our members to create tifo, especially two poles, for which we provide poles in stadium at every match. We also encourage our members to join our tifo parties for the large displays where you can get a chance to learn and participate in some handy supporter arts and crafts alongside your fellow supporters. These events are typically great social events where you can learn from others and talk about your respective experiences at football matches around the globe – all while you trace outlines, paint, sew, etc. To get involved and learn more about tifo, visit the out About ECS Tifo page.