Sounders name isn't dead yet

Moniker revived as write-in choice in MLS club vote

By MATTHEW GASCHK
SPECIAL TO THE P-I

Last week, it looked like 2008 would be the last year the Sounders would play soccer in Seattle. That's not such a certainty anymore.

When MLS Seattle announced last week it would hold an online vote to determine its name, the longtime moniker was excluded from the list of three candidates.

Tuesday, when Seattle FC, Seattle Alliance and Seattle Republic were officially announced as options on the ballot, a fourth write-in option was also included, leaving the door open for the Sounders name to transfer from the USL club to the MLS team.

"When we started we said we would listen to our fans, and we have done that up to this point," said Tod Leiweke, president of Vulcan Sports and Entertainment. "We have also listened to focus groups and our commissioner, but the fans said other names should be considered and that is why we included the write-in option."

Online voting will open Thursday and continue through Monday on the MLS club's Web side, mlsinseattle.com. The winning name will be revealed at an April 7 news conference, and the club's logo may also be unveiled at that time.

The write-in option for the team name came as a surprise after the club announced last week there would be three candidates and Sounders would not be among them.

"We heard a lot of people say it was time for a new beginning, and we heard that from the league, too," Leiweke said of the decision not to include Sounders.

The Sounders were the first professional soccer franchise in Seattle in 1974, playing in the North American Soccer League until folding in 1983. The name was revived in 1994 when the Sounders played in the A-League, which is now the United Soccer Leagues First Division. The Sounders have won four championships since 1994, including two in the past three years under the guidance of MLS part-owner and general manager Adrian Hanauer.

In a poll of online readers at seattlepi.com, Sounders was the overwhelming choice over the other three options, receiving 76 percent of the more than 800 votes.

"That was energizing," Leiweke said. "To me that is less about passion for the name and more about passion for the game of soccer. We have felt that passion at every turn of the road, and it's been fantastic."

The connection to the current Sounders franchise, regardless of the name of the MLS team, has already been established. With 2007 USL MVP Sebastien Le Toux and MLS veteran Taylor Graham in the mix, the 2008 Sounders are bound to provide several roster options for the 2009 MLS club.

The MLS side will have the option of retaining Sounders players in a unique situation that separates the club from typical expansion teams like this year's San Jose Earthquakes.

"We know we have a chance to do something special because we are not going to be a traditional expansion team," Leiweke said, noting the championship pedigree. "Adrian is working harder than ever to build a team, and he has proven that he can build a quality team."

In addition to a name, the club will also have new faces soon -- those of a head coach and players.

"We have yet to sign our first player," Leiweke said. "There is a lot of activity in the pipeline, but nothing is finalized yet."