Seattle Sounders Brand Evolution
The 6th Annual Awards
- Best Launch Campaign
ABOUT THIS ENTRY
In preparation for our 50th Anniversary season, Seattle Sounders FC launched a refreshed brand identity that aligned more closely with our history, our fans, and our goals for the next 50 years to come.
How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?
Fans are the lifeblood of any team, and we launched our new brand with and for the people of Seattle, the people who call themselves ”Sounders.”
Involving fans in a rebrand isn’t a new tactic, but we were intent on bringing them along for the entire process, start to finish.
At launch, we intentionally put the new brand immediately into the community that created it:
- We had a parade through Pike Place and our mascot threw fish with the fishmongers.
- We had a press event for players and media on top of the Space Needle where we raised a flag.
- We had a collection of retail items available so fans could touch and own the new marks.
- OOH posters were everywhere.
- We connected with other pro teams in the area to bolster our reach and sentiment.
- We leveraged our partners as a distribution channel by sending them personalized graphics with so they could celebrate with us, and we flew a flag on top of the Starbucks HQ.
- On launch night, we celebrated with fans, influencers, players, staff.
As we so often do in sports, we owe the success of this endeavor to our fans and their support throughout this process.
Objective
In February of 2022, we began a comprehensive discussion around the future of Sounders FC as we approached our 50th Anniversary in 2024.
Sounders soccer has been a part of the Seattle sports landscape since 1974 in many iterations, but upon entering MLS in 2009 that history was largely abandoned when establishing our crest, secondary marks, and brand identity.
As we marched towards celebrating our anniversary in 2024, we identified a logical inflection point to embrace our history and define our brand in a way that honored our legacy of success and would carry us through our next 50 years.
Strategy & Execution
As part of our club commitment to Democracy in Sports, in February 2022 we asked our community to help us examine our identity, our brand, and how we represent Seattle and the greater Puget Sound region.
We engaged fans, season ticket members, community members, players, FO staffers, and more in a variety of ways, including public surveys, focus groups, roundtables, and 1:1 conversations.
After 10,000+ survey responses and 100+ hours of conversations, we built a brand that gave words, colors, and images to the collective values the club and our fans have always shared.
We launched our new brand with a full 2-day schedule that led with elevated content pieces on our owned channels and was bolstered by multiple activations at key Seattle landmarks (Space Needle & Pike Place Market) for fans, the opening of a community mini-pitch with new logo, 35 new retail items, corporate partnership integrations, and a brand launch celebration for fans, players, partners, alumni and staff.
Our guiding principles for a successful launch were:
- Elevate Fan’s Voice & Integral Role in the Process
- Connect Brand Identity to the Club’s History, Present and Future
- Provide Storytelling Depth to Each Mark
- Set the Table for 50th Anniversary Next Year
Organizations
- Seattle Sounders FC
- Athletics
- Column
- Name & Number
- Panoply
Links
Featured
- Stefan Frei
- Paul Rothrock
- Josh Atencio
- Brian Schmetzer
- Kelyn Rowe
- Brad Evans
- Fredy Montero
- Steve Zakuani
- Roger Levesque
- Seattle Seahawks
- Seattle Reign
- Seattle Kraken
- Seattle Mariners
Credits
Danny Ciaccio
Senior Manager of Social Media
Sounders FC
Joseph Mondello
Senior Manager of Digital Platforms
Sounders FC
Jessica Lazo
Coordinator of Digital Platforms
Sounders FC
Brian Evans
Social Media Specialist
Sounders FC
Mike Scaturo
Digital Marketing Strategist
Sounders FC
Ben Prinster
Manager of Brand Marketing
Sounders FC
Kayse Angel
Email Marketing Coordinator
Sounders FC
Sara Shaker
Manager of Marketing, Sales, and Membership
Sounders FC
Sahid Alpizar
Graphic Designer
Sounders FC
Ethan Wong
Graphic Designer
Sounders FC
David Marksbury
Associate Graphic Designer
Sounders FC
Connor Pickett
Video Producer
Sounders FC
Hans Steele
Video Producer
Formerly Sounders FC
Myron "Dominic" Duarte
Associate Video Producer
Sounders FC
Tyler Johnson
Manager of Game Presentation
Sounders FC
Makinzie Packwood
Operations Assistant
Sounders FC
Bryan Babcock
Director of Video Production
Sounders FC
Zoe Pearce
Director of Brand Marketing
Sounders FC
Abby English
Director of Digital & Content
Sounders FC
Joe Legaz
Director of Game Presentation
Sounders FC
Sara Molina
Director of Brand Design
Formerly Sounders FC
Andre Elkins
Director of Event Operations
Sounders FC
Cole Parsons
VP of Marketing
Sounders FC
Taylor Graham
Chief Marketing & Revenue Officer
Sounders FC
Mike Fiechtner
Photographer
Sounders FC
Jane Gershovich
Photographer
Sounders FC
Carlton Canary
Photographer
Freelance
Kaitlin Bailey
VP of Business Strategy & Insights
Sounders FC
Celebrate in NYC
Join us for the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards™ on the evening of June 6, 2024 as we celebrate finalists and reveal the winners of this year's awards live during the show.
