SEATTLE — The Seattle Sounders celebrated its 50th anniversary on Saturday, honoring players and teams dating back to 1974 prior to the game against Minnesota at Lumen Field.
"It's awesome, it's really great to be here," said fan Lupine Miller. "I love the energy and seeing the teams play, hearing the crowd get behind the team. It's really fun."
The Sounders were originally members of the North American Soccer League before joining the United Soccer League in the mid-1990s.
In 2009, the Sounders began playing Major League Soccer, winning the MLS Cup in 2016 and again in 2019.
"I love seeing Seattle become a soccer town. I love seeing soccer become a really recognized and beloved sport in Seattle," Miller said.
Of the many fans gathering outside the stadium, Vern and Connie VanHouten are likely among the longest tenured, having been devout followers since 1985.
But Vern was no fan to begin with. "I hated it," he said, noting that he learned to enjoy the sport after his Connie signed their son up to play.
"It was either that or football," she said. "Good call," Vern joked.
Eventually, Vern started coaching and became a fan.
"Now I can't hardly stand baseball because it's so slow," he said.
Like so many other, Connie and Vern have seen how far the game has come.
"Take a picture of all this and you'll see," Vern said, pointing at the crowd. "We're getting the World Cup. That doesn't happen by chance. We worked at it, I enjoy it and like I said, I hated it."
Now, a forever fan.
The Sounders won 2-0 over Minnesota on Saturday.