2015 Sounder at Heart in review

When the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Fifteen ended, Sounder at Heart attracted more than 11.2 million page views from more than 1.5 million users. Those are really good numbers for a soccer blog. But the one that I'm most proud of is the more than 6,000 people who bothered to register and comment at least once, most of them not spammers, not trolls. All of them helping myself, Jeremiah and the rest of the staff here at Sounder at Heart and Ride of the Valkyries get smarter.

By reading the blogs, following us on Twitter and/or liking us on Facebook you continue to help us grow. I would write without readers. I do that often. But most people want an audience. Our diverse cadre of more than two dozen front page authors, three photographers, two animated gif crafters and artists like it when they know you are reading the site.

And read it you did.

1. The most read story of 2015, was written in 2013. Nothing provides greater proof that MLS fans are fascinated by the league's unique salary structure. The 2015 version of this story was ranked.
2. MLS continues to gain more dedicated stadiums, attendance continues to grow.
3. Seattle signed four players during the secondary transfer window. Nelson Haedo Valdez had the single story that gathered the most attention, but the saga about the chase for Roman Torres was notable in its depth.
4. While many readers don't like friendlies, it turns out that putting Manchester United and Club America was quite popular.
5. Sounders fans generally pay a lot of attention to the United States National Team. Games against Jamaica and Germany attracted your eyeballs.
6. I still think that MLS is better now than it was in 2010. Pro/Rel advocates hate that story, but they keep reading it.
7. We still follow Fredy Montero and DeAndre Yedlin.
8. Last year's new kit story broke the top 10, and I'll bet that this year's new kit story will do the same.

But there's a lot more to Sounder at Heart than just popular stories. Every day but Sunday (and some holidays) we have a Major Link Soccer story gathering up all the interesting stories that aren't necessarily related to the Sounders. During the season there's an open thread to discuss the rest of the league's matches and on Sunday nights a recap of matches with the current standings.

Our matchday coverage gives previews, scouting reports, live analysis, gifs, more gifs, raw data & quotes, analysis, sometimes some hype, sometimes depression.

We'll chase rumors and tell you why you should believe them, or not.

Every one of our authors dives into comments, most wrote several FanPosts. Because Sounder at Heart is not just a website. It is a community of people who are Sounders at Heart. We have mutual interests beyond soccer, but most of all we have the mutual interest of the Seattle Sounders FC, S2, the Academy, the Seattle Reign, our National Teams, the Tacoma Stars and most of all - a ball, two goals, twenty-two players and maybe some referees.

We love soccer. You love soccer.

Thank you for 2015. In 2016 there are trophies and medals to win. Let's enjoy the journey.