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After a full season of Seattle Sounders 2 playing their USL games at Cheney Stadium under a partnership between the Tacoma Rainiers and the Seattle Sounders, S2’s existence seems poised to take another step. The two organizations have called a joint press conference on Wednesday, Jan. 30; there is no indication about what these announcements cover besides “series of important announcements.”
There are a few loose ends regarding the relationship, which could be tied up during the press conference:
- The rebrand of Sounders 2/S2 to something that more embraces Tacoma and/or the South Sound will happen before the season starts on March 8. The Rainiers asked fans for input about possible names back in September. It is possible that the Wednesday announcement isn’t just about a brand, but includes kits and more.
- Heidelberg/Davis Park’s re-purposing into a soccer stadium could be officially announced. The city and teams once thought a new stadium could open as early as 2020. The MOU was signed in 2017 and Populous will take charge of the project.
- Open Cup games could be heading to Tacoma.
5. My HOMEtown Stadium: The Sounders will (apparently) be playing their US Open Cup matches at Cheney Stadium. I loved the Starfire matches--they’re among my favorite Sounders memories--but Cheney can seat at least 2x the people. Let’s bring that energy to Tacoma… #LFG
— nate bowling (@nate_bowling) January 23, 2019
While these are some of the things that could be announced, there’s supposed to be more than these items, and we have no idea what they could be.
Wednesday’s 3 p.m. announcements with Tacoma Rainiers and the Seattle Sounders will help define the next era in South Sound soccer.
Disclosure: I am the color analyst for S2 matches, but have no knowledge of the announcements. The easiest way to avoid conflicts of interest are for the people in charge to not tell the potentially conflicted person anything.