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UPDATE: It took about a year longer to be released, but these are finally here. The local clothing supplier Simply Seattle is currently taking preorders on the jerseys, which are priced at $110 and, admittedly, look pretty cool. They also have a short-sleeve hoodie (yes, you read that right), a windbreaker and a polo.
Major League Soccer is celebrating its 25th season with a variety of commemorative events and flourishes, but one that may stand out is a special collection of merchandise from Mitchell & Ness. The Since ‘96 Collection “features clubs from the 1990s,” according to a press release put out by the league. Included in the collection are eight of the 10 inaugural clubs — Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew, FC Dallas (Dallas Burn), D.C. United, Sporting Kansas City (Kansas City Wiz), LA Galaxy, New England Revolution, and San Jose Earthquakes (Clash) — as well as the three Cascadia clubs. The New York/New Jersey MetroStars and Tampa Bay Mutiny are not being included in the collection.
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The inclusion of the Seattle Sounders in this collection is of obvious interest to readers of this website. The Sounders were in the A-League — now what we know as USL Championship — not MLS, and they looked a little different from what we see today. Their logo featured Sammy the Sounder and a sort of teal and purple color scheme. Those colors were reflected in their uniforms, with purple as the main color of their primary jerseys. Maybe we’ll get to see an appearance from Sammy in Sounders merch after his glorious return to the team in 2019.
While the Since ‘96 Collection is largely an unknown beyond the teams involved, fans can take some comfort in knowing that Mitchell & Ness have been pretty consistent in the quality of the Sounders gear that they’ve produced. There was the series of baseball jerseys and snapback caps done in throwback colors from some other Seattle sports teams — the blue and green of the Seahawks and some delightful red and dark green from the SuperSonics of the ‘90s — as well as the magnificent satin bomber jacket that Neiko Thorpe of the Seahawks rocked for a game back in October.
It’s always exciting to get new merch, and the ‘90s are a period ripe for throwbacks. What are you most excited about from this collection? What items or particular elements do you hope to see?