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Don't worry, we understand that almost no one really wants to be talking about things like sponsorships right now. But the Seattle Sounders' decision to join forces with Providence on a wide-ranging "partnership" that also happens to include the Catholic healthcare provider's name being prominently displayed on their jerseys has made completely moving on rather difficult. Fans remain upset and the Sounders are still seeking to calm those tensions.

In the last week, the Sounders have met with ECS, the Alliance Council and other supporters' groups to at least begin the process of coming to an understanding. Similarly, they asked to talk to us and, more importantly, our audience.

Jeremiah met with Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer Taylor Graham as well as COO Maya Mendoza-Exstrom at Longacres on Monday to sort of replicate some of those conversations. 

This much was clear: the individuals who run the Sounders remain as committed as ever to championing these causes. In fact, they gave the impression that they want to put those issues even more front and center. 

For some fans, we imagine this will come as comfort. For others, it's entirely fair to question the sincerity of that commitment given Providence's positions on those causes.

We hope this interview at least gives you some of the information you need to decide for yourself.

Note: This is the first of what will become a regular series of interviews. This is available to all subscribers, but we'll likely start releasing extended cuts for paid subscribers through Substack in the next few months. 

This week's music: Perry Como - "Seattle", "RVIVR - "Ocean Song", Woody Guthrie - "Roll On Columbia", "Your Journey Begins" - OurMusicBox (Jay Man) (CC BY 4.0)

Thanks to James Woollard, Sounders Public Address Announcer, for doing our sponsor reads. You can follow him on Twitter at @BritVoxUS - if you’re looking for a British Voice to advertise your business or non-profit, please reach out to him.

We caught up with Sam Rogers while he was with the United States national team in Los Angeles. It's been quite a couple years for Rogers, who turned disappointment over not making the Sounders first team into a journey that now has him poised to win his first senior national team cap. We talked about that journey and how he's enjoying life in Norway.

Note: This is the first of what will become a regular series of interviews. This is available to all subscribers, but we'll likely start releasing extended cuts for paid subscribers through Substack in the next few months. 

The 2023 preseason has officially begun with the Sounders opening training camp. There's a lack of depth at fullback but otherwise mostly good questions to ask.

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The Sounders' biggest offseason priority was signing a backup for Raúl Ruidíaz and they seem to have found a pretty good one in Héber, who spent the previous four seasons at NYCFC.

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Craig Waibel was officially introduced as the third general manager in the Sounders' MLS history this week. We give our first impressions.

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Garth Lagerwey is out as the Sounders GM and was very quickly replaced by Craig Waibel, who joined the team about 18 months ago. We feel like this is a solid move, but understand that a lot of fans would like to see some proof.

This week's music: Perry Como - "Seattle", "RVIVR - "Ocean Song", Woody Guthrie - "Roll On Columbia", "Your Journey Begins" - OurMusicBox (Jay Man) (CC BY 4.0)

Thanks to James Woollard, Sounders Public Address Announcer, for doing sponsor reads. You can follow him on Twitter at @BritVoxUS - if you’re looking for a British Voice to advertise your business or non-profit, please reach out to him.

Seemingly out of the blue, Garth Lagerwey has left the Seattle Sounders to become Atlanta United's CEO and President. It's a big bump in title and control. We do our best to make sense of it.

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The Sounders were back in person with their Annual Business Meeting this week. They revealed Garth Lagerwey's retention vote totals, teased a new crest and showed off parts of their new headquarters.

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In the late 1980s US Soccer was at a nadir. There was no professional outdoor league, the indoor league was hanging on by a thread and it had been nearly 40 years since the last World Cup appearance. But a band of players cobbled together from ethnic league, college teams and European outfits managed to breakthrough and set the USA on its current path. Adam Elder chronicled this journey, which included a pretty significant Pacific Northwest influence.

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They clearly aren't the two most popular picks for the United States' World Cup roster, but we are thrilled for Cristian Roldan and Jordan Morris making the trip to Qatar. If you're inclined to defend those picks to anyone, we give you plenty of ammunition.

This week's music: Perry Como - "Seattle", "RVIVR - "Ocean Song", Woody Guthrie - "Roll On Columbia", "Your Journey Begins" - OurMusicBox (Jay Man) (CC BY 4.0)

Thanks to James Woollard, Sounders Public Address Announcer, for doing our sponsor reads. You can follow him on Twitter at @BritVoxUS - if you’re looking for a British Voice to advertise your business or non-profit, please reach out to him.