The Seattle Sounders have been around in three forms over the history of the name since 1974. Each new incarnation has brought with it a new crest or logo.

The club’s final season in the NASL in 1983 produced a fourth.

by David Falk

The original word and wave ‘brand’ that some still identify the Sounders most with came out in 1974 and was used until 1982. It reappeared in 2003 when the Seattle Sounders of the United Soccer Leagues were moved by owner Adrian Hanauer to what was then called Qwest Field. The division two side used the original 1974 logo from 2003 until the club’s final year of 2008.

In 1983 the Seattle Sounders were sold and the new owners rebranded the side with new colors (Navy, light blue, white) and a Space Needle inspired new logo. It lasted one year and for many became a symbol of failure as the club folded out of the NASL at the end of the 1983 season.

When the Seattle Sounders came back to life in 1994 in what was then called the “A-League,” they did so with a variation on the word/wave logo that featured new colors and the addition of an Orca whale heading a soccer ball. This crest was used from 1994 through 2002.

There was plenty of interest and apprehension in April 2008 when the new Seattle Major League Soccer franchise called a press conference to announce the new side’s name and crest. In the weeks leading up to the announcement the club had altered their plans and allowed for a write-in vote to go along with the choices “Seattle FC, “Seattle Alliance,” and “Seattle Republic.” The winner was a write-in, “Sounders,” and the crest that was revealed showed the Space Needle and a bold new color choice, “Rave Green.”

Which crest or logo in Sounders’ history is your favorite? Vote in the poll below. Then take a look at a few ‘offshoot’ graphics from over the years that are rarely seen.