Atlanta United FC. I can’t pretend to have loved the name when I first read it. To be totally honest, I hated it. United? Come on, does it get any more generic than that? I had heard so many creative names over the last few months and this one seemed like it was thrown together last minute by an NFL marketing group that googled “best soccer team names” to decide.
The name of the upcoming Atlanta Franchise was leaked in an article by Brian Strauss of Sports Illustrated on June 25th, about two weeks before the scheduled July 7th unveiling. Twitter had a meltdown. No matter where I looked, I saw the same words: generic, boring, unimaginative, etc. The amount of fans who felt negatively seemingly outnumbered the others 10/1.
This led Darren Eales, president of the franchise, to publicly defend the name in an article with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We wanted a name that is authentic,” Eales said. “It’s a very traditional name, but there will be so much more (branding) that will be led by our fans as we ramp up to 2017.”
Despite Eales’ best attempts it seemed like the fans couldn’t be convinced. Social media had too big of a grasp over everyone. Over the next few days, anything written about Atlanta United FC was with the same condescending tone. It was too boring, too unoriginal, and this Atlanta team was doomed to be a cookie cutter corporate abomination that was sure to fail.
I was furious. Yes, I hated the name, but at the same time I could not be more disgusted by the fans who were saying they were so against the name that they wouldn’t support the team.
One hopeful fan commented on the mlssoccer.com article that confirmed the team name, “Maybe we’re just misreading it and it’s actually just Atlanta Untitled FC, as a placeholder till the 7th?” Another fan put it eloquently with “BOO” in all caps featuring 1,400 “O’s”.
The overreaction over this name astounded me and while many people were taking nothing but negatives from it, I saw one huge positive. At least this many people cared. In a city like Atlanta, where attendance at professional sporting events isn’t exactly stellar, getting this many people to just care about the same team was a huge success.
Maybe United is the right word to describe the impact this team could have.
Anyone who had any questions about whether or not MLS could make it in Atlanta was silenced on the night of July 7th. The logo reveal saw 4,000 people turn up just to see the branding for a team that still wouldn’t begin play for two years.
The night left few, if any disappointed. The crowd roared its approval as the reveal video ended and finally the franchise they’d been looking forward to had a distinct brand. A two-tone gold “A” over red and black stripes creates one of the freshest and most modern looks in Major League Soccer.
That image is reaching people outside of the soccer market. Since the reveal I’ve seen an influx of MLS apparel in my city. I’ve witnessed plenty of Atlanta United shirts being worn by people who previously had no interest in soccer.
With over 24,000 season ticket deposits thus far, it’s safe to say that these people are buying into this franchise. The negative vibes seem to be all but gone and there is excitement all around. The biggest complaint is no longer the name, instead it’s the amount of time between now and when we will first get to see Atlanta United take the pitch.
As Darren Eales said, the goal of the brand is to give the fans a chance to develop its identity. This concept has attracted people who aren’t even fans of the sport to a team with no players, no coach, and no history.
Maybe the ambiguity of the name is a good thing. Instead of a team culture dictated by the owner and president, we are left with a blank canvas for the fans to create whatever they want. The freedom given to the supporters will allow them to come together and create something utterly and completely Atlanta.
A fan base empowered, a city united: Atlanta United FC.
