Portland Timbers fall 2-1 to rival Seattle Sounders as fans protest MLS ban on ‘Iron Front’ symbol

The Portland Timbers (11-11-4, 37 points) suffered their second straight loss at home as they fell 2-1 to the Seattle Sounders (12-8-7, 43 points) in front of 25,218 fans at Providence Park Friday in a game that was defined as much by what happened in the stands as what happened on the field.

With the loss, the seventh-place Timbers missed an opportunity to move ahead of their rivals in the Western Conference standings and reclaim the Cascadia Cup trophy for the first time since 2017. For the second year in a row, the Sounders will be taking home the Cascadia Cup, a trophy created by the supporters of the Timbers, Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps that is awarded each year to the Pacific Northwest team with the best regular-season record against the other two Cascadia teams.

“A tough result,” Timbers coach Giovanni Savarese said. “We hate to lose against Seattle. It’s not good, especially at home... We gave them three points, we lost the Cascadia Cup, we lost against Seattle. We lost all the things that we wanted today."

After the game, Savarese unsurprisingly wanted to focus solely on his club’s performance on the field, but the action on the pitch felt almost secondary to the protest going on in the stands for much of the first half.

The Timbers Army, who are regarded as one of the most raucous and passionate supporters’ groups in MLS, joined with two supporters’ groups for the Sounders to stage a protest in the first 33 minutes of Friday’s nationally-televised game against a MLS policy that bans the use of political signs and displays at matches. The ban includes signage with the Iron Front symbol, an emblem with three arrows pointing downward which was first used by an anti-Nazi paramilitary organization in Germany in the 1930s.

The atmosphere at Providence Park was noticeably subdued early in Friday’s match as the supporters’ groups from both teams chose to protest the ban by not displaying tifos, large choreographed displays that fans raise before games, or engaging in organized chants and flag-waving.

The Timbers organization said in a statement earlier this week that it unequivocally opposes fascism, but also said it supported MLS’s decision to ban the Iron Front symbol. The league has raised concerns over the symbol being adopted by the antifa movement, a loose affiliation of activists whose protests against fascism and racism have sometimes turned violent. The Timbers and Sounders organizations reiterated their opposition to fascism by each creating custom pennants for Friday’s game that included the phrases “anti-fascist" and “anti-racist." The starting lineups from both teams posed for a photo together with the pennants.

“I’ve been at this club for four years now and I know the ideals of the Army and the team very well and they align,” Timbers defender Zarek Valentin said. “I understand what they are going through and it’s tough as a player because at times we get caught in the crossfire, but the front office and the TA align in their thoughts. That’s the bottom line. I look forward to seeing a resolution as quickly as possible with the league.”

The protest overshadowed what was a highly disappointing game for the Timbers. Five days after being outplayed in a 2-0 loss to Atlanta United at home, the Timbers once again failed to execute against the Sounders.

“We have to change things,” Timbers defender Jorge Villafana said. “Two games in a row, it’s not good enough.”

Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan scored in the 22nd minute after a cross from Jordan Morris bounced off both Villafana and Seattle forward Raul Ruidiaz before landing at the feet of Roldan.

Seattle extended its lead in the 47th minute when Morris beat Valentin to the byline before sending a cross into the box for an open Raul Ruidiaz. Ruidiaz fired a shot into the net with his first touch to give the Sounders a 2-0 lead.

“We need to go back and realize that we haven’t entered into the last three halves with enough energy,” Valentin said. “Not enough in the second half tonight. Obviously, they scored a quick goal, quick goal last game as well. Not enough in the first half tonight either. I’m a huge proponent of controlling what you can control and on the pitch we need to do that.”

Portland fought back in the 54th minute when a free kick from Timbers midfielder Diego Valeri hit off Ruidiaz and bounced into the back of the net. Portland outshot the Sounders 20-11 (6-4 on target) in the game and pressured Seattle throughout the second half. Timbers striker Brian Fernandez put the ball in the net in the 81st minute, but was called offside as Portland walked away empty-handed at home for the second game in a row.

“I believe in this team 100 percent," Savarese said. "I’m proud always of these guys, but right now, tough two game against Atlanta and against Seattle, two games we could have won if we had paid a little bit more attention to details and we played all together for a common goal.”

Note: Timbers defender Julio Cascante suffered an injury in the 79th minute of Friday’s game and had to leave the match on a stretcher. Savarese said after the game that Cascante was still being evaluated and he didn’t yet have an update on the severity of the injury.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com

503-853-3761 | @jamiebgoldberg

Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.