by Kevin Kyle, photos by Travis Gallipo
Were you Walking Like an Egyptian en route to see Tom Cruise in Top Gun or just shopping the mall for a pair of Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses?
Regardless of what you were up to in 1986, there’s little doubt you were donning neon colors, big hair and listening to synth beats – staples of the time.
Sioux Falls City Football Club has teamed up with Official League for its second release of the What If? 1986 collection.
As part of the five USL W teams selected, including the Richmond Ivy, Orange County Soccer Club, Monterey Bay FC and Portland Bangers, your own Sioux Falls City Football Club will be selling an extremely limited lightweight parachute jacket – releasing IN-STADIUM ONLY for tonight’s match versus RKC Third Coast!
“I didn’t know about it until just this week,” said veteran SFCFC player Lulu Moreno, who was part of the promotional photo shoot. “The outcome of the jackets was really sic; to be able to do that and flash you back to a different time is pretty neat.”
Not only does the limited-edition Official League SFCFC jacket offer the sleek materials of a bygone era, full of bright, fresh color and pattern, but this uncommon cloak features decorative sleeve motifs taken from one of the team’s own players – Taylor Thomas – who designed the current Pathways kit the players wear on the pitch.
“I didn’t even know it was a thing until recently,” said Taylor Thomas. “Seeing it and hearing that they (Official League) didn’t feel like they had to create a design for us, because they loved what I had done, was a pretty cool feeling. Getting to see it in person and all the little detail of the design was just super cool.”
The SFCFC ‘team touch’ doesn’t end with the colors and patterning, though, as Official League didn’t miss adding the ‘Expect More’ slogan and ‘FN’ (Forget Normal) patch on the back of this silky garment.
“Everything we do has a story and a purpose, and I think that sets this apart from the other jackets that maybe don’t have a lot of that background put into them,” said Taylor Thomas. “So, it’s super cool that people will get a sense of that.”
And not only for SFCFC’s female fans, as working with Official League, City found a way to make its design equally alluring to the ‘Zumba-wearing macho men’ in the stands.
“We went back and forth, back and forth with designs; because it’s made up of panels, we were looking for ways to make them appealing to both men and women,” said SFCFC owner Emily Thomas. “So, we ended up with a variation that highlights the theme of our Pathways kit on sleeve panels. They did a wonderful job… pretty cool.”
With SFCFC being the second of the five teams selected to have its What If? 1986 jackets promoted, Official League will continue releasing gear throughout the summer for the other three clubs. OL will have links to all the team stores of the clubs participating in the campaign, which will help give each a national audience as they continue to grow their respective brands.
“I think this only makes our club more unique,” said Moreno. “It’s (the design) from one of our own and not just some marketing team that came up with the idea. That makes it even more special, and it’ll help put Sioux Falls and our team on the map. It’s fantastic!”
Make sure to get to Bob Young Field early tonight, as the extremely limited SFCFC/Official League What If? 1986 jackets are sure to sell fast.
Kickoff versus RKC Third Coast is at 6 p.m.
This is OUR City!