More than 90% of eligible Major League Soccer players have registered to vote in advance of Election Day, and over half of the league’s 26 teams have 100% registration for their eligible players, according to MLS.
“That in and of itself is an amazing feat, “said Jan Greenberg-Mirman, vice president of social responsibility at MLS. “The fact that it was driven from the players.”
The league’s MLS Unites to Vote program, a nonpartisan initiative developed by MLS, Black Players for Change and the MLS Players Association, was not only designed to increase participation from the league’s player pool but to promote voter awareness throughout club markets, provide educational materials to fans and support marginalized communities.
In particular, the Philadelphia Union’s home, Subaru Park, served as a pop-up voting center Oct. 16-18, and fans could cast their vote in person or drop off ballots at LAFC’s Banc of California Stadium from Oct. 30 through Nov. 3. NYCFC has focused its efforts around a youth-led campaign called Power the Vote, which was created to drive voter participation among teens and young adults across the five boroughs of New York City.
Greenberg-Mirman also pointed to the work conducted in the community by Seattle Sounders FC. Maya Mendoza-Exstrom, the club’s senior vice president of legal and external affairs, said that this summer, the team’s internal steering committee landed on a social justice framework to help guide the club forward with some of its big picture ideas. One of those was “placing a premium on voting as a mechanism for change,” she said.
“Our objective is simple: We want every person voting in every election every damn time,” said Mendoza-Exstrom, who added that the Sounders’ work locally in southern King County around voting, especially toward educating and supporting historically marginalized communities, is a “long-standing commitment” that will continue beyond 2020. Last week, Sounders legend and brand ambassador Brad Evans participated in a three-day event in which he visited 12 ballot box locations in King County that have had lower turnouts in years past and encouraged people to cast their vote.
Meanwhile, Jordan Harvey, a 36-year-old veteran defender for LAFC, has played a key role helping the team’s six other American citizens register and vote. LAFC is one of the teams that has had 100% voter participation ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
“This election is, I believe, the most important in our lifetime,” said Harvey. “Everyone throws out, ‘Their voice is heard,’ and I truly believe that. Your perspective is heard as well.”
