Why I Started Wearing Old Glory Red

Welcome to the refreshed Indomitable City Soccer! To celebrate the new look and feel of our sports communities, we’re sharing stories of how and why we became fans of our favorite teams. If you’d like to share your story, head over to the FanPosts to write your own post. Each FanPost will be entered into a drawing to win a $500 Fanatics gift card. We’re collecting all of the stories here and featuring the best ones across our network as well. Come Fan With Us!

Hey y’all! I’m Riyan and I’m the social media manager for Indomitable City Soccer. You generally won’t hear much from me in terms of published articles, but there are exceptions to that rule. This is one of those exceptions, telling the story of how I fell so far in love with the Republic.

One thing to know about me is that I’ve been around soccer for a good portion of my lifetime.

I started playing soccer since I was a little first grader, playing games in the small field across the street. Honestly, I don’t know why I was put on a soccer team in the first place (something tells me my parent’s had something to do with it), but I don’t regret it. I still remember the chaos of bunch ball, when literally every single kid went for the ball. Trying to hold on to the ball for even a second was next to impossible.

As I grew older, I became more and more interested in the soccer community. Not just the local community, but the international scene. I didn’t know many of the local teams around me, but I did follow Team USA and their exploits. I would blame Landon Donovan for singlehandedly piquing my interest in the local teams around me, specifically his MLS team, Los Angeles Galaxy.

Yeah, I know they’re one of those teams that most bandwagoners would choose to support. And yeah, now I know that the San Jose Earthquakes are just a couple hours drive from where I am. Yet, I couldn’t root against the man that brought me into this fan culture.

So why Sacramento Republic? Growing up with the matches of the CaliClassico, I couldn’t possibly bring myself to cheer on the Earthquakes. And, cheering on the Galaxy grew to be more of a task, especially after some of my favorite players left. I didn't have much of a reason to cheer on a team that I had little to no relation to. With my relationship with the Galaxy waning, I needed to find a new team to devote my passion towards. And that’s when news broke: Sacramento would be getting a USL PRO team, starting in the 2014 season.

I watched nearly every single match that year, albeit mostly online. I only ended up going to one of the home matches, the 0-0 draw against future MLS side, Orlando City SC.

Riyan Lacara

Yet, being able to see a team that represented my city got to me. I had a team to cheer on. I had a team to push for. I had a team that was literally right here. I could watch all their matches and cheer them on, even though it was often through a livestream chat. This team provided a place where the multitude of soccer enthusiasts in Sacramento like me could gather.

Oh, and the championship in the first season was a perk. I've watched the sellout games at Hughes to the Miracle at Bonney to the matches in the Open Cup to the Premier League friendlies. I just cannot stop watching. There have been times where I’d skip out on eating dinner with the family, just so I could watch this team play.

Thank you SRFC! From a fan who’s looking forward to many more seasons to come.

Editor’s Note: For those of you looking to get into that Fanpost drawing, make sure to take a look at the note down below.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. SB Nation Why Are You a Fan Reader Sweepstakes starts on 8:00am ET on May 25, 2017 and ends at 11:59pm ET on June 8, 2017. Open only to eligible legal residents of the United States, 18 years or older. Click here for Official Rules and complete details, including entry instructions, odds of winning, alternative method of entry, prize details and restrictions, etc. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Sponsor: Vox Media, Inc.