Photo credit: Brenda Lopez
Though the league is on a break this weekend, Supporters Spotlight is not! We are keeping the Angel City theme going strong. This week, we are featuring AC Valkyries. Vice President Heather Borjon answered some questions about the group!
How and when did the group come into existence? What made you all want to start the group?
The Valkyries started in the week that followed the announcement for LA getting a bid for an NWSL team. We still had a group chat going from the 2019 Women’s World Cup. When the team was announced, everyone was excited to see women’s soccer come back to LA. Stephanie (President), mentioned wanting to start a supporter group in the chat and I decided to take the plunge get something going with her. I started texting friends who were also into women’s soccer and we had our first zoom meeting that night and decided to start the group.
Can you share some information about the group structure? Are there roles/committees, etc.? If so, what is your role?
Currently I serve as Vice President. Stephanie is our President, Allison is our Secretary and Antonio is our Treasurer. Crystal and I work on social media content and posts. We also have a couple other friends from around NWSL and supporter culture that help advise us. Our friends Eboni and Donald were really helpful when we were trying to navigate early obstacles like trying to communicate with the front office and working with other supporter groups.
Could you give a little more info about the group (Mission statement, goals, values, etc.)?
Angel City Valkyries is an independent supporters group of Angel City FC. We strive to be inclusive, passionate, and community-driven in supporting our team, Los Angeles, and beyond. Our love for women’s soccer stems from World Cups, Olympics, NWSL, International Leagues, Collegiate/Club Soccer, and has grown to our local LA team, Angel City FC. We cannot wait to bring our experience and passion to the NWSL. We are inspired by the ownership group in their commitment to equality, social justice, and the LA community. Our group prides itself on being non-traditional and the most fun. We hope to see you at our events and in our section.
There has been a push to bring a women’s soccer team to LA for quite some time. What does it mean to members of the group to not only have a team, but have a team with this level of thought and investment in it?
Our group stemmed out of support for the USWNT, so supporting women’s soccer was really important to us. Our founders attended every game when the USWNT would play in our market and would also travel to other home and away games. It meant to the world to know that we would finally be able to support women’s soccer in our own market.
What do you and/or the members of the group love most about the team?
I feel that the diversity of the team has really left an impact on our members. LA is such a diverse area and it’s great to see a team that reflects that.
What do you love most about being in an Supporters Group?
I love the community. I have been a part of supporter culture over over 10 years and what we’ve built here along with the other ACFC supporters groups is unmatched. We each bring our own experiences and flavor to make something beautiful and eclectic.
Where can people find you before games and how do they join you during the game?
We tailgate before (almost) every match on Christmas Tree Lane. Usually we’re in the corner closest to the stadium. Everyone is welcome to stop by and grab a drink and/or a snack. It’s great to get to know other supporters and chat about love of soccer and other random things. Our supporter section is welcome to anyone who wants to stand and cheer 90 minutes! If they decide to join an SG great, if not they are still welcome to come cheer with us. Our section is an active support so there’s drums, flags, chanting, smoke, and some times streamers along with other fun elements.
Anything you want to plug?
We’ll be doing a virtual school supply drive soon and maybe a book drive.
AC Valkyries can be found on social media and their website at the following links: Twitter: https://twitter.com/ac_valkyries, Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ac_valkyries/, Facebook: http://facebook.com/acvalkyries and their website: http://angelcityvalkyries.com/
You can catch AC Valkyries cheering on Angel City FC at their home games at Banc of California Stadium in LA!
