ORLANDO, Fla. – If you go to an Orlando Pride game, you’ll see what’s affectionately known as The Wall. It’s the supporters’ section that lines the W. Central Boulevard side of Inter & Co Stadium.
You’ll hear drums beating, fans chanting, see flags waving — and it’s a group whose main purpose is to support the Orlando Pride.
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“We make flags, we make our banners, we bring our folks up on the stand leading chants and everything like that,” Black Swan member Jen Runyon said. “Our sole purpose is to make The Wall an inclusive and inviting environment for anybody that wants to come and support Orlando. And while we’re inviting on The Wall for those that want to support Orlando, we want to make our stadium the most intimidating, unwelcoming environment for our opponents.”
They’re called the Black Swans Drinking Club and they’re about 120 members strong.
Don’t let the name fool you, it’s not an adults-only group,
“Drinking club is more a moniker of just staying hydrated and Florida’s heat, and you’ll hear us at games many times, like something happens or there’s a hydration break. You know, we yell ‘Just drink water, drink something, you know, get fluids in you,’” Runyon said.
Many members of the Black Swans attend each home game and several travel to away games, as well.
In fact, Runyon mentioned one of their members actually had perfect attendance this season, traveling to every single away game, too. It’s that kind of dedication that defines how serious the Swans are about the Pride’s success. Runyon herself comes to games from St. Petersburg, and others have even come from out of state. Runyon said it’s because of the bond they all share.
“The Swans has really become a second family to me. I mean, this group is my chosen family. I live in St Petersburg, so I come over for the games, usually stay with other members of the group when we’re here in town,” Runyon said. “We’ve had Swans go through different things, you know, different life events, both happy, both sad, challenging and whatnot, and no matter what any other person’s going through, we stand behind them. So it’s bigger than soccer. It’s the Swans. It’s definitely bigger than soccer. It creates a family. The team unites us, gives us something to unite around. You know, we find hope in this team and what they’ve brought us this season, especially, but more than that, like this team has helped us all to find each other.”
The group also shares a special bond with the players. Though they don’t necessarily all know the players personally, many of them have met the Pride ladies and often chat with their family members. They even created their own special award for the team each game.
“One thing I think is really special with the team, at the end of the matches, if you notice, when they come over, we have an award that we give away to the individual player that we feel just kind of put in the effort, put in the heart for that specific match, you know, just somebody that stood out to us as the supporters. And we have a member that will etch a mug, and it’s called the IPA. It’s the Individual Player Award for each game. And after each game, we present the player with that mug and the entire team celebrates around that player and with us. That’s really special, and something I think we and the players all enjoy, and it’s a nice way that we can kind of connect with them, from the wall to the to the pitch.”
After the team’s historic win at Kansas City, I had to ask: who was the IPA for the final match?
“Morehouse did. When you shut out in a championship game, and you have just an incredible game like she had, you get the IPA. So Morehouse was definitely our IPA winner for that championship match,” Runyon said. “If you’ve followed this team for a long time, being able to depend on a solid defense, and somebody who just runs their back line, and just completely runs that defensive show. So from Morehouse to Sams to Strom to, I mean, just our entire defense and back line has been amazing.”
Runyon recalled the moments of celebration when the Pride secured that final win, and it gave me goosebumps.
“It was almost as as if, like it it wasn’t happening,” Runyon said. “My wife and I have been coming to the games. In our first season, we met someone who’s become one of our best friends, and I happened to be right next to her, my wife was like down at towards the front of our session, and it was just absolute hugs, tears all around, just raw emotion. Some of some of the photos that people sent me afterwards. Just all of us had those, those ugly cry faces on, just so happy, I mean, honestly, some of the happiest moments of my life. To be there in the moment, just jumping up and down and understanding that all the adversity that this team has faced, that we as fans have faced, supporting this team through the years. The ups and downs, The rebuilding years, the trust, the process years, the frustration, it was what we had been waiting for for so long.”
Experiencing that kind of moment is something Runyon said the Swans hope all fans can enjoy at some point.
“Anybody is welcome to join the swans. You don’t necessarily have to be on the wall. We do encourage everyone member or not to come over and experience the wall during a pride game,” Runyon said. “It’s a great experience in my mind, just to come over and come to The Wall and hang out for a few minutes. You don’t have to be there for a half, you don’t have to be there for a long time, but just come on over. Say hi. Chant a little bit. Just see what it’s about. And, you know, have fun with us also. Our tailgates are absolutely open to anybody. They’re 100% open to the for anybody to come and join us before the game to hang out.”
Although if you plan to bring children to attend, be prepared for some questionable language and maybe a little rowdiness. Runyon said that’s part of the charm.
“But you should absolutely expect that if it’s something that you’re going to hear at a men’s game, you should expect to hear it at a women’s game. The same level of passion in sports should be expected. To think that just because it’s a women’s game, it should be more, quote, unquote, family friendly, I think does a disservice to women’s sports.”
Speaking of women’s sports, Runyon said if you haven’t paid attention to the Orlando Pride and other women’s professional sports, now is the time.
“I think in the world of soccer, it’s time women are being watched. Women’s sports are being watched all over the place. It’s time for better broadcast deals. It’s time to get these games in the prime time, on regular TV, so that people aren’t having to buy multiple subscriptions to watch women’s soccer. You know, when you have to have three different subscription services to watch the games, it makes them unavailable for some people. I think sports bars need to see this team more, especially some of the local bars. Hammered Lamb hosted a lot of watch parties this season, even before the final match, where they hosted another one for some of our supporters to go to. I think it’s time that we see Pride merchandise more in front at the sporting goods,” Runyon said.
“It’s time to meet the people that, for whatever reason, don’t have their eyes open, because that’s the only reason that you haven’t seen this team yet, is because you don’t have your eyes open. And it’s time for the city, for the state, honestly, for the entire state of Florida, to step up and do their thing for this team.”
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