'Rewarding as hell' - Tifos are bold, brash and brilliantly creative, the ultimate expression of MLS culture - and fans embrace the banter

Tifos are not a particularly new or MLS specific phenomenon. They were originally used by ultras in parts of Italy and Eastern Europe in the 1960s, mostly to make political statements - or send messages to their own club. They were, in effect, early examples of fan protest. The term “tifo” originates from the Italian word tifosi (fans). 

They have since changed in meaning. In the early 2000s, tifos became more prevalent worldwide. And while in Europe they have stayed mostly black and white with simple lettering, MLS fans have used them as a primary way of expressing club culture. Chants are ripped-off rhythms, or co-opted versions of European culture. Singing post-match might be a bit too niche. 

But put up a beautiful and well-crafted display, and everyone takes notice. There are some classic examples. Portland’s Timbers Army led the way, but other clubs have followed. These days, tifos are the primary way in which clubs address rivalries, make statements, or simply have a bit of fun. 

“There is going to be some ribbing that happens, but I think it's all in good humor,” said Andrew Tucker, president of The Third Rail, an NYCFC supporters’ group.

The concepts often start in a Discord, WhatsApp or Facebook chat. Supporters’ groups can reach triple digits these days, and some teams allow their fans to be as active as possible. When the season schedule drops, chats become a flurry of activity: big games, tough stretches, and who, exactly, they can target over the course of the season. 

“We have a lot of conversations… like, ‘Hey, listen, what do you guys think we should focus on? We should focus on at least five games this year. What games do you want to do?’” Victor Arroyo of the Red Bulls' Empire Supporters Club said. 

And then the ideation starts. Most groups work with graphic designers, natural creatives, or artists. Then those without artistic backgrounds get involved, too. What happens, often, is a flurry of ideas, combined with a select few people capable of actually bringing the concepts to life. 

“We have the graphic designers, and they'll be like, ‘I got you, we'll do this, and we'll take care of it,’” Arroyo said. 

Want a bull wrestling an eagle for New York Red Bulls vs. D.C. United? No problem. A replica of a Barbie Doll house to call Inter Miami ‘plastic’? Consider it done. Sometimes, of course, there are too many ideas. And some flat out don’t work. That’s when personalities need to be managed. 

“It’s very hard to have a number of people with very different ideas, or design aesthetics in a group chat trying to decide on one idea,” Tucker said. “And then when you say no to a certain idea, it hurts designer egos. And it's hard then to get them to come back and design another one.” 

For the most part, these are collaborative creative processes, with most fans on the same page as to who, exactly, they want to target.

And that’s where the real fun is. Friendly rivalries don’t really exist in soccer these days. It’s a bit of an all-or-nothing concept. Your team either hates someone or has a total sense of apathy. These things are subject to change - competition becoming more or less relevant over time. 

But artistic expression can sometimes keep them ticking along. In the early days of the Hudson River Derby, it’s how the New York Red Bulls made fun of transplants NYCFC. 

“We did one for NYCFC when they first came in with Frank Lampard and David Villa, walking around with crutches. They were like 50 years old, trying to bring in a team,” Arroyo said. 

Of course, NYCFC hit back the next year. These days, they are eager to constantly remind their rivals that they play across the Hudson River in New Jersey - and have yet to win MLS Cup. 

“We've had some big things to give them sh*t for - obviously winning MLS Cup before them, them getting to the finals of MLS Cup and then not winning yet again,” Tucker said. 

The same goes for other clubs. Portland and Seattle engage in visual battle every year. Likewise for Cincinnati and Columbus for the “Hell is Real” rivalry - which has yielded some of the league’s finest tifos over the years. 

And there’s plenty of material there, too. 

“The owners of the Cleveland Browns bought Columbus a few years ago, and they've kind of been hinting that they might be playing more games or even possibly moving the club to Cleveland,” Shelton said. “So we just keep making fun of them for that.”

Cincinnati probably shouldn’t have lost to Columbus this year. First of all, it was a hit to the team’s Supporters Shield hopes. Second, their fans had taken a shot at their rivals before the game, making a tifo inspired by tarot cards, a giant lion accompanied by the inscription “your fate is inevitable.” 

The next time the two teams faced off, the Crew had a laugh with their visuals, taking the same design but replacing the lion with a cat holding three cards, each one with an MLS Cup. 

The supporters lost it online. 

“It was a firestorm in discord,” Shelton said. “And we immediately started to figure out how to respond.” 

It’s those kinds of moments that keep supporters coming back for more. And there are some common targets, too. Miami are most clubs’ favorite team to make fun of. It’s not hard to see why. The club were a struggling entity before Lionel Messi arrived, and have since catapulted to one of the best in the league. There is a widespread resentment towards them and their ownership - with some rival fans claiming that they test the limit of what should be legal within MLS rules. 

It has led to some remarkable displays of art, but it has also helped breed some resentment. The view from Miami fans is a bit mixed. 

“I think it's a fair game, to be honest,” said Nico Abad, member of The Siege supporters’ group. “It does kind of annoy me sometimes, because it's just like ‘No, pink and black lives in your head rent free.’” 

Sometimes, Abad says, it’s just plain jealousy from rivals. 

“It must be so frustrating for the outsiders that all of a sudden their stadium of, like, blue and black or red and blue - all of a sudden there's pink everywhere,” Abad said with a laugh.

And then there are the statements made. Supporters groups have been eager to make their feelings known around various social causes. The Red Bulls always earmark a tifo for pride month, for example. 

"We'll choose a couple games, just to make a presentation for something, whether it be like pride or like Latino night,” Arroyo said. “Getting all these people involved and feeling included so that they can have fun at a game.” 

That, at times, can prompt concerns. Tifos need approval at multiple levels. First, the club has to greenlight them. Then, it’s up to the stadium. Most of the time, there is alignment between all three parties. 

“If you're NYCFC, the club could be perfectly fine with our tifo and Yankee Stadium or Citi Field could say, ‘Hell no, we're not doing that,’” Tucker said. 

It happened a few years ago. NYCFC fans made a tifo of the Ukrainian flag at the start of Russian aggression. It wasn’t accompanied by any writing - just two blocks of color. It wasn’t uncommon. Clubs from around the world had held minutes of silence. Flags were pretty much ubiquitous. NYCFC had no problem with the visual. 

The operators of Yankee Stadium, where the game was held, took a different view. 

"We painted a Ukrainian flag. It was just the two colors of the flag, and we held it up in the section, and Yankee Stadium lost their minds,” Tucker said. 

The level of cooperation on these things varies throughout the league. The Red Bulls toyed with a Sopranos themed one, but realized the club might be reluctant to display an image of a gun in the stands. 

And in return, clubs tend to help facilitate construction. 

The Red Bulls let their fans use a massive section of the parking lot at Sports Illustrated Stadium to piece together the tifos. Supporters groups at Cincinnati are allowed to block off a parking garage for hours on end. 

“We can just call them and say, ‘Hey, we're going to use this parking garage that's attached to the stadium’, and they'll block it off for us, and let us use the garage for as long as we need it,” Shelton said.

Some tifos are elaborate entities, complete with multiple panels - sometimes 100 x 100 reaching high into a stadium. Sketching, gluing, and painting can be draining. 

“It's a lot of work. It is fun, but it's definitely a lot of work. It's a lot of time. It takes a lot of energy,” Tucker said. 

Everything tends to start with a massive canvas. Then there’s consideration of materials, a grid to identify what colors should be painted and where - and then the elaborate and painstaking process of making sure the whole thing comes out and looks good. 

There is a real collegiality to these things. For years, Cincinnati's multiple supporters groups didn’t like each other. It led to some secrecy about designs, and a less cohesive product as a result. 

“We were kind of operating these tifo projects within one group, there was a lot of secrecy, and almost there was kind of inner competition on who could pull off the better. And it was like, ‘Why are we competing with ourselves?’” Mutchler said. 

But they have since come together to make tifos, and developed better relationships. The same goes for Miami’s various factions, who have to put aside their differences while standing next to each other, painting for hours - or even days - on end. 

"In typical MLS culture, all these groups, low key, do not like each other,” Abad said. “They don't get along. But those moments where we paint a big one, it's like, all of a sudden, this guy - me and him never talk to each other - we're like, ‘Oh, let's paint the section, the two of us, right now.’"

And that’s where the real fun comes in. Fundamentally, these are bonding events. In Miami, the beer tends to flow when everyone comes together. 

“Good luck finding any group of us without a Modelo in our hand. You know what I mean? Like, it's not gonna happen,” Abad said. 

Even if you’re not involved, it’s a good excuse to hang out, cook, and make friends among your fellow supporters. 

For the Red Bulls, these are massive social events, with Arroyo saying, “We’ll wind up bringing some food, some beers, we'll hang out, try not to get drunk too much.”

At times, of course, tifos can get a little personal. Others can lead to some controversy. Relationships between fans and teams can be tested. Yet the making of tifos alone brings about conversations that might not otherwise happen. 

Clubs get closer to their teams. Positive messages and good-natured ribbing are part of MLS canon, and live on visually. 

“We try to keep them as positive as possible, just because we don't want to be negative nellies,” Arroyo said. “We have had some that were borderline negative, but we still try to keep it upbeat or funny.” 

And some tifos take on lives of their own, constantly referenced. When NYCFC played Portland in the 2021 MLS Cup final, they dug up some of those old Timbs, painted pieces of cardboard that had been gathering dust for a couple of years. 

NYCFC won the cup. The Internet got the joke. Everything came together perfectly. 

And that’s what this is all about. 

“When they come off,” Tucker said, “they are f*cking rewarding as hell.”