Orlando City supporters from The Ruckus and the Iron Lion Firm came out to Saturday’s training session at Orlando City Stadium to give the Lions an extra boost before the club’s rivalry match against Atlanta United.
Orlando City plays Atlanta United at 6 p.m. on Sunday in a match that will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1.
Supporters from the two groups chanted throughout the early portion of the the training session and put up at “Beat Atlanta” banner, which included the words for “win” or “to win” in Spanish, Catalan, English, French, Portuguese and Arabic — the languages spoken by members of the team.
Also in attendance were members of the Soccer Institute at Montverde Academy (SIMA) team.
Officials said about 45 supporters manned The Wall for Saturday’s training session.
The Lions are 0-1-2 overall against the Five Stripes. Orlando City played Atlanta United once in Orlando City Stadium last season and lost 1-0.
Winger Justin Meram on Friday said Orlando City’s supporters are fantastic.
“They want a high standard,” he said. “They express their opinions. I think it’s a great thing that they understand the game and want everyone to succeed and do well.
Supporters from .@RuckusOrlando and .@IronLionFirm are here to support Orlando City during training today. Players came out to some raucous applause. pic.twitter.com/TrF9OpvZ4Q
— Jordan Culver (@JordanCulver) May 12, 2018