La Norte is short for La Curva Norte. It stands for the North Side or North Curve. This is usually where the die hard fans are found in stadiums around the world.
2. What is your mission statement?
La Norte was created for those die hard fans that had no place to express their love for the game and to DC United. We know that they are die hard fans out there, they just don’t know where to go, we want to provide the platform for this fans. We know that it will be a slow process but we believe that with time we should be able to fill the entire NorthSide (La Norte) with die-hard fans. (this is on hold of course until we get our section behind the goal back!) Just imagine this scenario: The entire curve is full of die-hard fans chanting and jumping, flags are hanging from the upper deck all the way to the field and then DC United jumps into the field. At this time the entire curve cheer and throws confetti, streamers and balloons by the time the teams gets in the entire goal is covered with confetti and streamers and balloons are flying in the sky and all through this the bombo (drum) does not stop. That is our mission, to one day be able to provide that soccer environment. We think that this the only thing MLS is missing and we want to help.
3. How do I join La Norte?
Membership costs $20 dollars. With it you will get a free item from La Norte. A membership to La Norte gives you exclusive discounts to DC United regular season game tickets as well as to special event tickets. (ex. Open Cup, Copa Sudamericana, etc.) Plus discounts to other La Norte merchandise and in some cases, DC United merchandise. There are many ways you can buy a membership to La Norte: 1) Go to the merchandise page 2) Visit us at our tailgate area 3) Visit our ticketbooth. 4) Or swing by our section inside the stadium. If you buy a season ticket with us, you automatically become an official member.
4. I already have season tickets in another part of the stadium, but I want to join La Norte. Is that possible?
Nothing could be easier. All you have to do is come to the La Norte ticket booth with any official DC United match ticket -- season ticket, half-season ticket or a single game ticket and we will gladly give you a ticket in La Norte in return. There is no additional cost to you.
5. Does La Norte chant/sing in English?
Most definitely YES! You'll find songs in English and Spanish. Since most of us are from Latin America, most of the songs are in Spanish, however we are always looking for ideas in English.
6. How do you come up with your chants or songs?
Chanting, singing and sometimes yelling are long time traditions in Latin America and Europe. We have a list of over 50 songs/chants. These are songs that are passed down from generation to generation in the futbol crazy countries of Latin America and Europe. They are generally popular pop songs that are adapted by changing some of the lyrics but keeping the beat. We do however have a couple of songs made by La Norte members. We are always looking for new songs, especially in English. If you happen to have new ideas for songs just write to us.
7. Where are La Norte members from?
We have members from all over: Peru, Bolivia, Chile, El Salvador, Ecuador, England, USA of course and elsewhere.
8. I don't speak Spanish. How can I sing along?
Check out our songs and chants page. Every song has section that tells you how to pronounce it. It also tells you what you are singing and chanting. You have no excuse, hang out in La Norte, and learning Spanish will become a piece of cake.9. Do you guys support the US National team?
Yes we do, we believe this is a great way to thank this country for the opportunities it provides for a lot of us. This is also and area in which we would like to help. In most of our countries supporting the national team it’s a patriotic event and the national teams usually have the support of the entire country. Unfortunately, this is not the case in the US, usually when the US plays against a Latin American country there is usually more people from the other country even though the game is being played in the nation’s capital. A good example was the qualifier against Honduras Sept 2001. The crowd for this game was more than half form from the US and the rest from Honduras. Even though the US had more people to support it, the Honduras crowd was able to take over RFK. This happened because people go to games to sit and eat hot dogs, they need to start going to games to become part of the game, become one more player on the field. Specially, when the national team is playing. Just listening to your national anthem should give you the motivation to support your team more than ever.
10. How many members do you have?
We have a member base of around 40 to 50 people, however we get a lot of walkups. We have the believe that in the short run is not so much about the quantity but about the quality. We think that if we can get 20 people to learn all the songs and be committed to La Norte the rest will come with time.
11. How are you organized?
We have a end of season meeting as well as a pre-season meeting. During the offseason the Board of Directors or "DCpUlos" (diciplies) as we have decided to called ourselves, discuss strategies, merchandise ideas, and anything else to help us make the next year and even better one.
12. How can someone help with the organization?
We are always looking for people to bring energy and enthusiasm to La Norte. If you have an idea of how you would want to help, approach one of the DCpUlos and talk to them about it. If you just want to help out, but don't know how, again, just talk to them. We always need people to help sell tickets, organize the festivities and more.