Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami teammates have already secured MLS‘ Supporters’ Shield, and they’re currently the heavy MLS Cup favorites in the playoffs, but even the demi-god of soccer himself will miss out on one trophy this season: The Wooden Spoon.
Conceptualized, created and maintained by die-hard fans, the trophy is managed by the Independent Supporters Council (ISC), a collective of groups from the U.S. and Canada that hand the annual award to the supporters of the team with the worst finish in MLS.
Some fans hate it. Others embrace it and flip the narrative, because after all, a title is a title and the two-foot piece of lumber is a handy symbol of accountability in a league without relegation. At the league level, a representative from MLS confirmed to ESPN that they have no role in the trophy, thereby making it an unofficial one.
A bittersweet icon with layers of meaning behind it, here’s the story of the Wooden Spoon trophy.
‘Why did you make this?’
Imagine being a supporter of the Chicago Fire in 2017. You’re trying to move on from your team’s back-to-back last place finishes from the previous two years, and as you’re sipping a beer at a tailgate and basking in the aspirations of a new season, you see someone carrying a visually imposing wooden structure towards you.
As a strange homemade trophy comes into light, you see two golden plaques on it commemorating the recent disastrous seasons that you’re trying to forget, and a cracked wooden spoon centered in the middle.
Guesman disagreed. He noted to the fan that the trophy was a reminder of the team’s missteps, and that if things didn’t change, setbacks would continue going forward with LA Galaxy.
“The guy literally got angry…I thought maybe I might have to fight,” said Guesman with a laugh. “I get the reaction, it’s not that I don’t get the reaction. I think it’s a little extreme but he was really upset that it was on every single podcast,” said the host. “I think that’s what the Wooden Spoon is, it’s a reminder not to be bad at what you do.”
When Guesman brought the trophy back to LA Galaxy supporters at the end of the 2018 season, there were visceral responses ranging from individuals who didn’t want to touch it, others who lifted middle fingers, some who took photos, and also those who were astounded to be in the presence of it.
“People were like, ‘oh my God, that’s it, that’s the Wooden Spoon.’ “
When FC Cincinnati finished dead last from 2019-2021, supporters learned to appreciate the Wooden Spoon with each passing season.
“Obviously we are disappointed with the results on the field, but I think the fan base has embraced having the Spoon for the third time, second officially,” said Jared Handra, president of FC Cincinnati supporter group Die Innenstadt, to the ISC’s website in 2021. “People just have fun with it now, it’s pretty cool to win a trophy three years in a row.
“We wanted to win trophies; I guess it’s on us for not specifying which one.”
In 2024, no team had a more difficult time than the San Jose Earthquakes, who finished with a paltry total of 21 points. In comparison, Messi’s Miami finished with 74 in the regular season. Phillip Leyva, who covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a member of Quakes Epicenter, remembered a moment back in the summer that foreshadowed problems.
“This was early, like this was June 22, this was early in the season, [forward] Benji [Kikanovic] came into the press conference and he said ‘We’re s—.’ That’s the word that he used,” said Leyva to ESPN. “‘We’re not playing good enough, this is s—.’ I just remember he kept repeating that.”
According to Leyva, issues like injuries and the team’s mentality held the squad back. He also noted “a dearth of MLS level quality in the defensive part of the pitch, across the back line and especially at the goalkeeper position — they’re just leaking in goals.” Looking at the investment of the team, which has the four-lowest total guaranteed compensation in MLS, Leyva doesn’t expect things to get significantly better in the future.
“A lot of that comes down to the ownership, I think that’s the one important thing that you should probably mention,” said Leyva. “If you haven’t already thought about it, the extent to which John Fisher affects this organization.”
One month before the San Jose Earthquakes officially closed out the regular season in last place, Fisher’s other team, MLB’s Oakland A’s, played their very last in the Bay Area just up the highway. Furious with Fisher’s plan to move the team to Las Vegas, baseball fans belted chants of “sell the team” with the knowledge that their owner would soon steal a part of their sporting hearts.
Sports fandom can sometimes feel futile and hopeless in the face of these situations. Yet supporters do have the power of expression to help push for change or improvements to be made.
“If supporters want to put pressure on their front office to do better, then this is a reminder,” said Hack about the Wooden Spoon. “We also have to be the voices to put pressure on our organizations.”
Giroux agrees. “It was kind of intended as a satirical object,” he said. “This idea of building something to criticize and make light of something serious that’s actually happening.”
So what’s next for the Wooden Spoon?
“I think that the trophy should be shared. The trophy is usually presented at the annual ISC conference in January and I will be bringing it back to San Jose. My group already plans to have the trophy at a few events next preseason,” said The Faultline’s Cuadra-Cutler.
“We plan to just embrace and own it.”
