The Portland Timbers’ 2026 campaign kicks off with the Blessing of the Log

Every year, the Portland Timbers celebrate the tradition of blessing the Victory Log. This special tree trunk is from which the team’s mascot, Timber Joey, cuts slabs to award for each goal and clean sheet scored at their home ground of Providence Park. This year, the event was moved once again, this time to a smaller gathering in front of the stadium, at Gate F, on the corner of SW Morrison Street and SW 20th Avenue. 

The victory log is a genuine tree from the Oregon forest. Aside from rivals’ banter and jokes, Timber Joey is a true logger. This Douglas fir, sustainably sourced by Hampton Lumber from the Oregon Coast Range, honors the history of the state’s lumber industry. Both the log and Joey will be available to offer their first slabs this Saturday, February 21st, at 7:30 pm Pacific Time, when the Portland Timbers face the Columbus Crew for the 2016 MLS Season Opener.

If last year marked the club’s 50th anniversary, this year will also be very special as it’s the stadium’s centennial. Originally named Multnomah Stadium, it was built in 1926 atop Multnomah Field and began hosting American college football. Over time, it hosted other sports and activities such as track and field, cricket, greyhound racing, baseball, and soccer. In 1966, the city purchased the stadium and renamed it Civic Stadium. This name still resonates with Portland fans and will be chosen to honor the stadium on its centennial. Since then, it has gone by several names: PGE Park in 2001, Jen-Weld Field in 2011, and Providence Park in 2014, with its sponsorship contract set to expire in 2029.

The ceremony is now much simpler than the old full-morning program at Camp 18 in Elsie, OR, where the victory log is sourced from. It used to include a guided tour of the logging museum just outside the lodge, the planting of saplings in honor of departed loved ones, and a nearly hour-long drive each way. Or even last year’s event at the Oregon World Forestry Center. This year, the program was much smaller, featuring brief speeches from David Hampton (Hampton Lumber), Timber Joey and Timber Jim (current and former mascots), Adam Perryman (Timbers Army), and the current team’s goalkeeper, James Pantemis. 

It was James who led the adapted Irish wedding blessing that represents the hope of every new season. James recited the verses, and the fans repeated, ending altogether with a loud cheer, “Go Timbers!” The fact that it was the goalkeeper, the chosen one to represent the club, wasn’t a coincidence, nor a matter of which player got the short straw for the sacrifice on a Sunday afternoon. Pantemis has earned the fans’ love beyond his outstanding performance on the pitch, also through his humility, buy-in to the club’s values, and a gift for interacting with them. 

If Kristoff is starting to become the playmaker and combative leader on the pitch that fans have wanted since Sebastián Blanco left, James Pantemis, now the undisputed first goalkeeper since the departure of Maxime Creppeau, has become a leader both on and off the field. James was happy to oblige with all the selfies and sign all kinds of merch, chatting happily with anyone who lingered at this more casual edition of the blessing of the log. 

The opener will also honor Black Excellence Night with a commemorative scarf, a pre-match performance by Sebe Kan African Drummers & Dance Troupe, DJ Aspen, and half-time performances by the SEI Dance Team. The Black National Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” will precede the singing of the Star-Spangled Banner, and as the pitch clears, the captains finish flipping the coin; the 2026 MLS season will then get underway. If you can’t be there, you can catch it for one more year on an Apple TV subscription at no extra cost.