Quarantifo

Due to the Center of Disease Control and Protection guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic, sports leagues were cancelled or postponed in March and resumed in July without the benefit of arenas filled with supporters.

United Women’s Soccer (UWS) created a Stadium Showcase Tournament at Keyworth Stadium to provide a competition for Detroit City FC, Midwest United FC, Livonia City FC, and Lansing United under the CDC guidelines. And the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) created an Independent Cup tournament regionally for independent teams prior to their Fall 2020 season, also following CDC guidelines.

So when the Detroit City FC Women’s Team played their first match at Keyworth Stadium on July 24, 2020, no supporters attended. When the Detroit City FC Men’s Team took to the pitch on July 31, 2020 for their first professional match at Keyworth Stadium, no supporters attended.

Though the Northern Guard Supporters (NGS) had to remain outside the stadium for the Women’s inaugural home match and the Men’s first match at Keyworth as a third-tier professional team, their presence would be felt.

For the Women’s match on July 24, 2020, NGS created a massive tifo which covered the central area of the Supporters Section.

And they added some new ones along the fence line.

Then, as the Detroit City FC/Lansing United match began, NGS unfurled a tifo along south wall, and set off smoke.

Lots of smoke.

One Northern Guard Supporter was allowed entry in the Supporters Section. COVID-19 could not spread to or from this supporter. Smokey the Bot, a smoke-deploying robot stood guard in the section and set off smoke to celebrate City’s goals.

For the Men’s match on July 31, 2020, another large tifo greeted the team, blanketing the center of the Supporters Section.

Instead of a tifo drop on the south wall, a quilt of several tifos, made by individual Northern Guard Supporters, stretched the wall, in what they called Quarantifo.