USMNT to wear Pride-themed jerseys to honor Pulse shooting victims

The US Men's National Soccer team will honor the 49 victims of the 2016 Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando with a special pride-themed jersey for Wednesday's friendly with Brazil. The tragedy remains one of the deadliest anti-gay hate crimes in US history.

'Orlando is a city that strives to be inclusive and welcoming to all people,' mayor Buddy Dyer said in a statement ahead of the eighth anniversary of the massacre. 'US Soccer's commitment to celebrating and supporting the + community aligns perfectly with our collective values. We appreciate the national team's continued engagement with the Orlando community and look forward to welcoming fans to what promises to be an unforgettable event.'

On June 12, 2016, Omar Mateen opened fire in the gay nightclub, killing 49 and wounding another 53 people. At the time, it was the worst in modern US history. Tragically, that number was surpassed the following year when 58 people were killed and more than 850 were injured among a crowd of 22,000 at a country music festival in .