Paul Allen
Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen is honored by the team at CenturyLink Field in December 2017, 20 years after he kept the NFL franchise from leaving. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota)

Paul Allen has been credited with keeping the Seattle Seahawks from leaving the city, and now the late owner and Microsoft co-founder will be honored with a place in the team’s “Ring of Honor.”

The Seahawks announced Monday that Allen, who died last year at the age of 65, will become the 12th member of the distinguished group during a ceremony before Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams.

“The Seahawks and the 12s are part of what makes Seattle such an exciting city and fantastic community, and the community and the fans were at the forefront of Paul’s mind when he purchased the Seahawks,” his sister and Seahawks Chair Jody Allen said in a news release. “This Ring of Honor induction celebrates Paul’s legacy and the impact he made on not only the Seahawks organization, but the entire Pacific Northwest. It is fitting that he is the 12th member of the Ring of Honor. He was the proudest 12 of all.”

Jody Allen took over the team after her brother passed away last October due to complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Paul Allen purchased the franchise — which was on the brink of moving to Southern California — on June 30, 1997, after a public-private partnership was crafted and approved by Washington state voters to build CenturtyLink Field, a new stadium for the then 21-year-old franchise.

The team played in three Super Bowls during Allen’s ownership, and won its first NFL championship in Super Bowl XLVIII during the 2013 season.

The Seahawks honored late owner Paul Allen with a tribute video and special 12th Man flag raising before a game against Los Angeles in November 2018. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota)

The Ring of Honor currently includes Seahawks greats Steve Largent, Jim Zorn, Dave Brown, Pete Gross, Curt Warner, Jacob Green, Kenny Easley, Dave Krieg, Chuck Knox, Cortez Kennedy and Walter Jones.

“It’s the most obvious, fitting honor there could be,” Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said. “He was a great Seahawk and a great Pacific Northwesterner. He has been everything, and he continues to factor into the community, and he will forever. We all should appreciate and hold gratitude for all of the things he stood for. I’m most grateful for being a part of his world.”

According to the Seahawks, Thursday’s ceremony will begin at 4:50 p.m. and the tribute will include the unveiling of Allen’s name on the suite level fascia inside the stadium. Jody Allen will raise the 12 Flag above the south end of the stadium.

At halftime, the Mercer Island Marching Band will present a Paul Allen Tribute. Allen was a longtime Mercer Island resident and the band will play “a special medley including one of Allen’s favorite Jimi Hendrix tunes and a song from his band, Paul Allen and the Underthinkers,” the team said.

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