Held on the eve of opening night of K+S Portland 2012, presented by KICKTV, K+S Word will present unique readings of soccer-themed stories by national and local writers. K+S Word will take place at Bazi Bierbrasserie.

“Our goal at Kicking + Screening is to facilitate the telling of great soccer stories, no matter the medium,” said Rachel Markus, Kicking + Screening co-founder. “We couldn’t think of a better way to kick off K+S’s first festival in Portland than with K+S Word.”

Based on the German tradition of Torwort, K+S Word will play off the theme of “Rivals/Derby Day” in honor of the Portland-Seattle match on September 15. Featured readers include NBC Sports’ Noah Davis, film critic Shawn Levy, author Zach Dundas, Bazi Bierbrasserie owner Hilda Stevens, and University of Portland professor Andrew Guest.

5 Minutes to Kickoff hosts Bob “Roberto” Kellett and Steven “Nevets” Lenhart will emcee K+S Word.

“In my life I have made friends and found common enemies because of a simple game called football,” Lenhart says. “I've huddled in damp basements with friends and drank in shady back rooms of pubs with people I would never see again because of this game called football. Anyone who has been a part of these tribes has a personal story to tell. K+S Word is an opportunity to tell these tales. We could not be more excited to partner with Kicking + Screening to bring it to Portland.”

K+S Word is free to the public (21 and over). Attendees are encouraged to make a $5.00 donation to Operation Pitch Invasion or bring a pair of new or slightly used men’s, women’s, or kids soccer cleats. There will also be a raffle benefiting OPI.

Doors will open at 7:30 and the first guest will take the spotlight at 8 pm. The reading will last one hour.