Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional men's soccer club based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The Sounders compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The club was established on November 13, 2007, and began play in 2009 as an MLS expansion team. The Sounders are a phoenix club, replacing the second-division franchise that played in the American Professional Soccer League (APSL), A-League, and USL First Division (USL-1) from 1994 to 2008, and carrying the same name as the original Sounders franchise that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1974 to 1983.
"Seattle Sounders" redirects here. For other similarly named teams, see Seattle Sounders (disambiguation).Nickname(s)
The Sounders, The Rave Green
November 13, 2007[note 1]
37,722[note 2]
Western Conference: 2nd
Overall: 7th
Playoffs: Conference Semifinals
The club's majority owner is Adrian Hanauer, and its minority owners are the estate of Paul Allen, Drew Carey, and 14 families from the Seattle area. Former USL-1 Sounders coach and assistant coach Brian Schmetzer took over as head coach in July 2016 after the departure of Sigi Schmid. The Sounders play their home league matches at Lumen Field, with a reduced capacity of 37,722 seats for most matches. Along with several organized groups, a 53-member marching band called "Sound Wave" supports the club at each home match. Seattle has longstanding rivalries with fellow Pacific Northwest clubs Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps FC, with whom it competes for the Cascadia Cup.
The Sounders played their inaugural match on March 19, 2009, winning 3–0 over the New York Red Bulls. Seattle has been among the league's most successful teams, winning the U.S. Open Cup four times, the Supporters' Shield in 2014, and the MLS Cup in 2016 and 2019. From its MLS inception until 2022, the team qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs—formerly the longest record in league history—and competed in the CONCACAF Champions League seven times, becoming the first MLS team to win the modern version of the competition in 2022. The Sounders were the first MLS team to participate in the FIFA Club World Cup.
The team set a new MLS record for average attendance in each of its first five seasons. The Sounders are ranked as one of the most valuable franchises in North America. Its players have included former US international Clint Dempsey, top goal scorer Fredy Montero, as well as long-time captain Osvaldo Alonso, and all-time assist leader Nicolás Lodeiro. The Sounders also operate a players' academy and the lower-division Tacoma Defiance, which have produced homegrown players, including forward Jordan Morris and defender DeAndre Yedlin.
Rivalries[edit]
The Seattle–Portland and Seattle–Vancouver rivalries formed among the respective NASL teams in the mid-1970s and carried on through to the USL and MLS. In 2004, the fan-based Cascadia Cup was created to formalize the competition between the Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver USL teams.[255] The trophy is exchanged by the three teams' supporters groups and is based on the results of certain regular season matches.[256] The Cascadia Cup was contested without Seattle for two seasons after the Sounders entered MLS in 2009, but Portland and Vancouver were awarded expansion teams that began play in 2011.[257][258]
The fan-created Heritage Cup competition with the San Jose Earthquakes began in the 2009 MLS season. MLS teams that carry on the names of their NASL predecessors are eligible to compete, but the Timbers and Whitecaps declined to participate.[259] The winner is determined by league results over the final two matches in regular season play, followed by aggregate score if teams are tied.[260][261] The rivalry cup's trophy was commissioned by the Soccer Silicon Valley Community Foundation and designed by a San Jose Earthquakes fan in collaboration with Sounders supporters.[260]
Although there is no official rivalry between the Sounders and Los Angeles Galaxy, the two teams have met several times in the MLS Cup Playoffs.[262] The relationship between former head coaches Bruce Arena and Sigi Schmid, the two most successful in league history, also played a factor in the clubs' rivalry.[263] Schmid later served as the Galaxy's head coach from 2017 to 2018, shortly after his departure from the Sounders.[264]
Broadcasting[edit]
Beginning with the 2023 season, all MLS matches will be streamed worldwide by Apple on MLS Season Pass with most matches behind a paywall and some available for free. The league-wide deal replaces existing television and streaming contracts, including local partnerships for the Sounders and national broadcasts on linear and cable television.[314]
From 2014 to 2022, television rights in English for regionally-broadcast matches were held by Fox owned-and-operated station KCPQ and sister station KZJO within the Seattle market. English television broadcasts were called by Keith Costigan alongside former Sounders goalkeeper Kasey Keller for color commentary and former Sounders midfielder Steve Zakuani for analysis.[315] Previously, matches aired on KING-TV and KONG from 2009 to 2013.[316] Matches were televised in Spanish on Univision station KUNS, anchored by Jaime Mendez with analysts Diego Arrioja and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado.[317][318] In 2018, the team renewed its agreements with KCPQ and KZJO; in addition, the team announced a new streaming deal with YouTube TV for exclusive rights to stream the team's matches within Washington state. This replaced a previous syndication deal with Root Sports Northwest.[319] In 2020, the team switched its streaming rights to Amazon Prime Video.[320]
On radio, Sounders matches are called in English on 950 KJR AM by Danny Jackson with analysis from Brad Evans.[321] Prior to the 2023 season, the commentary crew included Matt Johnson with analysis from Wade Webber, Steve Zakuani, and Pete Fewing. The station also airs a weekly show dedicated to the Sounders on Tuesdays.[318] KKMO (El Rey 1360 AM) broadcasts matches and a weekly show in Spanish with commentary from Mario Rodriguez, Carlos Tapia, and Felipe Maqueda.[318][322][323]
Former Seattle SuperSonics announcer Kevin Calabro and former U.S. soccer star Greg Vanney called the play-by-play for the local broadcasts during the Sounders' inaugural season in 2009.[324][325] For the 2010 and 2011 seasons, they were replaced by former BBC cricket and general sport commentator Arlo White, who called English-language broadcasts without a partner.[326] In 2012, White was hired by NBC Sports Network to be the voice of their soccer coverage. That led to BBC commentator Ross Fletcher becoming the club's television and radio play-by-play commentator beginning with the 2012 season, working alongside Kasey Keller as the color commentator.[327] Fletcher left the club at the end of the 2015 season and was replaced by Keith Costigan.[328][329]
Individual Club Awards
