MLS Champions!!!

Photo by Lindsey Wasson

Sounders Win Supporters' Shield!

The Sounders win the Shield! The Sounders win the Shield! The Sounders gained their second trophy of 2014 as they defeated the LA Galaxy 2-0 to win the Supporters' Shield. The Sounders finished the regular season with a record of 20-10-4. They became the first team in the post-shootout history of MLS to finish the regular season with 20 victories. If the Sounders win MLS Cup, they will become the first team to win the U.S. Open Cup, the Supporters' Shield, and MLS Cup in the same season.

The match was scoreless until the 85th minute. The Sounders took a quick free kick, Obafemi Martins made a nifty pass, and Marco Pappa scored to make it 1-0 Sounders. Then in the game's final minute, Pappa pressured Galaxy goalkeeper Jaime Pinedo, stole the ball, and scored a second goal. Pappa only came into the game in the 73rd minute as a substitute for Brad Evans. The Sounders attempted 4 shots in the game, and all of them were attempted by Pappa.


Attendance for the game was 57,673 on a drizzly Seattle day. The playoffs will begin next weekend against an opponent to be determined. Go Sounders!

Also of interest for Sounders and soccer fans, Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated wrote an interesting proposal regarding the structure of the MLS playoffs. You can read it here.

Sounders Win the U.S. Open Cup!

Obafemi Martins (Michael Perez/AP)

It was a bruising match from start to finish, but the Sounders prevailed, defeating the Philadelphia Union 3-1 in overtime in the 101st U.S. Open Cup. Philadelphia took the lead in the 38th minute on a header by Maurice Edu. The Sounders and Chad Barrett answered with a goal early in the second half, tying the score 1-1. Both sides would have chances to win in regulation, but keepers Zac MacMath and Stefan Frei both made key saves to keep the score deadlocked. Near the end of regulation, the Sounders were just barely hanging on. Zach Scott and Brad Evans both suffered apparent knee injuries, but both soldiered on. The Sounders had already used two substitutions and had only one left. They literally limped in to overtime.

Sigi Schmid would elect to replace Evans with Gonzalo Pineda early in the first overtime period. In the 101st minute, Clint Dempsey would receive a pretty pass from Obafemi Martins and put the Sounders ahead 2-1. In the second overtime period, with Philly pushing all its players forward in an attempt to score the equalizer, Martins would receive a clearance, beat a defender and the goalkeeper, and score Seattle's third goal, putting them safely ahead 3-1.

(Michael Perez/AP)

The entire 120 minutes was a battle. In addition to the injuries to Evans and Scott, Ozzie Alonso and DeAndre Yedlin also got banged up. The end result, however, was a trophy for the Sounders, their fourth U.S. Open Cup championship in six years. The celebration at the end of the game was vigorous, to say the least.

The Sounders will now battle the rest of the season for the Supporter's Shield and MLS Cup. The tandem of Martins and Dempsey appears very to be very formidable at this time. Hopefully, the Sounders will be able to re-charge for the stretch run after this incredibly rewarding--but draining--run through the U.S. Open Cup.

It was not easy to watch this particular match, or even listen to it on the radio. There was no local television or radio broadcast. SoundersFC.com had an audio stream. A small outlet called GolTV had television rights. However, GolTV is not available through Comcast (though it is carried by DirectTV). A brand-new startup called KlowdTV.com acquired streaming rights days before the Final. The charge to stream the match: $8.48. As this was the only option available to me, I signed up. I tested the service the day before the match; it seemed to work great. When I got home from work tonight, after being excited all day at the prospect of watching the match, I found that the stream was a disaster. It was glitchy and froze constantly. I stopped watching and listened instead to the Sounders audio. In the second half, however, I decided to try switching from GolTV's English feed to the Spanish feed. Voila! A mostly clear picture with only occasional glitches. I was happy. I got to see the go-ahead goals live. The Sounders audio wasn't synced to the video, but oh well. It was a historic night, and I was happy I didn't miss it completely.

The U.S. Open Cup tournament is an exciting tournament. The same win-or-go-home atmosphere that makes March Madness so compelling is present here. However, the tournament is lagging behind pretty much every other sporting event in this country. We live in an age when almost every single college basketball and college football game is televised. For all intents and purposes there was no television coverage of the U.S. Open Cup whatsoever. It's a shame. It's a fun tournament. But it needs media coverage to grow. Tonight's game was a classic. It was a showcase for soccer in this country. For those who found a way to watch, it was a game that will long be remembered.

How to Watch the U.S. Open Cup Final

Kasey Keller hoists the U.S. Open Cup in 2010
(AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

The Sounders will compete for their fourth U.S. Open Cup title in six years on Tuesday, September 16, at 4:30 p.m. vs. the Philadelphia Union. While it will be a bit tricky to watch the game live, it is possible.

The game will be broadcast on a channel called GolTV. Comcast and most cable systems do not carry GolTV. It is available on DirectTV, however. It is not available for free streaming. However, GolTV is now carried by KlowdTV.com, a pay streaming site. Subscribing to GolTV to watch the Open Cup will cost you $8.48 for the month: $4.99 for the base service and $3.49 for the sports package which includes GolTV itself. Kind of steep to watch a single game, but so it goes. As a side note GolTV also carries Bundesliga games, so you could watch those for the month as well.

Hopefully, next year the U.S. Open Cup will be more widely accessible. The Bundesliga will be on FOX next year. If the U.S. Open Cup is to grow in stature as a competition, people have to be able to watch it.

An audio stream of the match will be available on soundersfc.com.

GO SOUNDERS! Let's win this U.S. Open Cup!

Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com provides more information about all of this here.

DeAndre Yedlin, Jordan Morris, and the Promising Future of Seattle Sounders FC

DeAndre Yedlin playing for Sounders U-23's vs. Kitsap Pumas in 2012
(photo by Chris Coulter, SoundersPhotos.com)

There was a great story on DeAndre Yedlin in The Seattle Times today. DeAndre grew up just north of Seattle, and was raised by his grandparents. He has never met his dad, who is now incarcerated for life. His mom also spent time in jail when he was young; she now has her life back on track, however, and teaches at a community college. DeAndre grew up playing soccer, and dreamed of playing in Europe. He played for O'Dea High School in Seattle and joined the Sounders Youth Academy. He spent two years at Akron University, before joining the Sounders as a Home Grown Player. He played for the United States in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. He will play next year for Tottenham Hotspur, located in London. DeAndre Yedlin is 21 years old.

After the World Cup, DeAndre had offers from many of the top clubs in Europe. However, he was adamant that he wouldn't leave the Sounders until after the current season. The Sounders currently lead the race in MLS for the Supporter's Shield. They play for the U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday. The ultimate goal is MLS Cup. As a Sounders fan, I will miss DeAndre not wearing the Rave Green. However, it has always been his dream to play in Europe. Next year I'll probably be waking up early on Saturday mornings to watch DeAndre play right back for Tottenham Hotspur in England's Premier League.

Jordan Morris playing for Sounders U-23's
vs. Portalnd Timbers U-23's in 2014
(Photo by Chris Coulter, SoundersPhotos.com)

The United States Men's National Team recently played a friendly in the Czech Republic. Only one college player was called up to the match. He was a Stanford University sophomore named Jordan Morris. Morris has been the most promising player in the Sounders Academy since DeAndre Yedlin. He didn't play versus the Czech Republic, but he has certainly gained the attention of Jurgen Klinsmann and the U.S. coaches. After Stanford's season, Jordan will have a choice. He can join the Sounders as a Home Grown Player. He will also most likely receive offers from Europe. Jordan is a forward, which means if he signs with the Sounders he would play up top with Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins.

Jordan grew up on Mercer Island. He would actually join the Sounders as their fourth Home Grown Player. This year the team also signed Aaron Kovar, from Seattle, and Sean Okoli, from Federal Way. Kovar and Okoli have mostly been bench players this year, and have gotten little playing time. Next year there is a very good chance that Kovar and Okoli, and other Sounders prospects, will play for a Sounders USL Pro team, a minor league team similar to baseball's Tacoma Rainiers. The USL team would play at Starfire. It's hard to believe the Sounders have only existed as a Major League Soccer franchise for six years. It's a good time to be a Sounder.

• Geoff Baker's profile in The Seattle Times on DeAndre Yedlin here. Warning for younger readers: DeAndre's dad committed some horrible crimes, and they are named in the piece.
• Dave Clark at Sounder at Heart muses on Jordan Morris here and here.
• Liviu Bird of Sports Illustrated reports on Seattle's potential USL Pro team here.

The Business of MLS

CenturyLink Field (goalWA.net photo)

 I'm very interested in the business-side of MLS, and I've recently read a couple of interesting articles that I wanted to pass along.  The first is a report in Forbes Magazine about the estimated values of MLS clubs and their 2012 revenues.  The Sounders are the most valuable club in MLS, as well as the most profitable.  L.A. Galaxy ranks #2 and Portland Timbers rank #3.  Soccer is thriving on the West Coast.

On the flipside is an article published on BuzzFeed Sports about players making the minimum salary in MLS.  The minimum salary in MLS is only about $35,000.  This is a paltry sum for a professional athlete in the U.S. or Canada.  MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL have minimum salaries around $500,000.  So while MLS is growing, it's not quite a Major League sport yet.  Or rather, while MLS is a Major League sport in Seattle, Portland, and Los Angeles, it is not quite a Major League sport in the rest of North America.

Kofi Opare of the Los Angeles Galaxy (Photograph by Emily Berl for BuzzFeed)

Sounders Day!

Today was Sounders Day at NOVA!  Everyone wore rave green and blue shirts, hats, scarves, gloves, jackets, etc.  Tonight we play Portland Timbers at 8:00 p.m.  The winner advances to the Western Conference Championship.  GO SOUNDERS!

SOUNDERS DAY Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is Sounders Day.  Wear your Sounders gear.  We will have a group photo Thursday at the beginning of Break outside Room 4.  Sounders vs. Portland 8:00 p.m. on NBCSN.

GO SOUNDERS!!!

Sounders Day!

Today was Sounders Day at NOVA.  Teachers and Students wore Sounders jerseys, shirts, and scarves in anticipation of tonight's match.  It was an exciting match.  The Sounders played much more aggessively than Real Salt Lake, but could not quite get the ball to find the back of the net.  The play of the goalkeepers--Michael Gspurning for your Seattle Sounders and Nick Rimando for Real Salt Lake--was outstanding.  The match ended in a 0-0 draw.  Leg 2 of the playoff will take place next Thursday at 6:30 in Salt Lake.  Go Sounders!

The two most popular things in the sixth grade: Sounders FC and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu is a bubblegum pop superstar from Japan.  She sings a lot about candy.  Back when I was growing up, music videos were played on MTV.  Music videos made Michael Jackson, Madonna, The Beastie Boys, Nirvana, Green Day, and countless others into stars.  Bands needed MTV to give them exposure.  Today a kid can go online and find video of musicians from anywhere in the world.  And I have to say, the Japanese take on pop music is very interesting.  It's very bouncy, for one thing.  I can see why the kids like it.

Sounders FC defeated FC Dallas 2-0 tonight.  We are now 7-1-1 on the season.  Fredy Montero came on for Mauro Rosales in the second half and scored two goals.  Brilliant game from him.  Also, the Sounders managed to pick up three points on the road while resting Ozzie Alonso for the entire game.  That's huge.  Granted, FC Dallas were missing quite a few of their key players.  But a win is a win, and we now have 5 in a row.  We're on a roll.

NOVA Sounders Alliance at Saturday's game vs. Philadelphia

(with Arvean's brother and Sounders broadcaster Ross Fletcher!)

Sounders Women Off To Great Start

Sydney Leroux scored three goals vs. Seattle University
(photo by Jane Gershovich, SoundersWomen.com)

Jayda Evans wrote a terrific article in The Seattle Times about Seattle Sounders Women's second match last night.  You should read it.  This was an exhibition match, and the support was amazing.  Sounders Women defeated Seattle University 5-0.  Women's soccer has found a home in Seattle.  The first regular season home match will be Thursday, May 31, vs. Colorado Rush at Starfire.  Go here for a complete schedule.  Go Sounders Women!

Sounders U-23 vs. Timbers U-23 at Tumwater High School

The match will be Saturday, June 2, at 6 pm.  Sounders U-23 play in the Premier Develoment League (PDL), which is the top amateur soccer league in the U.S.  Brad Evans, Brian Ching, Herculez Gomes, and Darlington Nagbe are just a few of the players who graduated from the PDL to play in MLS.  The match will be extra fun as it comes against the Timbers.  Yes, the rivalry exists at the PDL level as well.  Get there early, as fans from the Rose City will be making the trek northward.  Tickets are $10.  More info here.  Go Sounders U-23!

Sounders Defeat Santos Laguna 2-1

NOVA Sounders Alliance

Seattle Sounders FC beat Santos Laguna 2-1 in the first leg of a home-and-home aggregate series.  The Sounders put pressure on the Santos defense all game.  David Estrada scored the game's first goal in the 12th minute off a pass delivered perfectly by Fredy Montero.  Santos' Herculez Gomez (great name!) scored an equalizer with a nifty goal in the 61st minute.  Just two minutes later, however, Brad Evans put the Sounders up for good, scoring on a header off a Mauro Rosales free kick.  The Sounders stayed aggressive the entire game, remarkable as it was their first game of the season.  Santos Laguna is in the middle of their Mexican League season.  The second leg of the series will be next Wednesday, March 14, from Torreon, Mexico.  The game starts at 5:00 p.m. PST and airs on Fox Soccer Channel and 97.3 FM.  Go Sounders!

Sounders FC Women Sign Alex Morgan

Photo credit:  Daniel Roland, AFP Photo

Alex Morgan is a star on the U.S. Women's National Team.  In the 2011 Women's World Cup Final versus Japan, she scored the go-ahead goal in extra time (the U.S. lost the match on penalties).  She has scored 16 goals in 32 appearances for the USWNT.  She is 22 years old.  Oh, and she is the girfriend of current Sounder Servando Carrasco.

Sounders FC Women are going to be really awesome next year.  Hope Solo, Sydnex Leroux, and Alex Morgan will only play in about half the games, however, as they will be busy in the summer with the USWNT.  Still, the Sounders FC Women will be fun to watch.  Hopefully, their success will lead to a Women's Major League, with franchises in Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver.  If we do get a Women's Major League franchise, though, I hope it is given its own idetitiy separate from the Sounders.  Otherwise it will feel the team is always in the shadow of the men.  At this point in time, however, in the absense of a North American Women's Major League, joining forces with the Sounders is the smartest thing a Puget Sound-area professional women's team could do.  I'm proud to be a fan of both the Men's and Women's Sounders FC clubs.

Seattle Sounders FC Women actually release their schedule tomorrow, which is also the first day to purchase tickets for their upcoming season.  Home games will be played at Starfire.  Visit the Sounders FC Women's website here.

Sounders Trade Fucito and Neagle for Eddie Johnson

Eddie Johnson
(Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)

After Steve Zakuani was injured at Colorado last year, the Sounders have lacked a goal-scoring forward to pair with Fredy Montero.  The Sounders attempted to remedy that situation yesterday by trading Mike Fucito and Lamar Neagle to Montreal for Eddie Johnson.  Montreal had only recently drafted Johnson with the first pick in the Allocation Draft.  Fucito and Neagle are young players who represent potential.  They will fit in well on an expansion club building for the future.  Johnson will turn 28 next month.  He is a former MLS star and starter on U.S. Men's National Team.  The last few seasons have not gone well for him, however.  He signed with Fulham of the EPL in 2008 but never really got a chance to play there.  He then bounced around England's lower divisions and Greece.  Last year was a lost year.  He thought he was going to sign with Puebla in the Mexican League, but at the last minute the Mexican club withdrew the contract.  Thus, Johnson is a bit of a mystery player.  If he can regain his past form, he will make the Sounders stronger.  If he can't regain that form, the Sounders could rue letting Fucito and Neagle go.

I like the deal for the Sounders.  It's a bit of a risk.  Fucito and Neagle were fan favorites and both have potential.  However, the Sounders need a player to put them over the top.  They have hopes of winning both CONCACAF Champions League and the MLS Cup.  Johnson gives them a chance to beat top clubs like Santos Laguna and the L.A. Galaxy.  There's risk, sure.  But I like the move and applaud the Sounders for not standing pat.

Sounders Women FC sign Hope Solo and Sydney Leroux

This is very cool news.  Hope Solo is arguably the best female keeper in the world and is a star on the U.S. Women's National Team.  She is from Richland, Washington, and played at the University of Washington (Go Dawgs!).  Sydney Leroux is a bright, young star on the USWNT.  She is originally from Surrey, British Columbia, but because she has a parent with American citizenship she is eligible for the U.S. team (which has not made her popular in Canada).  In her second game with the USWNT she scored 5 goals against Guatemala (the U.S. won 13-0).

Seattle Sounders Women FC is brand-new.  Last year the club was affiliated with a team called the Tacoma Tide.  They play in a league called the W-League, which has teams across the U.S. and Canada.  The league is similar to the league the Seattle Sounders played in before they entered MLS.  The official major league of women's soccer is called the WPS.  However, the WPS is on hiatus in 2012 due to poor management.  In 2011 the league only had 6 teams, and all were on the east coast.  The future of the WPS is unknown.

The Sounders Women's season will begin in May.  The team will play about 14 games, plus exhibitions.  I assume they will play st Starfire in Tukwila.  Obviously Solo and Leroux aren't joining the W-League because of the money.  It's an opportunity for them to play and grow the sport of professional women's soccer.  We all know the Northwest has the best soccer fans in the country.  I want to encourage people to go out this summer and see the Sounders Women play.  You'll be seeing world-class athletes.  You'll be proving that Seattle, at least, is ready to support a major league women's soccer team.  And of course you'll be proving that Sounders fans are the best, most loyal fans in the sport of soccer.

Visit the Sounders Women FC website here.  Check back for updates as the team gets ready for its upcoming season.

Tough Day: Sounders Lose Riley, Wahl, and Arlo White

James Riley: Wikimedia Commons

Fullback James Riley was selected by the Montreal Impact in the 2011 Expansion Draft.  The Sounders also traded another fullback, Tyson Wahl, to the Impact for allocation money.  Finally, the Sounders play-by-play announcer, Arlo White, has been hired by NBC to be their main voice for national MLS broadcasts.

James Riley has been the Sounders' starting right fullback for all three of their years of existence.  Tyson Wahl was also a starter for most of last year.  Allocation money, which the Sounders received for Wahl, can be used by the club to exceed the salary cap in 2012.  The Sounders will need it, as they will need to replace two defensive fullbacks, as well as their goalkeeper.  The Sounders do have room on their roster for one more Designated Player.  Each MLS team can have up to three DP's, which are players whose salries are not restricted by the salary cap.  The Sounders' current DP's are Fredy Montero and Mauro Rosales.

The Sounders will also need to find a new play-by-play announcer.  Arlo White, originally from Britain, served two seasons as the Sounders' announcer.  While it's a huge loss for fans of the Sounders, choosing White to be their main play-by-play announcer was a smart move by NBC.  White has a passion for the game, and has been a huge supporter of the Sounders and MLS.  He will be hard to replace.

Joshua Mayers reports on the moves in his Seattle Times blog here.

The blog Sounder At Heart comments on the player moves here and the loss of White here.

Sounders defeat Monterrey 1-0

Alvaro Fernandez splits two Monterrey defenders (courtesy MLS).

The Sounders are currently playing in the CONCACAF Champions League tournament which pits teams from the U.S., Canada, Central America, and the Caribbean against one another.  The Sounders are currently in the group stage with Monterrey and teams from Guatemala and Costa Rica.  The Sounders won their first game against Communicaciones from Guatemala.  And tonight they won at Monterrey, only the second MLS team to win a CONCACAF match in Mexico.  Monterrey won the entire tournament last year; they're a good team (usually).

Seattle scored its lone goal in the first half on a brilliant shot by Alvaro Fernandez.  The Sounders controlled the game in the first half.  Monterrey very much looked out of sync.  The second half was a different story, however.  Monterrey applied constant pressure on the Sounders' goal.  Somehow shots were deflected, missed, or stopped by keeper Terry Boss.  Boss played an excellent game, with one exception.  On a friendly pass back to him, Boss misplayed the ball, and a Monterrey player won control with an open goal in front of him.  Somehow, though, he didn't have the right angle, so he had to pass, and the subsequent shot by the Monterrey player was offline.  It was a lucky break for the Sounders for sure.

Because the Sounders also have league matches and U.S. Open Cup matches, the team will play 6 games in 18 days.  Several key players, including Kasey Keller, Fredy Montero, and Mauro Rosales, did not play in the game.  It was an impressive showing by the Sounders.  They were lucky, for sure, but they'll take it.