The Sounders hired head coach Sigi Schmid, who had won the MLS Cup with the Columbus Crew in 2008, and retained Hanauer as general manager. The club made their home debut on March 19, 2009, at Qwest Field against MLS Cup runners-up New York Red Bulls and won 3–0. During their inaugural season, the Sounders set MLS records for attendance, averaging 30,943 per match; the highest attendance of 66,848—a Washington state record for soccer—was recorded on August 5 during a friendly against FC Barcelona.
Seattle won the U.S. Open Cup, defeating D.C. United 2–1 in the final in Washington, D.C. The club finished third in the Western Conference and became the first MLS expansion team to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs since 1998. In the first round of the playoffs, they were defeated in the Conference Semifinals by the Houston Dynamo. Colombian forward Fredy Montero scored 12 goals and was the team's top goalscorer; four Sounders players were also named to the All-Star Game roster.
Background
In a press conference on November 13, 2007, MLS awarded an expansion franchise to an ownership group based in Seattle.[3] In 2008, Sounders FC developed the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila and the USL team played most of the 2008 season at the updated facility. At the time, the USL team's management thought that practicing and playing at Starfire could provide more continuity and a smoother transition for those hoping to play for the new MLS franchise.[4]
In late 2008, Seattle Sounders FC interviewed several head coach candidates, including Columbus Crew manager Sigi Schmid, New England assistant Paul Mariner, and Kansas City technical director Peter Vermes.[5] The club offered a contract to Schmid, who had led the Crew to an MLS Cup title that season, but the ownership of the Columbus Crew filed a tampering complaint with the MLS that put the offer on hold. The Crew's ownership complained that Schmid had communicated with Sounders FC during the 2008 season, despite being denied permission to do so, and that he shared confidential information with Sounders FC after leaving the Crew.[6] The MLS ruled that no tampering occurred, but ordered Sounders FC to financially compensate the Crew before signing Schmid.[7] Sounders FC officially introduced Schmid as their first coach on December 16.[8] Former USL Sounders player and head coach Brian Schmetzer was retained as the top assistant coach, and Tom Dutra was selected as goalkeeper coach.[9][10] Retired Major League Soccer veteran defender Ezra Hendrickson joined the Sounders as an assistant coach in January, 2009.[11] Former MLS player and Everett, Washington, native Chris Henderson was named technical director on January 24, 2008.[12] Joining Henderson in the front office is longtime Seattle Seahawks VP Gary Wright as the senior vice president of business operations.[13] Drew Carey was named the chairman of the Membership Association.[14]
Signings and drafts
Swedish midfielder Freddie Ljungberg was signed as Sounders FC's first Designated Player.
Seattle Sounders FC was given first negotiation rights to any player that was not drafted in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft and joined the USL Sounders for the 2008 season. The team was also allowed to promote as many players from the 2008 USL Sounders squad as they'd chose, as long as the player's rights were not controlled by another team.[15] Seattle Sounders FC officially announced the 2007 USL First Division MVP and former USL Sounder Sébastien Le Toux as its first signing on May 7, 2008.[16] On August 14, 2008, the Sounders announced in a press conference their second signing for the 2009 season, former United States men's national team goalkeeper Kasey Keller, a Washington native.[17] On September 5, 2008, Seattle Sounders FC announced the third signee for the franchise to be Sanna Nyassi from Gambia. Nyassi, a 19-year-old midfielder, was a member of the Gambia U-20 national team at the 2007 FIFA Championship. Sanna's twin brother, Sainey Nyassi, was signed by the Revolution and is a regular starter in MLS this season.[18] On October 28, 2008, it was officially announced that the Sounders had signed Swedish midfielder Freddie Ljungberg using the Designated Player Rule. He signed a two-year contract reported to be worth $2.5million per season.[19]
The team lineup was adjusted throughout. Defender Jeff Parke was selected in the expansion draft, and reported for training camp after tryouts with teams in Belgium.[22][23] After training with the club for less than a week, Parke was unable to reach a contract agreement and left to train with the Vancouver Whitecaps of the USL.[24] FC traded a conditional draft pick to Houston in order to acquire defender Patrick Ianni, who had worked with Seattle's coach Schmid on the under-20 US national team.[25] Seattle also traded allocation money to Toronto FC in exchange for Tyrone Marshall in order to increase their depth on defense.[26] The Sounders also traded away midfielder Khano Smith, another expansion draft selection, to Red Bull New York for allocation money.[27]
Seattle's preseason was broken up into four stages. The team started in southern California, then moved back to the Northwest, then to Argentina, and then finished back in Seattle.[28] On February 9, 2009, in their first ever exhibition game, Sounders FC beat the Los Angeles Galaxy 3–1 on a practice field beside The Home Depot Center in Carson, California. Fredy Montero, Roger Levesque and Sanna Nyassi all scored goals in the win.[29] The next day, Sounders FC had their second training match in Ventura, California against Chinese club Shandong Luneng. They won 2–0 with both goals provided by midfielder Sanna Nyassi.[30] The following day, February 11, Sounders FC defeated the Ventura County Fusion of the USL Premier Development League 6–1 in their third preseason match in three days. Steve Zakuani and Nate Jaqua both scored two goals while Fredy Montero and Roger Levesque added one each.[31] On February 14, Sounders FC experienced their first loss of the preseason falling 3–2 to the San Jose Earthquakes while playing on the campus of California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California. Fredy Montero scored both of the Sounders FC goals in the loss.[32]
Following their activities in southern California, Sounders FC's returned to the Pacific Northwest to continue their training. On the evening of February 20, 2009, Sounders FC defeated the University of Portland Pilots 4–1. Nate Jaqua and Kasey Keller received a pregame ovation because they both had played collegiate soccer with the Pilots. Jaqua, along with trialist Jeff Clark, Fredy Montero, and Brad Evans scored goals for Seattle.[33] Two days later, the club played their first preseason match at Qwest Field as they defeated the Vancouver Whitecaps 4–0. Forwards Nate Jaqua and Fredy Montero scored two goals apiece.[34]
Next the club traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina where they continued training and played 4 more preseason matches. Seattle played the first of these matches against Estudiantes de La Plata on February 27, who they lost to 1–3.[35] On February 28, Sounders FC had their first tie of the preseason, 1–1 against CED, a team made up of local free agent players.[35][36] The club defeated Argentine second division opponents Tristán Suárez 5–0. Michael Fucito, Fredy Montero, Brad Evans and Zach Scott and Sebastian Le Toux all scored in the victory.[37] One day later, due to heavy rain, an exhibition match against Gimnasia La Plata was canceled.[38] In the club's final preseason match in Argentina, they faced reserve players of River Plate on March 5. They were held scoreless by River Plate with a final score of 1–0.[39]
After completing training exercises in Argentina, the club returned to Seattle for the remainder of the preseason. On March 9, Designated Player Freddie Ljungberg joined practice for the first time. Ljungberg had missed most of the preseason due to hip surgery he had undergone in December.[40] On March 12, Sounders FC played their final preseason match against the Colorado Rapids of the MLS at Qwest Field. Seattle lost 1–0 on a penalty kick by Colorado's Conor Casey.[41] Seattle finished preseason exhibition play with a record of 7 wins, 3 losses, and 1 tie.
March
Red Bull New York kick-off to start the 2009 MLS season against Seattle
Prior to the first game of the season, all 22,000 season ticket packages offered by the team were sold, giving the team the most season ticket holders in Major League Soccer.[42] On March 19, Seattle Sounders FC began their first regular season with a 3–0 win over the New York Red Bulls. Fredy Montero scored the first regular season goal in team history, finishing a movement from Sebastien Le Toux and Osvaldo Alonso in the 12th minute. Montero assisted Brad Evans' goal, and also scored the team's third goal. Kasey Keller, a veteran American goalkeeper who had played his entire career abroad, made his MLS debut at 39 years of age, and made two saves to register the team's first regular season shutout.[43]
On March 24 Seattle signed Kevin Forrest as a Senior Developmental player after he was released by Colorado.[44] On March 28 Sounders FC continued the success of their fast start with a second consecutive home shutout, defeating Real Salt Lake 2–0. Designated player Freddie Ljungberg made his first regular season appearance as a substitute in the 61st minute of play. Nate Jaqua scored in the 17th minute, and Fredy Montero scored his league leading third goal of the season in the 77th minute.[45][46]
March saw Montero winning Player of the Week honors for week 1 and Keller for week 2.[47][48] Montero won Goal of the Week for the first two games and was named the Player of the Month.[49]
April
After their first two victories at home, Sounders FC played their first away game in history against Toronto FC. The Sounders expected a challenging away environment but were victorious were able to win in another 2–0 shutout. Montero missed the match due to illness. Soon after, reports out of Seattle linked Montero to a sexual assault case with an unidentified woman. In a statement made by Sounders publicist, Montero asserted that the allegations stemmed from a disagreement in which he sought to end the relationship.[50] and a police inquiry resulted in no charges being filed.
After winning their first three games, Seattle Sounders FC suffered their first competitive loss at home against the Kansas City Wizards. Kasey Keller was sent off in the 29th minute for a handball outside the 18-yard box, as the Sounders fell 1–0 to the Wizards. The following week they lost at Chivas USA. Chris Eylander was scored on twice while covering the goal during Keller's suspension. The Sounders again failed to score.
The Sounders returned to their winning ways in a 2–0 home win against the San Jose Earthquakes.[51]
April 28 was the beginning of the team's Open Cup campaign. Schmid asserted that the competition was important and won the first of two qualifying rounds 4–1 against Real Salt Lake.[52] The Sounders have played home games at the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila. The facility is older and smaller than Qwest Field but the Sounders say the atmosphere is better for smaller cup matches.[53]
May
The following 5 weeks the Sounders managed to gain 5 points in the standings as they tied each game. First, a 1–1 tie at the Chicago Fire in which striker Fredy Montero was sent off in the 48th minute for an elbow to the face of Gonzalo Segares while both players went up for a ball in the air.[54] Then another 1–1 tie the next week at home against the Los Angeles Galaxy in which yet another red card was issued, to James Riley this time, in the 57th minute for a "phantom blow" to Mike Magee as the two got into a scrum.[55] Two more away ties followed, first against FC Dallas 1–1 and then another at Colorado, 2–2. Ljungberg missed three games during this period due to migraine headaches.[56] May 31, 2009 Sounders FC then returned home for their 5th consecutive tie in league play, this time 1–1 against the Columbus Crew in which Tyrone Marshal was ejected in the 92nd minute when he threw what the referee believed was a punch at Steven Lenhart in retaliation for an elbow. The Sounders accumulated another three yellow cards throughout the match.[57] Jaqua's goal received Goal of the Week honors.
On May 26, the Sounders qualified for the U.S. Open Cup by defeating the Colorado Rapids 1–0 at Starfire.
June
Seattle started June with a 1–0 loss at Chivas. Their penalty woes continued as Jhon Kennedy Hurtado accumulated his fifth yellow card and Nate Jaqua received two yellow cards resulting in them both being suspended for the next game. After the first 12 games of the season, Sounders FC were in 5th place overall and were tied for the league lead with 5 red card ejections and 6 disciplinary suspensions.
On June 13, in a rematch with San Jose, Sounders FC began a stretch where 4 of their next 5 games would be played in front of their home crowd at Qwest Field. The match was the first to be counted for the supporter sponsored Heritage Cup. Ljungberg and Montero both scored as the Sounders prevailed with a 2–1 victory.
On June 10 Lamar Neagle was signed as a Senior Developmental player on the official roster.[58]
On June 17, the Sounders blew a 3–1 lead to tie against D.C. United by a score of 3–3. The match was the sixth draw in eight regular season matches.[59] They drew again with a goal a piece at New York the following week.
In week 23, the Sounders defeated the Rapids who had been undefeated in the previous eight games. Jaqua set up the first goal by Montero. Jaqua then scored twice off of assists from Montero to end the game 3–0.[60] Jaqua's performance earned Goal of the Week and Player of the Week.
July
On July 1, Sounders FC traveled to Portland and eliminated the Timbers of the USL in the third round of the U.S. Open Cup. The game was played in front of an emotionally charged sold-out crowd.[61]Roger Levesque—a player Portland fans have had a particular dislike for – scored Seattle's first goal within the opening minute.[62] The following week, in a quarterfinal match, Sounders FC defeated visiting Kansas City on a penalty kick in the 89th minute by Sebastien Le Toux.[63]
It was announced in early July that the Sounders had signed left-footed Costa Rican defender Leonardo González to help at the left back position. The position had been a weak spot in Seattle's defense and filled by three separate players throughout the season.[64]
On July 11, the Sounders hosted the Houston Dynamo at Qwest Field. Brian Schmetzer filled in for Schmid who was at his son's wedding. Ianni scored his first goal of the season on bicycle kick that would earn him the MLS goal of the Week.[65] On the following Tuesday, the Sounders defeated the Dynamo at Strfire in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals. Houston led when Jaqua scored in the 89th minute. King scored a goal five minutes into extra time, thus sending the Sounders FC to the Open Cup finals against D.C. United.[66]
On July 18, 2009, the Seattle Sounders lost 0–2 in a friendly game with Chelsea. All sections of the stadium were open and sold out with a crowd of 65,289 in attendance.[67] The game was the first with the team for Chelsea's new manager, Carlo Ancelotti, and their new forward Daniel Sturridge.[citation needed]
Seattle finished July at home with a scoreless draw against Chicago. The Fire went a man down in the 54th minute but Ljungberg was ejected minutes later after protesting a yellow card for what the referee saw as diving in the penalty area.[68]
Keller and Ljungberg were named to the 2009 MLS All-Star Game by votes from fans. Ljungberg lead the MLS in total votes. Hurtado and Montero were later selected for the game held on July 29. Ljungberg missed the final shot in the loss which was decided by penalty kicks. He was later hospitalized due to another migraine.
On August 2, the Sounders were shut out 4–0 by last-place San Jose. Riley received a red card in the 39th minute while the Earthquakes scored three times in the second half.[69] Although Seattle had won the previous two matches, San Jose won the Heritage Cup by goal differential since the first game was not included in the supporter created competition.[70]
In the second international friendly of the season the Sounders lost against FC Barcelona 0–4 on August 5. The attendance set the state's record for a soccer match at 66,848. Thierry Henry compared the crowd to those in Europe and called the fans "amazing". Schmid expressed his hope that the fans were not disappointed by the loss and said "I hope they realize they got to watch a great team".[71]
On August 8, Sounders FC received their third straight shutout in regular season play in a 1–0 loss at Salt Lake. Schmidt called it "a silly loss".[72]
At Los Angeles on August 15, Seattle won for the first time on the road since April 4. Along with the Marshall, the match saw the Galaxy's Beckham and Lewis ejected in a two-goal shutout. Zakuani won Goal of the Week for his goal made after a run into the box and cross from Evans.[73]
Seattle lost at New England 1–0. Ljungberg did not travel with the team due to what would be diagnosed as hypoglycemia.[74]
When D.C. United won the US Soccer bidding process to host the tournament's final match,[75] Sounders FC general manager Adrian Hanauer expressed skepticism that D.C.'s bid to host the final had been better than the Seattle bid. He further noted that if Seattle had hosted the match, it likely would have sold out.[76] This prompted a pointed reply from D.C. United president Kevin Payne in which he argued that D.C. United had won the bidding process fairly and that he was offended by Hanauer's comments.[77] On the heels of this public disagreement, D.C. United launched a marketing campaign to sell more tickets to the match which included a web site heralding the club's history of titles as an original MLS franchise, WeWinTrophies.com; an open letter placed in local newspapers declaring that D.C. fans set the standard for support in the league and that Sounders FC and its fans did not think D.C. deserved to host; videos on the team's official blog from local celebrities urging fans to attend and ticket and concession specials for the game.[78] On September 2, 2009, the U.S. Open Cup final was played in Washington D.C.'s RFK Stadium. Sounders FC prevailed 2–1 becoming the second MLS expansion team in league history (Chicago being the first) to win the Cup in their inaugural MLS season.[79]
October
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Significance
Sounders FC recorded the highest average attendance during the 2009 season (regular and overall).
Last updated: October 24, 2009 Source: MLSNet.com (archived January 19, 2010) Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference
Round
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Stadium
H
H
A
H
A
H
A
H
A
A
H
A
H
H
A
H
H
H
A
A
A
H
A
H
A
H
A
A
A
H
Result
W
W
W
L
L
W
D
D
D
D
D
L
W
D
D
W
W
D
L
L
W
L
D
D
W
D
L
W
W
W
Conference
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
4
2
3
4
3
3
3
5
4
4
3
Overall
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
4
5
5
4
4
3
2
3
4
6
4
5
6
5
5
5
6
5
5
4
Updated to match(es) played on October 25, 2009. Source: MLS A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss
Squad
Statistics are from all MLS matches. Ages are as of March 19, 2009 (the date of their season opener). Source: MLSNet.com Sounders FC Stats. Last updated: October 4, 2009.
Karl Fredrik "Freddie" Ljungberg is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a winger. He is also a former manager, and was most recently an assistant coach, and interim head coach of Arsenal.
Bradley Ray Evans is an American retired professional soccer player who played as a midfielder. He is now a color commentator for radio broadcasts of Seattle Sounders FC matches.
Fredy Henkyer Montero Muñoz, known as Fredy Montero (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈfɾeðimonˈteɾo], is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a forward. He is Seattle's all-time top scorer in official club competitions, scoring 76 goals with the club between two stints: 2009 and 2012, and since 2021. Montero has been called up to the Colombia national team five times, scoring once in an unofficial match against Catalonia.
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.
Steve Zakuani is a Congolese former footballer. He was born in Zaire—now the Democratic Republic of the Congo—and grew up in London. After a successful college career, he played for the Seattle Sounders FC and the Portland Timbers.
Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Valencia is a Colombian footballer who last played for Chivas USA in Major League Soccer.
Lamar Neagle is an American professional soccer player who plays for the Tacoma Stars in the Major Arena Soccer League. He has spent most of his career with the Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer over the course of several stints; Neagle has also played for Montreal Impact and D.C. United in Major League Soccer, as well as Mariehamn in Finland.
The 2010 Major League Soccer All-Star Game, held on July 28, 2010, was the 15th annual Major League Soccer All-Star Game, a soccer match involving all-stars from Major League Soccer. The MLS All-Stars faced Manchester United of the English Premier League in the seventh All-Star Game that featured the league's best players facing international competition. The match was broadcast in the US on ESPN2 in English and Galavision in Spanish.
Gorilla FC (GFC) is an independent supporters' group for Major League Soccer's Seattle Sounders FC.
The 2010 Seattle Sounders FC season was the club's second season in Major League Soccer, the top tier of professional soccer in the United States. It was the 30th season played by a team bearing the Sounders name.
The 2009 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final was played on September 2, 2009, at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D.C. The match determined the winner of the 2009 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. This was the 96th edition of the oldest competition in United States soccer. The match was won by Seattle Sounders FC, who defeated D.C. United 2–1. Clyde Simms scored D.C. United's only goal. Fredy Montero and Roger Levesque scored Seattle's two goals as the club became the second expansion team in Major League Soccer (MLS) history to win the tournament in their inaugural season.
Seattle Sounders FC, a Major League Soccer club established in 2007, has gained a reputation for having passionate supporters since its inaugural season in 2009. There are four recognized supporters groups for Sounders FC: Emerald City Supporters, Gorilla FC, North End Faifthful, and Eastside Supporters.
The 2010 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final was played on October 5, 2010, at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington, United States. The match determined the winner of the 2010 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. This was the 97th edition of the oldest competition in United States soccer. Seattle Sounders FC won the match, defeating the Columbus Crew 2–1 in front of a sellout crowd of 31,311, the highest attendance at a U.S. Open Cup final. Kevin Burns scored first, giving the Columbus Crew an early lead. Sanna Nyassi then scored both goals for Seattle Sounders FC as it became the first team since 1983 to win two consecutive U.S. Open Cup championships.
Seattle Sounders FC is an American soccer club founded in 2008, after the city of Seattle was awarded a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise. The club began playing competitive soccer in the 2009 Major League Soccer season. It plays its home games at Lumen Field, competing in the Western Conference of the MLS. The current Sounders FC is the third soccer team from Seattle to bear the Sounders nickname. The tradition was started by Seattle's North American Soccer League team in 1974, and continued by the city's United Soccer Leagues side, formed in 1994. The current Sounders FC is an entity distinct to both of these clubs, and played its first MLS game on March 19, 2009, against the New York Red Bulls.
The 2011 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final was a soccer match between the Seattle Sounders FC and the Chicago Fire, played on October 4, 2011, at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Washington. The match was the culmination of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. This was the 98th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, the oldest ongoing competition in American soccer. The Seattle Sounders FC won by defeating the Chicago Fire 2–0 with goals scored by Fredy Montero and Osvaldo Alonso. The attendance was 36,615, breaking the record for the final set the previous year when Seattle also won and hosted. Seattle became the first team since 1968 to win three consecutive U.S. Open Cup championships and the fourth team ever to do so in the 98-year history of the tournament.
Seattle has had professional soccer clubs for over four decades who have played in various leagues since the 1970s. These include three incarnations of the Seattle Sounders FC, playing in the North American Soccer League, United Soccer League, and Major League Soccer.
Seattle Sounders FC is a Major League Soccer team, sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, based in Seattle, Washington with origins that go back to the 1970s and the North American Soccer League.
The 2012 Seattle Sounders FC season was the club's fourth season in Major League Soccer, the United States' top-tier of professional soccer. For the Sounders FC organization, it was their fourth year of existence, and including all previous clubs, it was the 32nd season of a soccer team bearing the Sounders name.
↑ Shawn, Mitchell (December 11, 2008). "Crew: Separation anxiety". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved December 12, 2008.
↑ Romero, José Miguel (February 11, 2009). "SSFC 6, VC Fusion 1". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved February 17, 2010.
↑ Romero, José Miguel (March 3, 2009). "SSFC moves to 7–1–1". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on May 25, 2009. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
↑ Romero, José Miguel (March 12, 2009). "Rapids 1, Sounders FC 0". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on May 23, 2009. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
↑ Steve, Goff (July 23, 2009). "Payne Responds to Sounders". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2009.
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