Who is SK Brann?

Like the Sounders, Brann features a player from the Jamaican National Team and the Gambian National Team.

Sportklubben Brann is typically one of the top supported clubs in the Norwegian Premier League. They finished fifth in the 2009 season. Just two years prior, though, they won the league for the first time since 1963, outlasting Stabaek by six points in the final standings.

They have had wide-ranging levels of success in recent years. In addition to their 2007 championship, they have also finished second twice and third twice in the last 11 years. However, in that same span they have also finished seventh in 2001, twelfth in 2002 and eighth in 2008. They bounced back from that disappointing standing to finish fifth last year, though.

Despite mixed success in the league, Brann has always performed well in the Norwegian Cup, reaching the finals 14 times and taking home six titles.

Like the Sounders, Brann features a player from the Jamaican National Team and the Gambian National Team. Brann midfielder Rodolph Austin (pictured) plays with Sounders FC defender Tyrone Marshall for Jamaica while Tijan Jaiteh plays in the Gambian midfield with Sounders FC midfielder Sanna Nyassi.

Their top acquisition for the 2010 season is midfielder Erik Mjelde, who scored 22 goals in 86 games over three seasons for Sandefjord in Norway’s top league before transferring to Brann this season.

Kickoff is scheduled for 3 pm local time (6 am Pacific) and there will be a live-blog of the game on SoundersFC.com.