A vastly undermanned Seattle Sounders squad went into TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Saturday and earned what just might be their best result of 2026. It may not have been a win, but a late equalizer in a 1-1 draw at FC Cincinnati is exactly what the Sounders needed.
Seattle entered the weekend on a club-record eight match MLS losing streak. Facing myriad injuries to key contributors and at the end of a three-match week, the Sounders rotated heavily on the road against the best attacking team in the league.
Sounders Head Coach Brian Schmetzer called the result “a building block,” especially as the team nearly stole all three points at the death.
“A lot of times I say a draw feels like a loss,” said Schmetzer, “but this feels like a win.”
Seattle went down early when MVP candidate Evander scored for the hosts, and it would have been easy to sulk and accept yet another defeat. But the Sounders, many of whom were young or inexperienced or both, dug deep and clawed back.
Fullback Kalani Kossa-Rienzi found Albert Rusnák in open space on the right side of the pitch in the 83rd minute before Rusnák whipped a low cross back into the center of the box for Kossa-Rienzi to guide home. The goal was the University of Washington product’s third of the season, and few, if any, of the Sounders’ goals this year have meant as much.
“When you hit rock bottom, there’s only one way to go, and that’s up,” said Kossa-Rienzi. “You’ve gotta make that first step, and this was a great first step for us…We’ve been struggling with injuries, but in a game like this we found our mojo again.”
The Sounders understand there is still plenty of work to be done. They sit three points below the Western Conference playoff line and welcome the red-hot Chicago Fire, who have won six of their last seven matches in all competitions, to Lumen Field on Saturday (1:30 p.m. PT; Apple TV | TICKETS).
But there’s now a growing belief in the locker room with a positive performance from which to draw inspiration.
“There were a lot of proud and happy faces in the locker room,” said winger Paul Rothrock, who wore the captain’s armband for the first time on Saturday. “That’s a big result with a hugely rotated lineup and our backs against the wall.
“There were several things to build off from the performance. Now we’ve got to stack another one like this.”
