In just a few days, the Seattle Sounders face their toughest FIFA Club World CupTM test yet.
On Monday, June 23, the team will take on reigning UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain (12:00 p.m. PT; Watch FREE on DAZN.com | TICKETS) in their third and final group stage match at Lumen Field.
“They are a powerhouse,” said midfielder Obed Vargas. “We just have to go out there and try and compete as best as we can.”
PSG is coming off a monumental 2024/25 season, accomplishing the continental treble with a Ligue 1 title, a Coupe de France championship win, and the club’s first-ever UCL trophy.
This historic achievement not only stems from the current staff and players, but the foundation built over the years to reach this feat. Along with their 13 league titles, the team has also been crowned Coupe de France champions 16 times and reached both the semifinals and final of the UCL on multiple occasions.
But with the likes of Ligue 1’s Player of the Season Ousmane Dembélé and Morocco international Achraf Hakimi on the roster, the team was as dominant as ever this past season. Dembélé’s offensive prowess was prevalent over the course of the year with his 33 goals and 13 assists across all competitions while Hakimi’s nine goals and 12 assists as a defender demonstrated just how impactful he is on both ends of the pitch.
The Parisians are a force to be reckoned with, to say the least. In addition to Dembélé and Hakimi, seven other PSG players were named to the Ligue 1 Team of the Season.
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Kickoff at 7:30 p.m. PT on June 28.
“They're a great team.” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer. “I mean, it's not just about stopping this guy or this guy. It's stopping this guy and this guy and this guy and this guy, because they have so many talented players.”
It will be a daunting task for the Rave Green to come away with a win on Monday. Yet, the team is ready to put up a fight against the world’s best.
“We have to fix those margins of error. These games are won in those little moments and capitalizing in our moments,” said winger Jesús Ferreira. “And so if that's an inch of scoring a goal or an inch saving the goal, we have to get better at that so we can make sure that we can take care of business.”
As of now, it will be a toss-up who makes it out of Group B after PSG’s 1-0 defeat to Botafogo on Thursday night. Botafogo currently has two wins, Atlético and PSG have one, and the Sounders have zero.
The likelihood of the Rave Green moving onto the knockout rounds is slim, with Atlético needing to lose and Seattle requiring at least a three-goal victory against PSG. But, the team is determined to put their best foot forward as soon as the first whistle blows and finish the group stage with another gritty performance.
“To pick up a result on Monday would be huge,” said midfielder Albert Rusnák. “And although it [might not] mean a lot in this competition, it can mean a lot for us going forward in the league, going into the Leagues Cup. And these kinds of games you probably remember when you retire and you have grandchildren and so on and so on. So, yeah, it can be a story on Monday, a good story for many, many years.
