A look across the top of the Western Conference table will paint a very similar picture. Each of the West’s top three teams — the Vancouver Whitecaps, San Diego FC and LAFC — has at least one international superstar that has made waves both upon their arrival and in their production since.
The ‘Caps have former World Cup winner and Bayern Munich legend Thomas Müller. San Diego has Mexican international and one of North America’s best players in Chucky Lozano. And LAFC has both international icon Son Heung-Min and MLS goalscoring machine Denis Bouanga.
But as the Seattle Sounders proved against the world’s greatest player in Lionel Messi and his star-studded Inter Miami cast in the Sounders’ Leagues Cup Final victory in late August, the badge on the front of the jersey can collectively win more games than the individual names on the back.
“We’re not necessarily the team that’s gonna have all these flashy players and have all the [Lionel] Messis' on the field, but we are a team that anybody you put out there is going to really work their butts off,” said Sounders fullback Kalani Kossa-Rienzi. “That’s more than half the battle in our book. If you outwork the other team, there’s a pretty good chance you’re going to win the game. When we get on the field, that’s one of our biggest mindsets.”
The Sounders rode that mantra to the tune of a 1-0 win over Real Salt Lake on Saturday night in their final home game of the 2025 regular season. Seattle lost just one match at home in 17 MLS contests at Lumen Field this season, a mark that tied a franchise record as well as matched the Supporters’ Shield-winning Philadelphia Union for the best mark in the league.
“All of the games at home are critical,” said Head Coach Brian Schmetzer. “You can’t be successful in MLS without winning your home games.”
The Sounders have locked up the fifth seed in the West ahead of Decision Day at New York City FC next Saturday (3 p.m. PT; Watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV), but despite not guaranteeing home-field advantage to open the MLS Cup Playoffs, there are few teams that would relish the challenge of taking on a seasoned Sounders squad that has already won one major trophy this year.
“I don’t think many people want to play us,” said Schmetzer. “It’s going to be a dogfight, whoever we match up against. I’ve got a lot of confidence in our team. We’ve been in a lot of big games this year. Some of that experience is going to make us better in the playoffs.”
Seattle completed its North American trophy cabinet this summer by lifting the aforementioned Leagues Cup title over Messi & Friends. The Sounders dropped their Leagues Cup banner on Saturday, but this year’s season looks different than their last international title in 2022. The Sounders became the first MLS team to win the modern version of the Concacaf Champions Cup (née League), but they failed to qualify for the MLS postseason for the first and only time. This year, the chance to make even more history is on the line.
“It’s cool to be a part of getting to hang a banner in the stadium, but we’re also trying to win two [titles],” said winger Paul Rothrock, who scored the game-winner against RSL in the fourth minute. “We’d be the first [Sounders team] to win two [trophies in the same season] and that would be a really special season.”
To do so, the Sounders know they will need everybody involved, an undertaking that was on full display on Saturday while missing 11 players due to injury, international duty or suspension. But whomever lines up for Seattle in the upcoming playoffs with the season on the line, the expectation remains the same.
“I think in these games too, we almost feel a little bit more confident because we’ve been here so many times where it’s like, we’re missing this guy, we’re missing that guy, or injuries or national team, whatever it is,” said Kossa-Rienzi. “I think Schmetz can confidently say that he trusts everybody who he puts out on the field.”
