BigE

Playing their first MLS game and beat New York 3:0 on ESPN2
Sellout
They use the bottom half of Quest Field around 32,000.
Drew Carey (an owner) was very visible. he even had his own marching band and a March to The Match Processional.

MLS has just announced the Portland Timbers will be the next new expansion team for 2011. Philly comes in in 2010 and the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2011.

BigE

With or without David Beckham, MLS is alive and well—even thriving in some places. Nowhere is that more evident than in Seattle, where the expansion Sounders FC have joined MLS as the league's 15th franchise. Sounders games are loud—really loud. Fans pack Qwest Field, with sold-out crowds approaching 30,000. (Only the lower bowl of the stadium is opened for MLS games.) More than 75% of the spectators are season-ticket holders. Virtually everyone in the stands waves a team scarf above his head and chants for the entire 90 minutes, cheering on internationally accomplished players such as former Arsenal star Freddie Ljungberg of Sweden and goalkeeper Kasey Keller, a veteran of four U.S. World Cup teams.

"This is the way it's supposed to feel," says coach Sigi Schmid, a German native and two-time MLS Cup winner with the L.A. Galaxy and the Columbus Crew. "This is the way it is when you go to a game in Europe."

MLS's new crown jewel—which was 4-2-0 at week's end—has many factors working in its favor, not the least of which are deep-pocketed owners with a global vision. The group includes majority owner Joe Roth, a successful Hollywood producer; comedian and noted soccer freak Drew Carey; and Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, who also has a large stake in the NFL's Seahawks. That connection can't be understated: The Seahawks and the Sounders share office facilities, sales and marketing staff, a stadium—even a blue-and-green color scheme.

Seattle has been a hotbed for soccer dating to at least the 1970s and '80s, when the NASL team known as the Sounders routinely attracted crowds of 20,000. Youth participation in the state of Washington is among the highest in the country. Seattle was mentioned as a target for MLS expansion as far back as 1996, when the league began play.

But the return of pro soccer to the Emerald City couldn't have been better timed. The Sonics' move to Oklahoma City last year left Seattle without an NBA team after 41 seasons. Says Sounders minority owner and Seattle-area native Adrian Hanauer, "People had an emotional part of their beings ripped out of their hearts, and I think they were looking for something to embrace." With a pair of natural geographic rivals—Portland and Vancouver—scheduled to join MLS in 2011, fans in Seattle aren't likely to let go of that embrace anytime soon. - Jonah Freedman

Basel

Good to hear.

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Wade2Bosh

Those are some sweet jerseys.

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Ben

Nice to hear that the leagues expansions are going well, its never going to become as big as the main sports over there, but it still deserves to gain some recognition

On a side note, what a ****ty name, the Seattle Sounders?

BigE

makes more sense than the Los Angeles Lakers

Seattle has a sound (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_(geography))
LA does not have a lake

Ben

I know I know, but it just sounds pretty crappy

Im not questioning the reasoning

BigE

Evans key part of Seattle's plans for 2011

Once healthy, central midfielder could boost Sounders' attack

TUKWILA, Wash. – It’s difficult to understate the importance of Brad Evans to Sounders FC.

The central midfielder, who missed vast swaths of the 2010 season with injuries, is slated to be a key figure for Seattle this season. Head coach Sigi Schmid said as much, recalling a conversation he held with another MLS coach about his attack-minded player.

“One of the first things [the other coach] said when we saw each other was, ‘Do people realize how much you miss Evans because of his ability to make those late runs into the box, which are so hard to defend?’” Schmid recounted.

With Nathan Sturgis playing in place of Evans for the latter part of last season, the Sounders missed that ability. Fortunately for Schmid, Evans is making great progress in his recovery from the injury that shut him down in 2010.

This preseason, the Sounders are taking a cautious approach with Evans (as well as defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado), who practiced lightly on Wednesday after taking part in a full training session on Tuesday.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...les-plans-2011

BigE

CenturyLink Field Announcement

With the official announcement today, Qwest Field has officially become CenturyLink Field. There was also another big announcement that will keep CenturyLink a part of the Sounders tradition for years to come.

http://www.soundersfc.com/media-libr...ue#videoplayer

BigE

Sounders sign former TFC midfielder Sanyang

Gambian teenager to provide depth in middle for Schmid's side

The Seattle Sounders have signed 19-year-old midfielder Amadous Sanyang, the club announced on Saturday.

The young Gambian, who spent two seasons with Toronto FC, will provide depth in the midfield for a club that has struggled with injuries throughout the 2011 season and is currently competing on three fronts, the MLS regular season, CONCACAF Champions League, and the US Open Cup.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...ielder-sanyang

BigE

Sounders pick up ex-US youth forward Sammy Ochoa

Seattle trade up allocation rankings to reunite striker with Schmid

The Seattle Sounders traded up the allocation rankings and on Friday claimed former US youth international Sammy Ochoa, who signed an MLS contract earlier this week after spending the last five years in Mexico's Priméra División with Estudiantes Tecos.

Seattle traded their 2012 third-round SuperDraft pick to the Chicago Fire in a swap of allocation ranking spots. The Sounders, who were previously positioned at No. 6, used the Fire's No. 4 slot to land Ochoa.

The soon-to-be 25-year-old will be reunited in Seattle with his former US Under-20 manager, Sigi Schmid, after working out with the Sounders back in June and featuring in Reserve League action for the club. He will become the second Ochoa to play for Schmid, following in the footsteps of his older brother, Jesús, who played for Schmid at the LA Galaxy.

"We're happy to have Sammy join our team because it gives us a little more depth at forward," Schmid said in a club statement. "He did well when he was here on his trial. Now it's just a matter of getting him fit and getting his game legs and he could help us."

Ochoa is a Mexican-American who attended Riverside Poly High School near Los Angeles and debuted for Tecos back in February 2006. He scored just three goals over the course of several seasons of spot duty in Mexico.

"He's a good back-to-goal player and a good finisher around the box," Schmid added. "Those are qualities that he's had. In all his time in Mexico he was in and out of the lineup because they had so many head coaches. So it was tough to establish a rhythm."

The striker played for Schmid's US Under-20 team at the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship and featured for Peter Nowak's US Under-23 side in the lead-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Five clubs passed on the opportunity to claim Ochoa in the allocation rankings, including LA-based Chivas USA, who held the No. 1 allocation pick. By picking up the player, Seattle drop to the bottom of the allocation rankings, which is determined by reverse order of finish in the previous MLS campaign. It's reset after every season and looks like this as of Friday:

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...rd-sammy-ochoa

BigE

Pair of veteran Sounders players retire
Goalkeeper Terry Boss, defender Taylor Graham hang up cleats


SEATTLE — Sounders FC said goodbye to two players on Friday afternoon, as goalkeeper Terry Boss and defender Taylor Graham both announced their retirement, the club announced.

Boss, the 2008 USL-2 Goalkeeper of the Year, joined the Sounders midway through the 2009 season and played sparingly as the primary backup for Kasey Keller, who also retired at the end of the 2011 season.

Graham, 31, was one of the first signings for the Sounders ahead of their inaugural season in MLS in 2009. A standout defender for the USL-1 Sounders, Graham made one league appearance and nine appereances in the US Open and the CONCACAF Champions League in the last three years.

"It's always tough to say goodbye to something that I've been doing for so long," Graham said in a statement. "I love Seattle and I love the Sounders, but I'm ready for the next step in my life."

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...players-retire

BigE

Seattle ink Swedish DF Johansson to multi-year deal
Former Göteborg pro has nine caps with Sweden since 2009 debut


The Seattle Sounders added a veteran defender to the ranks on Thursday, signing Swedish international Adam Johansson to a multi-year contract.

Johansson's signing will be finalized upon receipt of his P-1 visa and International Clearance.

The 28-year-old has played the past seven years for IFK Göteborg in Sweden's top league, the Allsvenskan. He has made a total of 129 league appearances for Göteborg since 2005, scoring two goals. His pro career began with Västra Frölunda of the second tier in 2002.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...ulti-year-deal

BigE

Kick Off:
Nasty Cascadia match leaves open wound


High challenge. Puncture wound. Staph infection.

Those aren’t necessarily the terms you would associate with a preseason match in the serenity of Arizona. But after Vancouver and Seattle tie 1-1 in their respective preseason opener, it was language that Sounders manager Sigi Schmid used to describe the injury suffered by his forward Mike Fucito following a “high tackle” by Vancouver’s Martín Bonjour.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...-claims-victim

BigE

The Final Destination
Johnson finally comes home; Montero finally has the right partner?

Montreal deal Johnson to Seattle

It’s been a long few years for Eddie Johnson and his family. The sometime US national team striker bounced around Europe for three seasons, mostly failing to find the net and, consequently, failing to find a home.

With the Seattle Sounders trading for him on Friday, a day after he agreed to terms with MLS, Johnson sounded sincere during a conference call with reporters when he said he was happy to be back in the league that gave him his start after nearly a year off from professional soccer.

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/articl...ppy-be-sounder