A brief history of the brief history of LAFC vs Sounders

A crash course history lesson on a battle of MLS elite

With a week until LAFC meets the Seattle Sounders at Lumen Field for the 2023 MLS Western Conference Semifinal matchup, I figured it would be a good time to take a bird’s eye view over the past six years of meetings between two of the last four MLS Cup champions.

LAFC has a relatively dominant all-time record against the Rave Green since joining Major League Soccer in 2018, having won nearly half their games against the two-time MLS Cup Champions (8-5-4). So why does it feel like facing the Sounders in Seattle is the biggest hurdle LAFC could possibly face in this playoff run? It’s precisely a combination of those two things - Seattle and Playoffs.

Lumen Field (then CenturyLink) was in fact the home of the first-ever LAFC game in MLS on March 4, 2018. Preceding the same success in their home opener over Seattle, their MLS debut was a game which the Black and Gold famously won on an early Diego Rossi stunner assisted by Carlos Vela, leading to the club’s high expectations, the unexpected rivalry with the Sounders, and of course, the 3252’s first (and only?) player chant, “Diego Rossi! He scored the first goal against the Sounders! Diego Rossi!” The problem lies in the fact that their first win was also their only win in Seattle. 

LAFC lost four of the next five at Lumen Field - including two playoff games - which brings me to the second reason playing the Sounders in Seattle was the game every Black and Gold supporter wanted to avoid.

LAFC was unbeaten against Seattle (3-0-1) until they hosted the Rave Green in the 2019 Western Conference Final and suffered a defeat that can only be compared to the Golden State Warriors losing Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. The Black and Gold had just lifted their first trophy in club history with the Supporters’ Shield by breaking the all-time MLS points record (72). They were easily the best team in the league but it didn’t matter. Just like LeBron and the Cavs, experience prevailed for the Sounders. A year later, LAFC got their shot at revenge in Seattle, but the result was the same; 3-1 to the Sounders with LAFC packing their bags for the off-season.

All this to say, the nervousness surrounding a playoff trip to the Pacific Northwest is valid for Angelinos. But the purpose of this article is not to discourage, so we won’t forget the positives.

First off, LAFC has actually beaten the Sounders in a single-elimination knockout game before. Granted it was at a neutral site without fans at the Covid-created MLS is Back Tournament in Orlando, but why is that so much different than the 2020 playoff defeat at Lumen Field which was also played in an empty stadium? Turf? Pshhh.

Second off, Steve Cherundolo has never lost against Brian Schmetzer. In four meetings since taking over as LAFC manager at the start of last season, Cherundolo has prevailed in both meetings in Los Angeles while earning a point in both trips to Seattle. Cherundolo also retains a perfect 5-0-0 record as a manager in the MLS Playoffs. 

To jam the series history into a sentence; the last time LAFC lost to their Pacific Northwest rivals was 30 months ago in Seattle - a place where they haven’t won in six years. Seattle is dominant at home and in the playoffs against the Black and Gold who have been dominant over the Sounders under Cherundolo. Something's got to give. In one week’s time, we’ll find out which.