Two Shields. An MLS Cup. An Open Cup. Two CCL Finals. A Leagues Cup Final. 96 MLS wins prior to 2025 and four of six years in the top 3 of the West.
vs.
A CCL title. An MLS Cup. A Leagues Cup Final. Four times finishing second in the West and 86 wins prior to 2025.
Seattle and LA are the class of the West. Both have only missed the playoffs once in these six short years of dominance. Those win totals would be flipped if not for the fact that LAFC has dominated the head-to-head with 12 wins to Seattle’s six in league play.
The two sides don’t have much in common, that’s apparent from the matchup leaderboard where the leading goal-scorers are all Sounders, as is the leading assistman, leading minutes played and on and on.
An LAFC roster is known for change. A Sounders roster is known for consistency. Both can work. LA is betting on change to improve their fortunes. They tossed aside 15 total players including a couple legends. Seattle's key losses were less significant with their additions meaning more – on paper.
On the early pitch it is LA that looks perpetually dominant.
And so, the Lumen Faithful get an early measuring stick, maybe more meaningful than the CCC. These are the games season ticket holders pay for. It’s a match on big FOX because these are the West’s two best and that’s been true for years.
At the end of the season the winner may be able to say they won the West because of mid-50s day in March.
For that to be Seattle they'll need the offense they had against Antigua and Charlotte to show up, because LA in their state of constant change are now Denis and a shutout.
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Catching up on Sounder at Heart
Here's what you missed on the site this week.
Sounders
Next match: Saturday March 8 Sounders host LAFC at 1:45 pm PT on FOX, Apple TV+ and Fox Deportes. Los Angeles are 4-1-0, +5 in all competitions. Seattle are 2-1-2, +2. Both teams are in the CCC.
- Opposition scouting report: LAFC
- Lobbing Scorchers Under The Lights: LAFC Preview with Happy Foot Sad Foot
- New MLS data reveals Sounders have significant cap flexibility
- Postgame Pontifications: Not lost, but a missed opportunity
- Realio’s Ratings: Azul no cruise
- Everything but the goals: Sounders settle for 0-0 tie
- Sounders in no rush to figure out Best XI
- Lobbing Scorchers: It's Time to Have Nouhou Discourse
- Realio’s Ratings: Rough RSL reunion for Rusnák and co.
- SLC Punked
- MLS Fantasy Week 3: CCC rolls on as we hold on
Reign
Next match: Saturday March 15th at 7 pm PT Reign host Gotham on iON television.
Defiance
Next match: Tonight! Ventura County (Galaxy) host Defiance on March 7 at 7 pm PT on MLS Season Pass. It's opening night for the MLS Next Pro sides.
Looking back at the news
Everything else you need to know
A Sounder train is running both from the South and from the North for tomorrow's Sounders match. Trivia time - did you know the Sounder once sponsored the USL Sounders?
World Cups news
The men's Club World Cup is 100 days out. TNT Sports picked up 24 of the CWC matches. The rest will still be available for free on DAZN. Coaches have differing opinions of what the CWC will mean for their squads.
The Men's World Cup is another year out after that. Seattle just released their 'sonic ID.' The Final will have a halftime show, a first for the competition. There may only be one 48-team MWC, since the 2030 could have 64 teams.
After clearing the lane for a US-Mexico Women's World Cup 2031 there are reasons to doubt that it will be a co-hosted event since USSF didn't mention the FMF in their release at all (also, waves hands at geopolitics).
NWSL previews
The season is right around the corner. Here's Soccerwise with a big audio preview. Previews will be aplenty in the next three editions of the Ship's Log.
Four big player moves that the Olympics wants you to know about in the NWSL. Yes, Reign make the list. It's that Lynn deal that earned Reign a B+ from ESPN in their player-move ratings. Player-centered movement is one of the big changes from the last offseason.
ASA suggests that Claudia Dickey's performance is going to be a key to the defense. There's also a Dash preview in that link. Yuki, one of the league greats, is retiring – yes, that's been a common theme among the greats lately.
Angel City is still looking for a head coach, sometime around June.
Bay FC hired and fired a scout in about a week. Now it's their head coach that's facing abuse allegations.
There’s even more to know.
Mexico’s homophobic chant started as an unfunny joke. Now it’s a stubborn problem
Concacaf Disciplinary Committee clears Los Angeles FC player Sergi Palencia
2025 MLS anonymous executive survey, Part 1: Predictions, superlatives
Has MLS’s U22 Initiative been a success? Examining the league’s $300 million endeavor
Emina Ekic: "Observing Ramadan last year made me realise the importance of dialogue with clubs"
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