MLS Cup 2019
Event | MLS Cup | ||||||
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Date | November 10, 2019 | ||||||
Venue | CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington, U.S. | ||||||
MLS Cup MVP | Víctor Rodríguez (Seattle Sounders FC) | ||||||
Referee | Allen Chapman | ||||||
Attendance | 69,274 | ||||||
Weather | Cloudy, 53 °F (12 °C) | ||||||
MLS Cup 2019 was the 24th edition of the MLS Cup, the championship match of Major League Soccer (MLS), and took place on November 10, 2019, at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, Washington, United States. The soccer match was contested by Seattle Sounders FC and Toronto FC to determine the champion of the 2019 season. It was a rematch of the 2016 and 2017 editions of the MLS Cup, which were won by Seattle and Toronto, respectively. This was the third final for both teams and the first MLS Cup to be hosted by the Sounders, as both of the previous Seattle–Toronto finals were held at BMO Field in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Sounders won 3–1 to claim their second MLS Cup title in front of 69,274 spectators at CenturyLink Field, which set a new stadium attendance record. They scored three goals in the second half, beginning with a deflected shot by
The match marked the conclusion of the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, which was contested by fourteen teams under a new single-elimination format that replaced the former two-legged ties. As a result, this was the earliest calendar date for the MLS Cup showdown since 2002. The defending MLS Cup champions, Atlanta United FC, were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals by Toronto FC. As MLS Cup champions, Seattle qualified for the 2020 CONCACAF Champions League and the later-cancelled 2020 Campeones Cup.
Road to the final
The MLS Cup is the post-season championship of Major League Soccer (MLS), a professional club soccer league in the United States and Canada. The 2019 season was the 24th in MLS history and was contested by 24 teams organized into the Eastern and Western conferences.[1] Each club played 34 matches during the regular season from March to October, facing each team in their conference twice and those in the other conference once.[2] The playoffs, which ran from October to early November, were contested over four rounds by the top seven clubs in each conference. Each round had a single-elimination match hosted by the higher-seeded team, a change from the two-legged ties used in previous seasons; the top team in each conference was also given a bye to the Conference Semifinals.[3][4] The shortened playoff schedule—made possible by removing second legs—moved the date of the final to November 10, its earliest staging since 2002.[5]
The finalists,
Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC played in their third MLS Cup final in four seasons, having won in their first appearance in 2016 under manager
The Sounders made few offseason moves; they signed several
The team lost several players to injuries and international call-ups in June and had a three-match losing streak before recovering to win four matches in late June and early July.
In the first round of the playoffs, Seattle hosted
The Sounders traveled to play Los Angeles FC in the Western Conference Final at
Toronto FC
Toronto FC won their first MLS Cup in 2017 and completed the first domestic
During the preseason, Toronto's new general manager
Several key players were called away to their national teams for the
In the first round of the playoffs, Toronto hosted fifth-place
The team traveled to play top-seeded New York City FC (NYCFC) in the Conference Semifinals, earning a 2–1 victory at Citi Field. After a scoreless first half, Pozuelo scored two minutes into the second half after a misplayed header from New York's Maxime Chanot fell to him. NYCFC equalized through a shot by Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, who made a late run into the box in the 69th minute, but Toronto earned a penalty in the 90th minute that was converted by Pozuelo with a Panenka for a 2–1 win.[42] Toronto continued to the Eastern Conference Final, where they faced defending MLS Cup champions Atlanta United FC at their home stadium. Atlanta took the lead in the fourth minute through a goal by Julian Gressel. Minutes later, Atlanta was awarded a penalty kick for a foul by Michael Bradley, but the 11th-minute penalty taken by Josef Martínez was saved by goalkeeper Quentin Westberg.[43] Two minutes later, Benezet scored with a curling shot from the edge of the box to equalize for Toronto. Toronto completed their 2–1 upset victory with a 25-yard (75 ft) strike from Nick DeLeon that beat goalkeeper Brad Guzan.[44] The team reached the MLS Cup final, their third in four seasons, on a thirteen-match unbeaten streak across MLS competitions.[43]
Summary of results
- Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).
Seattle Sounders FC | Round | Toronto FC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2nd place in Western Conference
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Regular season | 4th place in Eastern Conference
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Opponent | Score | MLS Cup Playoffs | Opponent | Score | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
FC Dallas | 4–3 ( a.e.t. ) (H)
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First round | D.C. United | 5–1 ( a.e.t. ) (H)
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Real Salt Lake | 2–0 (H) | Conference Semifinals | New York City FC | 2–1 (A) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Los Angeles FC | 3–1 (A) | Conference Finals | Atlanta United FC | 2–1 (A) |
Venue and preparations
MLS Cup 2019 was hosted by the Sounders at their home stadium,
The Sounders announced that they would open all seating areas in the stadium's upper deck for the MLS Cup final, making a total of 69,000 seats available, a change from earlier playoff games that were limited to 37,722 seats. Tickets were distributed to
The Sounders hosted several fan events during the MLS Cup weekend, including the installation of a giant replica of the
Broadcasting
The match was broadcast in the United States in English on
On ABC, ESPN's
The ABC broadcast averaged 823,000 viewers and peaked in the second half with 1.1 million viewers, including a 13.2 local rating in the Seattle–Tacoma market.[69] The Univision broadcast averaged 447,000 viewers;[70] the TSN4 broadcast in Canada averaged 748,000 viewers.[71]
Match
Summary
The match began at 12:08 p.m. local time, with cloudy skies and a kickoff temperature of 53 °F (12 °C).[72] The U.S. national anthem was performed by Pearl Jam's Mike McCready on his electric guitar as the Emerald City Supporters unveiled a tifo that was choreographed with a card display from the entire stadium.[73] Both teams fielded most of their regular starting lineups, with Seattle's Román Torres in place of Xavier Arreaga and the replacement of Toronto defender Laurent Ciman with Omar Gonzalez.[74] Allen Chapman was assigned as the head referee for the match, reprising his role from the 2017 Toronto–Seattle final.[75]
Toronto had the majority of possession and attacking chances in the first half while in their 4–3–3 formation, while the Sounders responded with counterattacks and defending from turnovers.
Seattle manager Brian Schmetzer responded at halftime by moving Jordan Morris to the right wing and Joevin Jones to the left, while Toronto made no significant adjustments.[79][80] The Sounders were able to disrupt Toronto's attacks with runs from the wings and broke the scoring deadlock in the 57th minute by right-back Kelvin Leerdam.[76] He collected a ball from Ruidíaz and attempted a cross to the back-post that was instead deflected into the goal by Toronto defender Justin Morrow.[77] Toronto's players protested that the goal was preceded by a foul on Osorio by Cristian Roldan, but the goal stood and was awarded to Leerdam by match officials after confusion over whether it counted as an own goal.[78][81] Toronto manager Greg Vanney responded by substituting Benezet for forward Jozy Altidore, who had missed the playoffs with an injury.[77]
The attacking momentum of the match changed in Seattle's favor, as the Sounders found several chances that they were unable to finish. Víctor Rodríguez, who had entered the match as a substitute in the 60th minute, added a second goal for Seattle in the 76th minute with a strike from atop the penalty area after a laid-off ball from Nicolás Lodeiro.[82] In the 87th minute, Toronto unsuccessfully attempted to halve the lead with a header from Omar Gonzalez that went wide as he collided with Sounders goalkeeper Stefan Frei.[79] At the end of regulation time, Ruidíaz out-muscled Chris Mavinga while chasing a long overhead ball from Gustav Svensson and beat Westberg to score the team's third and final goal of the match.[83] Altidore earned a consolation goal for Toronto with a header in the third minute of stoppage time as the match ended with a 3–1 scoreline.[77][82]
Details
Seattle Sounders FC | 3–1 | Toronto FC |
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Report |
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Seattle Sounders FC[84]
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Toronto FC[84]
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MLS Cup MVP:
Assistant referees:[86]
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Match rules[87]
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Post-match
The players persevered because again it was the first half that you know we needed to make some adjustments, and they never quit, and the fans never stopped believing. So I'm very very happy and proud for the city and the fans.
Brian Schmetzer at the post-game press conference[88]
The Sounders became the sixth team to win multiple MLS Cup titles and ended a 267-minute scoreless streak in MLS Cup play with Leerdam's goal.[89][90] The match was the first MLS Cup final since the 2012 edition to feature four or more goals.[77] The announced attendance of 69,274 was the second-highest for an MLS Cup final.[82] The match set a new record for sporting event attendance at CenturyLink Field as well as soccer in the state of Washington.[50][82] Sounders midfielder Víctor Rodríguez was named the MLS Cup most valuable player for scoring the winning goal; he left the club less than two weeks later with the intent of returning to his native Spain.[91][92]
A victory parade took place on November 12 in Downtown Seattle, running from Westlake Park to a rally at the Seattle Center, and was attended by thousands of fans.[93] The club's two MLS Cup trophies also made several stops around Seattle landmarks as part of a victory tour for fans, including several trips on the state ferry system.[94] The Washington state delegation to the United States Congress introduced congratulatory resolutions to honor the Sounders and their successful season.[95][96]
As MLS Cup champions, the Sounders earned $275,000 in
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