Columbus Crew SC vs Seattle Sounders FC, MLS 2026 MLS CUP
Overview
Match Preview
Columbus Crew SC vs Seattle Sounders FC — MLS at MAPFRE Stadium.
- Columbus Crew SC 27 games · 29 pts (2026/26)
- Seattle Sounders FC 26 games · 35 pts (2026/26)
Match Details
- Referee Jair Marrufo
- Referee Corey Parker
- Referee Alex Chilowicz
- Referee Katie Nesbitt
6 games this season
🟨 1.0/game
⚽ 5.2 goals/game
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville SC | 27 | 60 |
| 2 | Internacional CF Miami | 27 | 46 |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 27 | 46 |
| 4 | Charlotte FC | 27 | 43 |
| 5 | Chicago Fire FC | 26 | 42 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Union | 27 | 39 |
| 7 | Orlando City SC | 27 | 34 |
| 8 | New York City FC | 27 | 33 |
| 9 | FC Cincinnati | 26 | 33 |
| 10 | New York Red Bulls | 26 | 33 |
| 11 | D.C. United SC | 26 | 30 |
| 12 | Columbus Crew SC | 27 | 29 |
| 13 | Toronto FC | 27 | 29 |
| 14 | Atlanta United FC | 27 | 27 |
| 15 | Montreal Impact FC | 27 | 24 |
| 16 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 26 | 50 |
| 17 | FC Dallas | 27 | 47 |
| 18 | San Jose Earthquakes | 27 | 45 |
| 19 | St. Louis City | 26 | 44 |
| 20 | Houston Dynamo | 27 | 44 |
| 21 | Los Angeles FC | 28 | 41 |
| 22 | Colorado Rapids SC | 27 | 36 |
| 23 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 28 | 36 |
| 24 | Seattle Sounders FC | 26 | 35 |
| 25 | San Diego FC | 27 | 32 |
| 26 | Portland Timbers | 27 | 32 |
| 27 | Real Salt Lake | 27 | 32 |
| 28 | Austin FC | 27 | 31 |
| 29 | Minnesota United FC | 27 | 29 |
| 30 | Sporting Kansas City | 26 | 21 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Dec | Seattle Sounders FC | H | 3–0 | W |
| 06 Dec | New England Revolution | H | 1–0 | W |
| 30 Nov | Nashville SC | H | 2–0 | W |
| 21 Nov | New York Red Bulls | H | 3–2 | W |
| 08 Nov | Atlanta United FC | H | 2–1 | W |
| 05 Nov | Orlando City SC | A | 1–2 | L |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Dec | Columbus Crew SC | A | 0–3 | L |
| 08 Dec | Minnesota United FC | H | 3–2 | W |
| 02 Dec | FC Dallas | H | 1–0 | W |
| 25 Nov | Los Angeles FC | H | 3–1 | W |
| 08 Nov | San Jose Earthquakes | H | 4–1 | W |
| 05 Nov | Los Angeles Galaxy | A | 1–1 | D |
Season Stats
| Columbus Crew SC | Seattle Sounders FC | |
|---|---|---|
| #12 | Position | #24 |
| 29 | Points | 35 |
| 27 | Played | 26 |
| 8 / 5 / 14 | W / D / L | 9 / 8 / 9 |
| 39 | Scored | 33 |
| 43 | Conceded | 34 |
| -4 | GD | -1 |
| 1.07 | PPG | 1.35 |
| 30% | Win % | 35% |
Key Stats
57%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (7 games)
H2H (7 games)
57%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
22%
Clean Sheets
Columbus Crew SC this season
Columbus Crew SC this season
27%
Clean Sheets
Seattle Sounders FC this season
Seattle Sounders FC this season
Columbus Crew SC are 12th (29 pts). Seattle Sounders FC are 24th (35 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
0-15
3/6
16-30
4/4
31-45
6/6
46-60
6/2
61-75
3/4
76+
5/6
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Seattle Sounders FC
0-15
3/2
16-30
5/6
31-45
3/5
46-60
5/4
61-75
1/3
76+
11/12
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
| Diego Rossi | 6 G | 1 A |
| Wessam Abou Ali | 5 G | 1 A |
Seattle Sounders FC
| Dejan Joveljic | 11 G | 1 A |
| Paul Rothrock | 5 G | 1 A |
Events
Match Events
- 0' Both captains have shaken hands and the referee is ready. We are underway at MAPFRE Stadium!
- 5' Seattle Sounders FC come into this ranked in Array. They desperately need points to push themselves up the standings.
- 10' The travelling Seattle Sounders FC supporters hardly appreciate their team being pressed down to the backline.
- 15' Columbus Crew SC are deployed in a today, looking to exploit space against Seattle Sounders FC's shape.
- 20' A quiet spell here at MAPFRE Stadium. Columbus Crew SC seem content sitting deep and soaking up pressure.
- 25' Lucas Zelarayan is having a superb {COMPETITION} campaign — that is 1 goals this season for the .
- 28' Joao Paulo has been a danger all night but risks an early exit having now seen a Yellow card on 28.
- 31' Brilliant from the ! Derrick Etienne makes it 2-0 with a superb finish on 31.
- 36' Colombia international Yeimar Gomez has been a key figure this campaign — 0 goals and 0 assists in the Array this season.
- 41' The clock is ticking and both teams know a goal could change everything at this point.
- 46' Fresh legs for Seattle Sounders FC! Brad Smith comes on to replace Nouhou Tolo.
- 49' The referee shows Seattle Sounders FC player a Yellow card on 49.
- 54' The referee is likely to let players tackle, as he already missed some meaty challenges during opening seconds. He is still to establish what should not be done by the players and what is acceptable on the pitch. It’s going to be a tough game for Will Bruin suffering a number of foals already.
- 59' Brad Smith needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Red cards this season.
- 60' Seattle Sounders FC ring the changes. Joao Paulo has done his job and it is now time for Will Bruin to step up.
- 65' named a earlier, and opted for a in response. A fascinating tactical duel is developing.
- 70' Matchday of the Array and both teams know exactly what is at stake tonight.
- 75' Players seem to put ease on their energy level Spectators hardly appreciate such approach. Teams need to speed up the tempo.
- 77' It is a substitution in Seattle Sounders FC team. Shane O'Neill is replaced by Jimmy Medranda on 77 minute.
- 82' The deadlock is broken! Lucas Zelarayan gets on the scoresheet on 82 minutes.
- 83' A tactical swap from Columbus Crew SC — Hector Jimenez on, Derrick Etienne off on 83 minutes.
- 88' The crowd applauds Artur as he leaves the pitch. Fatai Alashe steps in for Columbus Crew SC.
- 90' A tactical swap from Columbus Crew SC — Waylon Francis on, Luis Diaz off on 90 minutes.
- Another three points for Columbus Crew SC.
Lineups
Columbus Crew SC Lineups
Starting XI
- 1
- 22
- 19
- 4
- 25
- 11
-
8
Artur ↓ Fatai Alashe 88'
- 3
-
12
Luis Diaz ↓ Waylon Francis 90'
- 10
- 21
Bench
- 29
- 20
- 13
-
14
Waylon Francis ↑ 90'
-
16
Hector Jimenez ↑ 83'
-
26
Fatai Alashe ↑ 88'
- 9
- 30
- 34
Coach
Caleb Porter
Seattle Sounders FC Lineups
Starting XI
-
6
Joao Paulo ↓ Will Bruin 60'
-
33
Joevin Jones ↓ Gustav Svensson 46'
- 10
- 9
- 24
- 7
-
5
Nouhou Tolo ↓ Brad Smith 46'
-
16
Alex Roldan ↓ Kelvin Leerdam 60'
- 13
- 28
-
27
Shane O'Neill ↓ Jimmy Medranda 77'
Bench
-
94
Jimmy Medranda ↑ 77'
-
4
Gustav Svensson ↑ 46'
- 29
- 30
-
2
Brad Smith ↑ 46'
-
18
Kelvin Leerdam ↑ 60'
-
17
Will Bruin ↑ 60'
- 8
- 11
Coach
Brian Schmetzer
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Albert Rusnak | 3 |
| Nicolas Lodeiro | 2 |
| Lucas Zelarayan | 2 |
| Jordan Morris | 1 |
| Diego Rossi | 1 |
| Gyasi Zardes | 1 |
| Paul Rothrock | 1 |
| Raul Ruidiaz | 1 |
Head to Head
Columbus Crew SC Form
2020-12-13
Columbus Crew SC
3–0
Seattle Sounders FC
W
2020-12-06
Columbus Crew SC
1–0
New England Revolution
W
2020-11-30
Columbus Crew SC
2–0
Nashville SC
W
2020-11-21
Columbus Crew SC
3–2
New York Red Bulls
W
2020-11-08
Columbus Crew SC
2–1
Atlanta United FC
W
2020-11-05
Orlando City SC
2–1
Columbus Crew SC
L
Seattle Sounders FC Form
2020-12-13
Columbus Crew SC
3–0
Seattle Sounders FC
L
2020-12-08
Seattle Sounders FC
3–2
Minnesota United FC
W
2020-12-02
Seattle Sounders FC
1–0
FC Dallas
W
2020-11-25
Seattle Sounders FC
3–1
Los Angeles FC
W
2020-11-08
Seattle Sounders FC
4–1
San Jose Earthquakes
W
2020-11-05
Los Angeles Galaxy
1–1
Seattle Sounders FC
D
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
2 / 4
1.66
Columbus Crew SC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
0.88
Seattle Sounders FC xG
I would bet for:
Markets are evenly balanced — no clear value pick.
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Columbus Crew SC win
Both Teams to Score
✓ Correct
Avg goals/match: 2.54
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✗ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 90% |
|
10% |
| ± 1.5 | 72% |
|
28% |
| ± 2.5 | 46% |
|
54% |
| ± 3.5 | 25% |
|
75% |
| ± 4.5 | 12% |
|
88% |
Double Chance
Columbus Crew SC or Draw
80%
Draw or Seattle Sounders FC
46%
Columbus Crew SC or Seattle Sounders FC
74%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Columbus Crew SC win at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
12.4%
1 – 0
12.2%
2 – 0
10.6%
0 – 0
9.9%
2 – 1
9.2%
0 – 1
6%
3 – 0
Actual
3 – 1
5.1%
1 – 2
4.9%
2 – 2
4.1%
0 – 2
3%
4 – 0
2.4%
Asian Handicap — Columbus Crew SC
| Handicap | Columbus Crew SC covers | Push | Seattle Sounders FC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 13% | — | 87% |
| -2 | 13% | 17% | 70% |
| -1.5 | 30% | — | 70% |
| -1 | 30% | 24% | 46% |
| -0.5 | 54% | — | 46% |
| +0.5 | 81% | — | 19% |
| +1 | 81% | 12% | 6% |
| +1.5 | 94% | — | 6% |
| +2 | 94% | 5% | 2% |
| +2.5 | 98% | — | 2% |
Clean Sheet
Columbus Crew SC keeps clean sheet
42%
✗
Seattle Sounders FC keeps clean sheet
20%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.

