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 34 games · 47 pts (2026/26)
- Seattle Sounders FC 34 games · 46 pts (2026/26)
Match Details
- Referee Jair Marrufo
- Referee Corey Parker
- Referee Alex Chilowicz
- Referee Katie Nesbitt
8 games this season
🟨 1.0/game
⚽ 4.6 goals/game
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville SC | 34 | 77 |
| 2 | Internacional CF Miami | 34 | 60 |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 34 | 58 |
| 4 | Chicago Fire FC | 34 | 55 |
| 5 | Charlotte FC | 34 | 54 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Union | 34 | 50 |
| 7 | Columbus Crew SC | 34 | 47 |
| 8 | FC Cincinnati | 34 | 46 |
| 9 | Orlando City SC | 34 | 46 |
| 10 | New York City FC | 34 | 42 |
| 11 | New York Red Bulls | 34 | 42 |
| 12 | Toronto FC | 34 | 39 |
| 13 | Atlanta United FC | 34 | 33 |
| 14 | D.C. United SC | 34 | 33 |
| 15 | Montreal Impact FC | 34 | 26 |
| 16 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 34 | 64 |
| 17 | FC Dallas | 34 | 58 |
| 18 | St. Louis City | 34 | 54 |
| 19 | San Jose Earthquakes | 34 | 52 |
| 20 | Houston Dynamo | 34 | 51 |
| 21 | Los Angeles FC | 34 | 47 |
| 22 | Portland Timbers | 34 | 46 |
| 23 | Seattle Sounders FC | 34 | 46 |
| 24 | Real Salt Lake | 34 | 45 |
| 25 | Minnesota United FC | 34 | 44 |
| 26 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 34 | 44 |
| 27 | Colorado Rapids SC | 34 | 43 |
| 28 | San Diego FC | 34 | 38 |
| 29 | Austin FC | 34 | 34 |
| 30 | Sporting Kansas City | 34 | 26 |
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 | |
|---|---|---|
| #7 | Position | #23 |
| 47 | Points | 46 |
| 34 | Played | 34 |
| 14 / 5 / 15 | W / D / L | 12 / 10 / 12 |
| 59 | Scored | 44 |
| 52 | Conceded | 46 |
| +7 | GD | -2 |
| 1.38 | PPG | 1.35 |
| 41% | Win % | 35% |
Key Stats
57%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (7 games)
H2H (7 games)
57%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
26%
Clean Sheets
Columbus Crew SC this season
Columbus Crew SC this season
24%
Clean Sheets
Seattle Sounders FC this season
Seattle Sounders FC this season
Columbus Crew SC are 7th (47 pts). Seattle Sounders FC are 23rd (46 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Columbus Crew SC
0-15
4/8
16-30
12/7
31-45
7/7
46-60
10/2
61-75
7/5
76+
6/8
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Seattle Sounders FC
0-15
5/5
16-30
5/7
31-45
4/7
46-60
8/6
61-75
4/5
76+
13/14
■ 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 | 13 G | 1 A |
| Paul Rothrock | 5 G | 1 A |
Events
Match Events
- 0' In just a few seconds MAPFRE Stadium will turn into a battlefield for Columbus Crew SC and Seattle Sounders FC.
- 5' Seattle Sounders FC are keeping things exceptionally tight at the back. It will take something special to break them down.
- 10' Aidan Morris has certainly something to prove this evening. He made 34 appearances with only 2 goals this season.
- 15' Columbus Crew SC currently sit in the Array table. A result here could be decisive in the race for the top positions.
- 20' Will Bruin has been relatively quiet despite scoring 28 goals in his last 305 appearances.
- 25' Magnificent from Lucas Zelarayan! That is 45 goals in 303 appearances — and it could not have come at a better time.
- 28' The referee shows Seattle Sounders FC player a Yellow card on 28.
- 31' Derrick Etienne makes no mistake. The score reads 2-0 and Columbus Crew SC are in front.
- 36' Seattle Sounders FC started playing very sharply right from the kick off. However, it slowed down the tempo rapidly by 36.
- 41' It looks surprising Seattle Sounders FC does not make any changes. Joevin Jones has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
- 46' Brad Smith gets the nod from Seattle Sounders FC. He replaces Nouhou Tolo and will look to change the dynamic.
- 49' It’s a booking for Seattle Sounders FC player. Brad Smith gets a Yellow card.
- 54' Columbus Crew SC are deployed in a today, looking to exploit space against Seattle Sounders FC's shape.
- 59' 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 Harrison Afful suffering a number of foals already.
- 60' Seattle Sounders FC make a change. Joao Paulo trudges off to be replaced by Will Bruin on 60 minutes.
- 65' Over 65 minutes have gone by without a meaningful attack. The supporters want more.
- 70' The energy levels are beginning to show. Brian Schmetzer might look to freshen things up shortly.
- 75' Seattle Sounders FC have won 477 goals from 305 games. They will be desperate to add to that tally today.
- 77' Jimmy Medranda is ready to make an impact after coming on for Shane O'Neill at the 77 minute mark.
- 82' A goal from the Armenia international Lucas Zelarayan! He fires home on 82 to make it 3-0!
- 83' The whistle greets Derrick Etienne as he departs to be replaced by Hector Jimenez.
- 88' Artur makes way for Fatai Alashe at the 88 minute mark. A tactical switch from Columbus Crew SC.
- 90' Waylon Francis has so much to prove this time. He replaces Luis Diaz on 90 minute.
- Hope, you loved the show. Another epic battle is over with the score 3-0.
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 |
| Pedro Santos | 1 |
| Jordan Morris | 1 |
| Diego Rossi | 1 |
| Gyasi Zardes | 1 |
| Paul Rothrock | 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
1.81
Columbus Crew SC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
0.86
Seattle Sounders FC xG
I would bet for:
Columbus Crew SC to win 57%
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Columbus Crew SC win
Both Teams to Score
✓ Correct
Avg goals/match: 2.67
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✗ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 91% |
|
9% |
| ± 1.5 | 74% |
|
26% |
| ± 2.5 | 49% |
|
51% |
| ± 3.5 | 28% |
|
72% |
| ± 4.5 | 14% |
|
86% |
Double Chance
Columbus Crew SC or Draw
81%
Draw or Seattle Sounders FC
43%
Columbus Crew SC or Seattle Sounders FC
75%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Columbus Crew SC win at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 0
11.7%
1 – 1
11.6%
2 – 0
11.1%
2 – 1
9.4%
0 – 0
8.8%
3 – 0
Actual
3 – 1
5.7%
0 – 1
5%
1 – 2
4.5%
2 – 2
4.1%
4 – 0
3%
4 – 1
2.7%
Asian Handicap — Columbus Crew SC
| Handicap | Columbus Crew SC covers | Push | Seattle Sounders FC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 16% | — | 84% |
| -2 | 16% | 18% | 66% |
| -1.5 | 34% | — | 66% |
| -1 | 34% | 24% | 42% |
| -0.5 | 58% | — | 42% |
| +0.5 | 84% | — | 16% |
| +1 | 84% | 11% | 5% |
| +1.5 | 95% | — | 5% |
| +2 | 95% | 4% | 1% |
| +2.5 | 99% | — | 1% |
Clean Sheet
Columbus Crew SC keeps clean sheet
43%
✗
Seattle Sounders FC keeps clean sheet
17%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.