Sounders FC will open its MLS playoff run at 7 p.m. Saturday at Real Salt Lake in a game televised on Fox Soccer.
The two-game, aggregate-score Western Conference semifinal series will conclude Nov. 2 at CenturyLink Field, with the game being televised on ESPN2 at a time yet to be announced. Tickets for that game go on sale at 10 a.m. today.
The Sounders are aiming to win a playoff series for the first time in their three-season history, after being eliminated by Houston in 2009 and the Los Angeles Galaxy last season.
“We plan on going a lot further in the playoffs than we have before,” said goalkeeper Kasey Keller, who will retire after the playoffs. “It’s a different mentality. I’m not saying by any means that we’re looking ahead of anything. Salt Lake is a good team, and we know we need to be at our best. I feel maybe this year we’re at a better place starting the playoffs.”
The Sounders concluded their regular season Saturday with a 3-1 win at Chivas USA. That gave them an 18-7-9 record, best in club history and second-best in MLS this season. It also paired them with RSL, who finished third in the Western Conference at 15-11-8.
The clubs split their regular-season series with Seattle winning 2-1 at Salt Lake on May 28, and RSL winning 2-1 at Seattle on Sept. 10.
Major League Soccer’s 16th regular season ended Sunday with Houston defeating Los Angeles, 3-1. Soon thereafter, the league announced pairings for its opening rounds.
The playoffs will begin with single-elimination wild-card matches: New York at Dallas and Columbus at Colorado.
The other two-game aggregate-score Western Conference semifinal pairs Los Angeles against the lower-seeded wild-card winner. Eastern semis will pair Kansas City and the higher-seeded wild-card winner, and Houston against Philadelphia.
The single-elimination conference championships will be played Nov 5-6 at the site of the higher-seeded club.
Dates and times will be announced later.
The MLS Cup final will be played Nov. 20 at Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.
don.ruiz@thenewstribune.com
twitter/donruiztnt
blog.thenewstribune.com/soccer
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.