SANDY, Utah – Real Salt Lake (17-11-5, 56 points, West #3) will take on Vancouver Whitecaps FC (11-13-9, 42 points, West #5) in both clubs’ MLS regular season finale on Saturday, Oct. 27 at Rio Tinto Stadium. The match will kickoff at 7 p.m. MT on CW30, with radio coverage on 99.1 FM and La Gran D 102.3 FM/1600 AM.
Though its already locked in to a 2-v-3 seed Western Conference Semifinal series against Seattle Sounders FC, RSL has plenty at stake on Saturday in terms of playoff seeding, potential MLS Cup hosting and qualification for the 2013/14 CONCACAF Champions League.
Depending on how this weekend’s results play out, RSL – currently in third-place in the Western Conference, tied on points with Seattle but trailing Sounders FC by virtue of the goals scored tiebreaker – could finish as high as second in the West and third in the league. Finishing second in the conference would mean that the Claret-and-Cobalt would travel to Seattle for the first leg of the Western Conference semis and host the second leg at Rio Tinto Stadium. Finishing third in the league would give the Utah side a good chance at both hosting MLS Cup should the team advance that far and qualifying for the 2013/14 CCL.
Click here for a full breakdown of the ramifications of this Saturday’s match.
Real Salt Lake last played on Tuesday, Oct. 23, drawing Costa Rican club C.S. Herediano 0-0 at Rio Tinto Stadium to heartbreakingly fall out of this year’s CONCACAF Champions League. While it certainly felt like a loss, Tuesday’s draw actually extended RSL’s unbeaten streak to six games across all competitions. The Claret-and-Cobalt is now 6-1-3 in its last 10 matches across all competitions, outscoring its opposition 12-3 during that stretch.
A win on Saturday would give Real Salt Lake a club record 59 points for the year and extend the team’s all-time win record to 18. The previous records were 56 points and 15 wins, both set in the 30-game 2010 season.
RSL is 1-1-0 against Vancouver this year, getting two goals from FW Alvaro Saborio to down Whitecaps FC 2-1 at home on July 27 before losing 1-0 at Vancouver on Aug. 11.
Vancouver is locked in as the West’s fifth-seed and will take on the fourth-seeded L.A. Galaxy in a MLS Cup Playoff knockout match at the Home Depot Center next week. The ‘Caps will likely rest some key players during Saturday’s game with an eye on that postseason clash; the winner of that matchup will face first-seed San Jose in the other Western Conference Semifinal.
A very limited number of tickets to Saturday’s expected sell-out as well as tickets to the MLS Cup Playoffs are available for purchase online at www.RealSaltLake.com, at the Rio Tinto Stadium box office or by calling (801) 727-2700.
Stay tuned to www.RealSaltLake.com and follow the club on Twitter @RealSaltLake for all the latest news and information on the team ahead of the Oct. 27 match against Vancouver.
How to Follow Real Salt Lake v. Vancouver Whitecaps FC
- Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. MT at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah
- TV: CW30 (John Strong & Brian Kamler on the call)
- English Radio: 99.1 FM (Pregame coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. MT)
- Spanish Radio: La Gran D 102.3 FM & Juan 1600 AM
- Online: The @RealSaltLake Twitter Feed will provide match updates
Game Guide for Saturday’s RSL-VAN Contest Now Available Online
Following is the link to the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Saturday’s contest between Real Salt Lake and Vancouver Whitecaps FC. If you have any problems obtaining the document, would prefer to receive it as an attachment, or are seeking more information on the match, please contact Media Services Manager Sam Stejskal in the RSL Communications Department via email at sstejskal@realsaltlake.com.
Click here to download the PDF version of the RSL-VAN MLS Game Guide
RSL History v. Vancouver
Real Salt Lake is all even in its all-time series with Vancouver, posting a 2-2-0 record against the ‘Caps in the four games the two teams have played since the Canadian club joined the league at the start of the 2011 season.
RSL is 1-1-0 against Whitecaps FC in 2012, getting a pair of goals from leading scorer and MLS Best XI candidate Alvaro Saborio to down Vancouver 2-1 at Rio Tinto Stadium on July 27 before losing to the ‘Caps 2-1 at BC Place on Aug. 11.
The home team has won every game in series history, with RSL beating Vancouver 2-0 at Rio Tinto Stadium on June 4, 2011and Vancouver beating the Claret-and-Cobalt 3-0 at BC Place on Oct. 1, 2011 before this year’s results.
