HERRIMAN, Utah (Monday, November 22, 2021) – Real Salt Lake will begin its Audi 2021 MLS Cup Playoff campaign on Tuesday, November 23 against Seattle Sounders FC at Lumen Field in downtown Seattle, Washington. Kickoff for the Round 1 matchup is set for 8:30 p.m. MT.
The match will be nationally broadcast on FS1 and Fox Deportes in the United States and TSN and TVA Sports in Canada. ESPN700 will carry the local English radio broadcast and Spanish-speaking fans can tune in on KBMG Latino 106.3, La Gran D 102.3 and KTUB 1600.
Despite being on the road, fans can still support the team by attending one of two watch parties. Nick Rimando and Brian Dunseth are set to host festivities for those 21+ at Beer Bar in downtown Salt Lake City.. Meanwhile, Jamison Olave and Luke Mulholand will be on site for the all-ages event at the Rio Tinto Stadium Midfield Club located on the second floor. Both watch parties will begin 6:30 p.m. MT.
Real Salt Lake at Seattle Sounders FC
Lumen Field; Seattle, Washington
Tuesday, November 23 at 8:30 p.m. MT
Game Notes for Tuesday’s RSL @ SEA game Available Online
Those seeking the Adobe PDF version of the Game Guide in advance of Tuesday’s contest between Real Salt Lake and Seattle Sounders can be found here. Media members looking to receive the document as an attachment or have further questions are asked to please contact Taran Meyer in the RSL Communications Department via email at tmeyer@rsl.com.
Records: Real Salt Lake (14-14-6, 48 points, 7th in West); Seattle Sounders FC (17-8-9, 60 points, 2nd in West)
Head-to-Head: Real Salt Lake has a 12-12-5 record against the Sounders, including a 1-0 victory at Rio Tinto Stadium on September 18 courtesy of a goal from midfielder Damir Kreilach.
Stories to Watch:
How We Got Here
In the minute of the final match of the season, Real Salt Lake punched their ticket to the postseason – it’s 11th postseason venture in 14 years when Kreilach found the end of a shot from Justin Meram to earn the 1-0 victory against Sporting Kansas City. RSL finished the 2021 regular season with a 14-14-6 record, fifth in the Western Conference in total wins and sixth in goal differential. Additionally, RSL finished third in the West in goals scored, finding the back of the net 55 times, two shy of tying a Club record set in 2013.
Tale of Two Teams
Tuesday’s teams enter the match having finished the regular season very differently. In its last six games RSL went 3-3-0, scoring 10 goals, while winning on the road twice. Meanwhile, Seattle finished the year 0-3-3, having only scored five times and ran winless since October 9. However, Seattle has struggled late in the season with injuries, but as Round 1 approaches its squad appears to be nearing full strength, including Jordan Morris who scored 10 goals in both the 2019 and 2020 regular seasons. Similarly, RSL enters the game only carrying one name on the injured list - Zack Farnsworth, a Homegrown Player who has yet to appear in Major League Soccer.
Connections: Seattle Sounders FC midfielder and Washington native Kelyn Rowe appeared in four matches for Real Salt Lake during the 2019 season. Additionally, Sounders FC General Manager Garth Lagerwey and Technical Director Craig Waibel both previously served as General Manager for Real Salt Lake, while RSL Technical Director Kurt Schmid was previously an Assistant Coach and Scout for Seattle. Finally, Seattle Assistant Coach Freddy Juarez left his position as head coach for Real Salt Lake on August 27, 2021 to take an assistant coach position under Sounders FC Head Coach Brian Schmetzer.
