Sounders FC knows the obligation it has to its fans when it walks out onto the pitch at CenturyLink Field: You sing for us, we fight for you.
Never is that more apparent than when the attendance figures rise, which will happen Friday as Seattle hosts Vancouver Whitecaps FC with the stadium’s capacity expanded for the Cascadia Cup clash.
“We definitely feel the energy a lot more. Whenever we’re at home we feel the fans and that fuels us,” Seattle’s Lamar Neagle said. “I think that’s what makes our games so exciting. It’s definitely nice to be at home and to have the full stadium is going to be awesome.”
Sounders FC has had three matches with CenturyLink Field opened to full capacity this season, outscoring its opponents 5-0 in those games. That dominance continues a trend established in 2011 when the team first expanded capacity for a pair of matches against the San Jose Earthquakes and New York Red Bulls, winning both on the way to the best record in club history.
Seattle has played 14 matches with over 40,000 fans at CenturyLink Field and owns an 11-0-3 record in those contests. For both Friday’s match and the regular-season finale against the LA Galaxy, attendance is expected to be over 50,000. Seattle has gone 9-0-1 with crowds of over 50,000 people and 5-0-1 when attendance exceeds 60,000.
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With 49,746 in attendance, Seattle posted a 1-0 win over the San Jose Earthquakes on May 17. It followed that up with 2-0 wins over the Portland Timbers and Houston Dynamo, with crowds of 64,207 and 50,276 people, respectively.
Seattle’s typical crowd – in excess of 38,000 people for each match this season – creates an environment that is unmatched in MLS. Adding 12,000 or more amplifies that atmosphere exponentially.
“It’s incredible. Even my first regular-season game against Kansas City…you’re never going to forget it,” defender Chad Marshall said. “When they open up even more, it’s just incredible to play in front of.”
In total 630,047 fans have crushed through the turnstiles at CenturyLink Field for Sounders FC matches this season, 118,605 short of the league record for total attendance set last season by the Sounders. Two more full-stadium matches will give the club a chance to reach that mark this year.
