Sporting Kansas City is the host to fourth place Seattle Sounders FC on Sunday.
The match will be nationally televised on ESPN with coverage beginning at 4 p.m. A limited number of tickets could be available for the Western Conference battle and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com or the Sporting Park Box offices on game day.
Despite sitting one place behind the Sounders in the Western Conference standings heading into this weekend’s matches, Sporting Kansas City trails by just one point and maintains a game in hand over Seattle. The teams have met on two previous occasions in 2015 and Sporting KC holds the series advantage, earning a 1-0 victory at Sporting Park on June 6. Benny Feilhaber converted a penalty kick in the 84th minute of the match to secure three points for the home side.
While Sporting KC has the series advantage in 2015, the Sounders have dominated this fixture in recent years. Sporting KC’s victory in June marked the first time Sporting KC defeated Seattle in Kansas City since the Sounders joined MLS in 2009, a span of five matches. The all-time regular season results are 2-7-2 in favor of the Sounders.
Obafemi Martins converted a goal and an assist in Seattle’s last League match, a 3-0 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps. Martins missed the majority of June and July due to injury, but has played the full 90 minutes in the last five MLS matches for the Sounders.
Sporting KC is coming off a mid-week loss against rivals Houston Dynamo. Seattle is also coming off a mid-week match, defeating the Whitecaps by a three-goal margin for the second time in a five-day span to advance to the CONCACAF Champions League Knockout Round.
Sporting KC will be without Matt Besler and Benny Feilhaber on Sunday as both players received yellow cards against the Dynamo on Wednesday and will serve their mandatory one-game suspension for caution accumulation.
Fans are encouraged to arrive early on Sunday for special pregame festivities. Additionally, the first 10,000 fans to arrive will receive a Sporting KC tote bag.