Loons get maiden Seattle win as Sounders protest CWC compensation

Seattle Sounders FC 2-3 Minnesota United

SEATTLE, WA–There were a pair of unpleasant firsts for the Sounders on Sunday: The first home loss of the season and the first ever loss to Minnesota United at Lumen Field in eleven matches as the Loons went out 3-2 winners.

After a goalless first half, almost everything happened in a seven-minute span, and almost everything happened to the Sounders. Six minutes into the second half, Robin Lod would set up Tani Oluwaseyi from point-blank range to put the Loons ahead. It got worse very quickly for the Sounders as the Loons were awarded a penalty two minutes later as Jonathan Bell knocked down Bongokuhle Hlongwane in the box. Lod converted the spot kick to double Minnesota’s advantage.

However, Seattle pulled one back almost immediately when Pedro de la Vega sent a cross into the area and Kalani Kossa-Rienzi struck from close range. But just as the Sounders appeared to be back in the match, the Loons went back up two as Oluwaseyi pounced on a rebound after Joaquin Pereya’s initial shot from distance was saved.

Seattle pressed to get back into the match and got back within one again after Gerogi Minoungu’s cross was knocked in by Nicolas Romero for an own goal in the 83rd minute, but that would be as close as the Sounders got as Minnesota ended a ten-match losing streak at Lumen Field and moved to within two points of first-place Vancouver, though the Whitecaps have two league matches in hand. Seattle remain fourth ahead of Portland based on fewer disciplinary points with points, wins, goal difference, and goals scored identical.

Sounders protesting pay from MLS prior to the match (Photo: Paul Kahl).

SOUNDERS PROTEST FIFA PAY:

Before the match , the Sounders wore t-shirts saying “Club World Ca$h Grab” on the front and “Fair Share Now” on the back as the Sounders players expressed displeasure with the Major League Soccer’s and their owners’ unwillingness to have formal negotiations to decide how money for the upcoming FIFA men’s Club World Cup will be distributed. Seattle opens the tournament against Brazil’s Botafogo on June 15 at Lumen Field.

According to an article in the Seattle Times, FIFA announce in March that there will be a record $1 billion prize pot will be awarded for the Club World Cup— $525 million for the 32 teams participating in the new quadrennial tournament and $475 million based on performance.

Los Angeles FC defeated Mexican side Club América on Saturday to join the Sounders and Inter Miami CF as the only MLS teams in the CWC field. Each club will earn a $9.55 million entry payout as part of the CONCACAF teams. FIFA’s lone stipulation is a portion must go to players to help compensate for the increased workload.

According to the MLS Players Association, the league and owners, in casual conversations, are stating they’re bound by the collective bargaining agreement ratified in 2021 that caps payment to players at $1 million for “performance and/or participation in a compulsory tournament or noncompulsory tournament.”

Based on the clause, the individual rosters for Seattle, Miami and LAFC would receive $1 million apiece to be distributed however those locker rooms wish. That leaves at least $8.55 million that may not go to the players and may be distributed however the club wishes.

“For months, the players have privately and respectfully invited the league to discuss bonus terms, yet MLS has failed to bring forward a reasonable proposal,” the MLSPA said, in part, in a released statement. “Instead of recognizing the players who have brought MLS to the global stage, the league — which routinely asks the PA to deviate from the CBA — is clinging to an out-of-date CBA provision and ignoring longstanding international standards on what players typically receive from FIFA prize money in global competitions.

“It is the players who make the game possible. It is the players who are lifting MLS up on the global stage. They expect to be treated fairly and with respect.”

“This is a huge distraction for us,” Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan told the Seattle Times after the match “We’ve known about the prize money for a long time now,” Roldan continued. “We’ve gotten to this point where we’re two weeks away from the tournament and not knowing where we’re at. … While it is frustrating that we didn’t get a result, it is a huge distraction for us to have to deal with this on a daily basis.” About 15 teammates joined Roldan in a post-match media availability in the locker room.

That distraction might have been a factor in the Sounders’ play against the Loons.

“The protest shirt was a surprise,” said Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer, who empathized with majority owner Adrian Hanauer and the players. “We didn’t underestimate Minnesota. The statement that the players tried to make, they have to back it up. … I was looking at the effort that they put into the game, which they did. But they leave now with the question open of whether their concentration was fully there on their opponent.”

The Sounders have one more match prior to the start of the Club World Cup. That is at BC Place next Sunday where they will face a Vancouver Whitecaps side who is smarting from their 5-0 defeat to Cruz Azul in the Concacaf Champions Cup Final on Sunday. Kickoff is at 6pm PT on Apple TV.

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