The Seattle Sounders visit Honduran powerhouse C.D. Olimpia on Thursday, February 20, in the Round of 16 of the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League. Here’s everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PT at the Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
FORM GUIDE (most recent first): Seattle: WWWWW, Olimpia: DLWDL
ALL-TIME HISTORY: The Sounders are 16-15-5 all-time in the Concacaf Champions League, including a pair of wins over C.D. Olimpia during the group stage of the 2015-16 competition.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Seattle secured its place in the knockout rounds of CCL by defeating Toronto FC 3-1 in the MLS Cup final on November 10, 2019.
MEMORIES: The Sounders have enjoyed some pretty iconic moments during previous stints in CCL, including absolute golazos from former players Djimi Traore and Deandre Yedlin.
NEW STADIUM, WHO DIS: Originally slated for Tegucigalpa, ongoing construction to Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino forced the match to be moved to San Pedro Sula.
FAVORABLE PATH: The earliest the Sounders could face a team from Liga MX, who’ve historically dominated this competition, would be against Tigres UANL in the semifinal round.
BAD BLOOD: This isn’t Seattle’s first rodeo against Olimpia, as the two sides squared off during group play in the 2015-16 CCL. There was no love lost between the two sides, as a late Brad Evans penalty kick at CenturyLink Field preceded a scuffle on the pitch.
CALL IN THE CAVALRY: Over the course of the past week, Seattle has signed two South American stars, João Paulo from Botafogo in Brazil and Yeimar Gómez Andrade from Unión de Sante Fe in Argentina, to strengthen the squad ahead of CCL.
FINAL PREPARATIONS: The team is in Mexico City, Mexico, for the second phase of preseason, training at altitude as they get acclimated to the conditions they'll face in CCL.
CONTINENTAL EXPERIENCE: Between Seattle’s newest signings and First Team regulars like Xavier Arreaga, Nicolás Lodeiro, Cristian Roldan and Stefan Frei, the Sounders boast plenty of experience fighting for glory in continental competitions.
GLOBAL SCALE: No MLS team has ever won CCL, a longstanding trend the Sounders hope to reverse in 2020. If they manage to win the regional competition, they’ll advance to the FIFA Club World Cup, where they’ll go head-to-head with some of the top clubs from around the world.
