History of professional soccer in Seattle

Despite their winning record, the NASL points system meant Seattle was edged out of the final playoff spot on the last day of the season, and they finished in third place in the highly competitive Western Conference that year.

Important player signings included former English World Cup 1966 star Geoff Hurst and goalkeeper Tony Chursky who would lead the league with a 0.91 goals against average.

The club started slowly, losing 7 of their first 11 games; but a 10-5 tear placed them at 14-12 for the season, and fans continued to come out in large numbers, in part to see the team's first homegrown star, Seattle native and 1977 NASL Rookie of the Year Jimmy McAlister.

[25][26] Former coach Alan Hinton had acquired rights to the Sounders name after the club folded and began a campaign to bring an American Professional Soccer League (APSL; later the A-League) team to the city in 1992.

[60] During the debutant MLS season; Paul Allen, the owner of the NFL franchise, worked with the city to build a new football stadium for his team (today Lumen Field).

[68] Paul Allen, whose First and Goal company operated Qwest Field (formerly Seahawks Stadium), joined the duo later that year, making the fourth bid the most promising yet for the region.

Reserve player Kevin Forrest scored the only goal in the match as Seattle defeated the Rapids 1–0, securing their entry into the third round proper of the official cup competition as one of the eight teams representing MLS.

[106] The following week, in a quarterfinal match at Starfire, Sounders FC defeated visiting Kansas City 1–0 on a penalty kick in the 89th minute scored by Sebastien Le Toux.

[110] 2010 started off rough for the Sounders, first with a home loss to New York Red Bulls on April 2,[111] and subsequently relinquishing a two-goal lead against defending MLS Cup champions, Real Salt Lake at Rio Tinto.

The game appeared to be ending a scoreless tie until late substitute Michael Fucito scored his first career goal in 92nd minute of the match off a throw in from Brad Evans.

[118] The day after the lopsided defeat to Los Angeles, Sounders FC owner Adrian Hanauer announced a refund for all 32,000 season ticket holders for the embarrassment and indicated that changes were in the works for the club.

[130] In the U.S. Open Cup, Seattle won matches at Portland and at home against the Los Angeles Galaxy and Chivas USA before reaching the final, which they hosted at CenturyLink Field against the Columbus Crew.

[137] On October 4, 2011, Seattle won its third consecutive U.S. Open Cup, becoming the first club to do so in 42 years, as they defeated the Chicago Fire 2–0 in front of another tournament record crowd of 35,615 at CenturyLink Field.

[153] During the 2013 preseason, the Sounders signed their first homegrown player, right back DeAndre Yedlin,[154] veteran defender Djimi Traoré,[155] and forward Obafemi Martins, who bought his release clause from his Spanish club.

[176] Entering the playoffs as the top seed, Seattle defeated FC Dallas on the away goals rule and advanced to the Western Conference Championship to face the LA Galaxy once again.

[185] The playoff run would end in the next round, the Western Conference semifinals against FC Dallas, during a penalty shootout after both teams were tied on aggregate score after extra time in Frisco, Texas.

[208][209][210] In the playoffs, the Sounders beat the Vancouver Whitecaps and Houston Dynamo to win the Western Conference and return to the MLS Cup, once again facing Toronto at BMO Field.

The club signed a new Designated Player, Peruvian forward Raúl Ruidíaz, that month and began a long unbeaten streak that resulted in a playoff position in late August.

[226] The Sounders defeated FC Dallas 4–3 in the first round with a hat-trick from Jordan Morris, who had been named MLS Comeback Player of the Year following his return from an ACL tear.

[231] The Sounders played two regular season matches at home before MLS suspended all activities on March 12, 2020, due to the worsening COVID-19 pandemic, which had been affecting the Seattle area for several weeks.

[239] Minnesota took a 2–0 lead in the second half, but Seattle responded with three goals in the final 18 minutes to complete a comeback victory and secure a fourth MLS Cup appearance in five years.

[240] The Sounders faced the Columbus Crew in the 2020 MLS Cup final and lost 3–0 in front of 1,500 spectators at Mapfre Stadium on December 12—the latest calendar date to host a league match.

[241] Seattle opened the 2021 season with a 13-match unbeaten streak, setting a new MLS record in the process, despite missing Nicolas Lodeiro, Jordan Morris, Stefan Frei, and Raul Ruidiaz to long-term injuries.

[246] The team qualified for the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League as the best-performing MLS club without their own berth, replacing the slot reserved for the cancelled U.S. Open Cup.

[297] On January 11, 2013, Kaylyn Kyle, Teresa Noyola, Megan Rapinoe, Amy Rodriguez, Jenny Ruiz, Hope Solo, and Emily Zurrer were named to the team as part of the NWSL Player Allocation.

[303] During the 2013 NWSL Supplemental Draft, the team selected Nikki Krzysik, Lauren Barnes, Laura Heyboer, Liz Bogus, Michelle Betos and Kaley Fountain.

[305] Hope Solo would be away for the first part of the season after recovering from wrist surgery and Megan Rapinoe had already signed with French club Olympique Lyonnais from January to June and would miss at least nine games.

[306][307] After traveling to Japan in the preseason to play matches against defending L. League champion INAC Kobe Leonessa, Fukuoka J. Anclas, and Nojima Stella Kanagawa,[308] the Reign faced their first regular season match against the Chicago Red Stars at Benedictine University, in which Seattle's first college draft pick Christine Nairn scored the Reign's first goal of the season via a header off an assist from Liz Bogus.

[348] However, due to the increased costs and lengthier timeline associated with such a change, the Tacoma stadium plan fell out of favor, leaving the team's future location uncertain.

[350] OL Groupe, the parent company of top-level French club Olympique Lyonnais, purchased a majority stake in Reign FC in a transaction that closed in January 2020.