Sounders FC split two matches last week with FC Dallas and Chivas USA, maintaining its spot on the top of the Supporters’ Shield standings with four matches left to play in the regular season.
Seattle is tied with the LA Galaxy with 57 points, but holds the first tie-breaker over the Galaxy with 18 wins to 16 for LA. With both teams posting victories this weekend, they put distance between themselves and Real Salt Lake and FC Dallas in the Western Conference standings, while Vancouver Whitecaps FC jumped ahead of the Portland Timbers for the fifth and final playoff spot.
If the season ended today, here is a look at how the playoffs would look in the Western Conference.
Sounders FC vs. FC Dallas/Vancouver Whitecaps FC winner
Seattle holds the top seed and would have home-field advantage over the winner of the Knockout Round matchup between Dallas and Vancouver. FC Dallas is 1-0-1 against the Whitecaps thus far this season and they will meet for a third time on Saturday at BC Place. Sounders FC went 2-1-0 against Dallas and 0-1-1 against Vancouver, with the final meeting on October 10 at CenturyLink Field.
LA Galaxy vs. Real Salt Lake
The second-seeded Galaxy would hold home-field advantage against No. 3 Salt Lake. This season, the two West foes went 1-1-1 against each other. This matchup would mark the fourth time the two clubs have met in the postseason since 2009, when they played to a draw in the MLS Cup final, with RSL winning in a shootout to hoist the Philip F. Anschutz Trophy.
In the Eastern Conference, the New England Revolution has climbed to the No. 2 seed by going 6-1-0 in the last seven matches while Sporting Kansas City is 2-6-0 in its last eight. D.C. United is six points ahead of the pack, while the Columbus Crew and New York Red Bulls lead a tight race for the fourth and fifth playoff spots, with just seven points separating the fourth-seeded Crew from No. 8 Houston Dynamo.
D.C. United vs. Columbus Crew/New York Red Bulls winner
No. 1 D.C. would await the winner of the Knockout Round match between the Crew and Red Bulls. New York is 1-0-1 against the Crew and will host a third meeting on October 19. Columbus went 1-0-2 against D.C. this season, while United was 2-1-0 against the Red Bulls.
New England Revolution vs. Sporting Kansas City
The young core of the Revolution was bolstered by the recent addition of Jermaine Jones, who has triggered the aforementioned success for the second-seeded team in the East. Included in that is two victories over third-seeded Kansas City, completing the sweep of Sporting this season.
