The Seattle Sounders are hosting Liga MX’s Cruz Azul on Wednesday in the first leg of their Round of 16 home-and-home series in the Concacaf Champions Cup. Here is everything you need to know:
WHEN AND WHERE: Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. PT at Lumen Field (TICKETS).
WHERE TO WATCH: The match will be available to watch on FOX Sports
CCC: The 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup is a 27-team continental tournament that grants a spot in the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup. The single-match final will be held on June 1.
CCC FORMAT: The Sounders are one of 10 Major League Soccer clubs participating in this year’s edition of the tournament. Twenty-two of the 27 teams begin play in Round One, with five clubs receiving a bye into the Round of 16. The full bracket can be found here.
HOW CRUZ AZUL QUALIFIED: Cruz Azul secured its 2025 CCC berth by finishing as runners-up in the 2024 Liga MX Clausura.
HOW THEY GOT HERE:
Sounders: Defeated Guatemala’s Antigua GFC 6-2 on aggregate in Round One.
Cruz Azul: Defeated Haiti’s Real Hope 7-0 on aggregate in Round One.
WHAT’S AT STAKE: The winner of this series will take on the winner of Club América-Chivas in the quarterfinals.
ABOUT CRUZ AZUL: Cruz Azul was founded in 1927 and is located in Mexico City.
Sounders FC will face Cruz Azul in the Round of 16 of the Concacaf Champions Cup. Match One of the series will take place on the EQC pitch at Lumen Field on March 5. Tickets are on sale now!
CCC ROYALTY: Cruz Azul is the second-most successful club in the region’s history (Club América), having won six Concacaf titles with its latest coming in 2014.
CURRENT FORM: Cruz Azul is currently sixth in the Liga MX Clausura with 18 points (5-2-3) through 10 matches.
PLAYERS TO KNOW:
- Giorgos Giakoumakis, F: Cruz Azul features an MLS flair with the Greek international joining from Atlanta United last summer for a reported fee of $10M. Giakoumakis, who had 22 goals and five assists in a season and a half in Major League Soccer, has nine goals and seven assists in 26 matches Liga MX.
- Mateusz Bogusz, M: The other big-time MLS name to jump to Cruz Azul, Bogusz joined from LAFC in January in another eight-figure move. The 23-year-old Polish international recorded 18 goals and 11 assists in 60 matches across two seasons in Los Angeles and recently scored his first goal for Cruz Azul.
- Chiquete Orozco, D: Cruz Azul splashed a large chunk of money defensively as well, signing the 23-year-old Mexican international center back from Chivas in January for another reported fee over $10M. Orozco made nearly 100 appearances in four years in Guadalajara.
