FC Cincinnati are back in action on Saturday night as they continue one of the busiest months in club history and play their eighth of nine matches in August. This time, Seattle Sounders FC come to town for a battle with a Western Conference side and bring a degree of desperation to the table.
The Orange and Blue will be looking to extend their four-game win streak at home on Saturday night when things kick off, but Seattle will be looking to break an eight-game losing streak that has left the Sounders without a win in league play since May.
Despite the poor run of form that has befallen their opponents this weekend, FC Cincinnati is preparing for a challenging game against a club that has been one of the most successful in the league for the better part of a decade and, despite their struggles, always comes prepared for a fight.
“They're plagued with injuries. That's always difficult to manage,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said of the Sounders ahead of Saturday’s game. “The one thing that I've always admired with (Seattle Head Coach Brian Schmetzer) and their teams is when they've gone on the road, or it's been a quick turnaround, typically, in the past, it hasn't been with poor results. They've been winning for a long time, and he will have a group ready to perform.
The Sounders could be missing as many as eight players from their lineup due to long-term injuries, and have had to dig deeper and deeper into their depth and club reserves to address the problem. In the past, that has been a strength of Seattle’s: the ability to keep their same level despite individual or mass changes to the lineup. But right now, that hasn’t led them to results.
“That's always something that I notice from a Seattle team coached by Brian (Schmetzer), and that's what our guys have to be aware of. I know the results aren't going their way, we all do, but that doesn't mean the game gets easier,” Noonan continued. “They are playing with a sense of urgency to get a result. Anytime you play a game like that, it's tricky because there could be rotation. There could be opportunities for who's on the field, but we have to be prepared for different things, and we have to be prepared for a team that's going to fight.”
The match against Seattle Sounders comes at the end of a double-match week in Cincinnati, where The Orange and Blue will look to continue their home winning streak and their overall stretch of strong results at TQL Stadium. In 2026, FC Cincinnati is 11-3-1 at home across all competitions and 7-2-1 in MLS action.
At the beginning of the year, Pat Noonan and FC Cincinnati players alike all highlighted the importance of winning at home as a path to success in 2026. And while they have seen improved outcomes this season compared to the last two, Noonan still feels there is more improvement to make and that they can go even further in making TQL Stadium a fortress against enemy success.
“Results make it feel that way, but I think we can perform better,” Noonan said of the perceived improvements in home performance this year. “Wednesday (against NYCFC) was a good indication of that. Where, of course, NYC is a strong team, and the result went in our favor. But how are we more dominant in our play and in making teams uncomfortable? So I'm sure every team would love to say that, but we do feel that we need to make TQL Stadium a harder place for opponents to come play.”
“Part of (FCC’s success so far) is our fan base. Every time we have a home game, the presence of our fans is different, and so we need to take advantage of that, reward that, and just be more complete in our play,” Noonan continued. “We didn't have enough home wins last year, and it's trending in a better direction. But the play can be even better.”
FC Cincinnati hit the road for their next test after this one, traveling to Geodis Park to face Nashville SC for a match on Saturday, August 29, to close out a busy August. They then return to TQL Stadium the following weekend to take on D.C. United at 7:30p.m on Saturday, September 5.
FC Cincinnati vs Seattle Sounders FC – Saturday, August 22, 2026 – 7:30 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
Watch/Stream (English/Spanish): Apple TV
English Local Radio: Fox Sports 1360
Spanish Local Radio: La Mega 101.5 FM
History vs Sounders
FC Cincinnati and Seattle Sounders FC meet for just the fourth time ever this Saturday at
TQL Stadium, with the two sides bringing in a 1-1-1 record against each other. The Sounders were Cincinnati’s first-ever MLS opponent back on March 2, 2019.
The Sounders come to Cincinnati this weekend for just the second time, for the first time since March 11, 2023 when the Orange and Blue defeated Seattle 1-0 with Brenner’s 63rd minute goal serving as the match winner.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
(Courtesy of *FC Cincinnati Communications*)
West Coast Dreaming – Under Head Coach Pat Noonan, FC Cincinnati are 19-5-6 against Western Conference opponents in MLS play. FC Cincinnati defeated Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the San Jose Earthquakes in the prior two home matches within the past month against Western foes.
Home Cooking – FC Cincinnati have made TQL Stadium a fortress in 2026, posting a 7-2-1 MLS record and 11-3-1 record in all competitions. Wednesday’s win over NYCFC secured the second-longest home win streak in FCC’s MLS history of four consecutive wins, behind only the club’s historic 10-match home win streak to start the 2023 season.
Just keep scoring – FC Cincinnati’s 48 goals in MLS play this season co-lead MLS (Inter Miami CF, 48). Entering Matchday 21, no other club has scored more than 40 times. Additionally, the club’s 30 goals scored at home lead MLS (2nd: Nashville SC, 29 home goals). The Orange and Blue are averaging 3.00 goals per game at TQL Stadium.
The Year of Bucha – FC Cincinnati’s Pavel Bucha has been a reliable staple for FC Cincinnati over the past three seasons, but 2026 has been a breakout year in goal contributions for the Czech international.
Bucha’s 13 MLS goal contributions (5 G, 8 A) and 15 in all competitions (7 G, 8 A) have already set new career highs for himself with the club. On Wednesday, Pavel Bucha became just the fourth player in FC Cincinnati’s all-time history to reach 20+ goals and 20+ assists (Luciano Acosta, Evander, Emmanuel Ledesma).
Scouting Seattle Sounders FC (7-9-3, 24 Points, 12th in the Western Conference, L-L-L-L-L)
The Seattle Sounders come to Cincinnati this weekend in the midst of what can only be described as not only one of the most challenging moments of the season for their opponents but also, perhaps, one of the most challenging in the club's storied history. The Sounders have lost their last eight MLS matches, making their last point earned in MLS league play coming from a victory in early May.
After starting the season in a strong fashion, winning seven of their first 11 matches and only outright losing one of those, the Sounders have been bit by one of the harshest injury bugs in recent memory, losing as many as eight key pieces to long term injury this season, forcing the struggling side to dig deeper and deeper into their depth chart and second team to fill the minutes.
Two of the Sounders' three Designated Players, Pedro De Le Vega and Jordan Morris, have been out for over a month. U22 defender Nikola Petkovic is out for the year with an ACL tear, and others on the match availability report of late are Hassani Dotson and Christian Roldan. Along with Morris, Seattle Sounders Head Coach Brian Schmetzer has indicated there is optimism that those three (Dotson and Roldan) could return for this game in some capacity.
Further away from action are stars and starters like Paul Arriola, who is at least a month away from returning; Jesús Ferreira, whose return is unclear but whose injury was described as “not a good one”; and Yiemar, who was given a four- to six-week estimate on July 31st.
The final situation to consider, and the one without clarity going into this one, is that of starting centerback Jackson Regan, who exited Wednesday’s game against Austin FC with an injury. That being said, Schmetzer indicated postgame that Regan’s exit was more precautionary than anything, so he will likely be available in some capacity.
That leaves Seattle without, or potentially without, two DPs, a U22, four starting defenders, three starting attackers and a talismanic midfielder for this weekend's match at TQL Stadium.
Remaining available for Schmetzer’s side is DP forward Albert Rusnák, who is now in his 10th MLS season. The Slovakia international has earned nine goal contributions this season. Since joining Seattle in 2022 after starting his MLS tenure with Real Salt Lake, Rusnák has been a key contributor to the club's success – lifting both the Concacaf Champions Cup and the Leagues Cup.
In net for Seattle is Andrew Thomas, who joined the Sounders as a young player in 2021 and grew into the starting job over his six years with the club – fully taking over this season after making a combined 15 starts over the last two years. Thomas has earned five clean sheets and made 66 saves in 19 starts this MLS season.
With so many injuries, some other figures on this roster have made themselves more prominently known as well. Winger Paul Rothrock leads the team in goals this season with five, and defender Nouhou has become a staple in the lineup, leading the team in minutes by an outfielder. Homegrown player Snyder Brunell is also a reliable contributor. The midfielder, 19, is one of just three players for the Seattle Sounders to appear in all 19 MLS matches for the club this year. Brunell recently gained a bit of national notoriety when he was invited to join the US Men’s National Team as a guest player for World Cup training earlier this summer.
The aforementioned Head Coach Brian Schmetzer leads the side. In addition to being one of the longest-tenured coaches in the league's history, Schmetzer is a living Sounders legend. The Seattle native first joined the Sounders as a player in 1980 and played for the team in both indoor and outdoor settings for 15 years. He then rejoined the club as Head Coach in 2002, when the club played in the USL. Then, when the Seattle Sounders made the jump to Major League Soccer, Schmetzer stayed on board as an assistant under MLS legend and namesake of the Coach of the Year award, Sigi Schmid, who was named Head Coach for the club in their inaugural MLS year.
Schmetzer was then elevated to Head Coach of the side in 2016 when Schmid retired, and he has remained in the role ever since. Schmetzer has now coached over 400 games at the helm of the Seattle Sounders and has led them to two MLS Cups, a Concacaf Champions Cup, a Leagues Cup, and four Western Conference Championships in his tenure.
This season, the Seattle Sounders have played a 4-2-3-1 formation.
