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Seattle Sounders FC officially announced today that they will be opening CenturyLink Field to full capacity for four matches in 2019, starting with their late June game against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Single-match and four-game tickets are now on sale for the matches. Tickets will range in price from $27 to $33 per match for seats in sections 306, 308, 309, 310 and 312.
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The Sounders have not hosted formal full-stadium games in the past two years, instead opting to essentially leave stadium capacity uncapped and opening additional sections as demand warranted. Notably, 2018 was the first year since 2010 where Seattle failed to have a single home game with attendance above 50,000 fans, and only one match — a June 30 loss against Portland — surpassed 45,000. By limiting the number of matches with additional capacity the club will hope to reverse that trend this season. The Sounders have announced crowds of about 37,500 for their past three home games. If that trend holds, the Sounders would likely need to average about 50,000 fans per full-stadium match to improve on last year’s average attendance.
”We’re excited to bring back full-bowl matches this season,” said Sounders FC Owner Adrian Hanauer in a team release. “Our fans are truly the most passionate and dedicated in the league, which has led to the team’s historic success when playing at home. Opening additional seating in the upper bowl adds another level of intensity at CenturyLink Field that our club has benefited from in key moments over the years. I know our guys are already looking forward to playing in front of those crowds later this year.”
Similar to 2016, the most recent year when the team hosted full-stadium games, the opponents in this year’s games include three marquee matchups against both Cascadia rivals (June 29 vs. Vancouver, July 21 vs Portland) and the LA Galaxy (Sept. 1), as well as the regular-season finale against Minnesota United on October 6. June 29 is also the club’s annual Pride Match.
Historically the Sounders have had great success in matches where they open the full stadium, with a 22-4-5 all-time record when attendance is above 45,000 fans.