In the final ratings post, to recap the Sounders 2025 season, I’ve compiled some stats to see the big picture in 2025. The Sounders played 50 matches spanning MLS, Concacaf Champions Cup, Club World Cup, and Leagues Cup competitions. A few trends emerged, most notably a surge in team performance directly after the Club World Cup.
Team in 2025
2025 Team Match Average: 5.98
MLS Regular Season: 5.71
MLS Playoffs: 5.97
Concacaf Champions Cup: 5.87
Club World Cup: 5.79
Leagues Cup: 6.47
| Date | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| 2/19-3/29 | 5.96 | CCC (4) MLS (6) |
| 4/5-5/28 | 5.88 | MLS (10) |
| 6/1-7/19 | 5.79 | CWC (3) MLS (7) |
| 7/26-8/31 | 6.40 | LC (6) MLS (4) |
| 9/13-11/8 | 5.90 | MLS (7) MLS Playoffs (3) |
Highest Rated Matches, all comps (date):
7.40: 3-0 Miami Leagues Cup Final (8/31)
7.38: 7-0 Cruz Azul Leagues Cup Group Stage (7/31)
6.63: 5-2 LAFC (3/8)
In 2024, the highest rated match was also in Leagues Cup, at close to the same date.
Lowest Rated Matches all comps (date):
4.69: 0-3 Vancouver away (6/8)
5.00: 0-3 San Diego away (4/5)
5.07: 0-3 LAFC away (5/14)
Last season our lowest rated match was also on the road versus Vancouver.
Players in 2025
2025 High Ratings by player (occurrences):
10 – none
9 – Nouhou (1), Yeimar (1), A. Roldan (1), de la Vega (1), Ferreira (1), Musovski (1), Leyva (1)
8 – C. Roldan (15), Rusnák (10), Yeimar (10), Vargas (4), Ferreira (4), Musovski (4), De Rosario (3), A. Roldan (3), de la Vega (3), Frei (2), Rothrock (2), Thomas (2), Morris(2), Nouhou (2), Ragen (2), Kee-hee (1), Arriola (1), Kossa-Rienzi (1), Brunell (1)
Morris led the team in 2024 with nine “8” ratings. Cristian had almost double that this season.
Most MOTM:
7 - C. Roldan, Rusnák
5 - Nouhou
4 - Musovski
3 - de la Vega
2025 Low Ratings by player (occurrences):
3 – Nouhou (1), Musovski (1), Bell (1)
4 – Musovski (5), Rothrock (3), Kossa-Rienzi (3), Bell (3), Nouhou (2), João Paulo (2), Minoungou (2), Baker-Whiting (2), Frei (1), Ragen (1), Yeimar (1), C. Roldan (1), Varga s(1), Kee-hee (1), Thomas (1), Brunell (1)
2025 Top Cumulative Performances by Competition (appearances):
Top MLS Playoff performers: 7.68 - C. Roldan (3), 7.00 - Morris (3), Ragen (3), Rusnák (3), Thomas (1), 6.68 - Ferreira (3).
Top Concacaf Champions Cup Performers: 7.68 - de la Vega (3), 6.68 - Rusnák (3), 6.50 - A. Roldan (4), 6.33 - C. Roldan (3), 6.250 - Arriola (4)
Top Club World Cup Performers: 7.33 - C. Roldan (3), 7.00 - Ragen (3), Rusnák (3), 6.33 - Vargas (3).
Top Leagues Cup Performers: 8.00 - Yeimar (5), 7.167 - Thomas (6), 7.00 - Ferreira (6), Ragen (6), C. Roldan (6), Vargas (6), Kent (2), 6.83 - De Rosario (6), A. Roldan (6)
Side note: The top five highest rated Sounders in all competitions since I’ve done ratings (2015-2026) are: Obafemi Martins (6.92), Nico Lodeiro (6.74), Clint Dempsey (6.72), Chad Marshall (6.68), and Víctor Rodríguez (6.67).
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Referees in 2025
Referee number of appearances:
3x - Malik Badawi, Allen Chapman, Ricardo Fierro
2x - 11 referees handled two games this season
Referees High Ratings average (appearances):
9 - Yael Falcón Pérez (1), Katia García (1),
8 - Cristian Garay (1)
7 - Adonal Escobedo (1)
Referees Low Ratings average (appearances):
2.50 - Lorenzo Hernandez (2)
3.00 - Steffon Dewar (1), Elijio Arreguin (1)
Referee Comments:
With a lot of international competitions this season, 2025 brought some new referees to the Sounders. Seattle was happy to see Yael Falcón Pérez, who was excellent in the match against Atletico Madrid in Club World Cup, equaling the outstanding work from the opening match of Concacaf Champions Cup, when Katia García and her all-female team proved excellent in Antigua.
The two-headed monster of Elijio Arreguin and Steffon Dewar earned terrible “3” ratings in their only outings, and oddly enough both performances came in Sounders wins – the first versus Sporting Kansas City and the second against Santos Laguna. Both referees refused to call fouls, and then reversed course and gave a lot of cards as overcompensation. When the foul count is 22-8 with the other team called for nearly three times as many as your team, yet you get 70 percent of the yellow cards, something is off.
Neither of these two referees did as poorly as Lorenzo Hernandez, who takes the inglorious top spot for not one but two terrible referee performances, both in MLS play. Seattle’s introduction to this referee came against St. Louis in a 4-1 win, as Hernandez had no control of the match, didn’t use VAR well, and failed to adequately do his job. He made multiple game-defining incorrect calls, like refusing to call a blatant hand ball even after looking at the monitor. No one on the field quite knew what was happening or why. His second poor outing was against Colorado later in the season. He went into halftime with five total fouls called, but when the clock hit 70 minutes, he reached for a card more times than Brian Schmetzer clicks his pen in a press release. He gave out eight cards in the final minutes in an absurd second half, where Hernandez was on camera more than any player.
Quick hitters:
Last year’s worst referee (Allen Chapman) was just okay this year (5, 5, 6).
The international referees were better than the domestic ones. Overall referee ratings by competition: CWC - 7.00, CCC - 5.5, LC - 5.33, MLS - 5.14.
Referee outings by Rosendo Mendoza (5, 3) and Jair Marrufo (4) reminded us they are still names you want to avoid on gameday sheets.
Consistent referee Guido Gonzales Jr. rose up in the lifetime ratings to 29th overall with solid “6” and “7” ratings in 2025.
Realio’s Recap
2025 had a little bit of everything. There were the typical injuries, struggles, and long runs in various tournaments. Some young players showed up in big moments, and the usual suspects continued to illustrate why they’ve earned so much longevity in Seattle. Throughout this season, the team displayed its roster depth as they navigated multiple competitions, with position battles and coverage across the field. Club World Cup was a sparkplug moment for Seattle, as they went on their best 10-match run of the season immediately after, even though results against the tough international giants didn’t go their way. This positive run included the Leagues Cup, a magical span of games that Seattle dominated throughout, ending as the winner. Lifting that trophy was the highlight of the season, and that whole competition was just plain fun.
What I liked: Seattle improved their offense and became consistently dynamic in ways rarely seen before by a Sounders team. They scored 90 goals this year, a massive improvement from last season. Danny Musovski scored double digit goals, while others like Osaze De Rosario showed great potential. Paul Rothrock arrived. The usual high performers such as Albert Rusnák and Yeimar did their thing, and they were able to score in more diverse ways. They were devastating on the counter, with more speed complementing playmakers able to transition. They found success on set pieces, varying service. They brought numbers into the attack, finding success in prime assist zones. Perhaps most importantly, their dynamic players made a difference, whether it was Pedro de la Vega showing his class and creative ability, Jesús Ferreira combining as a second playmaker to help break down bunkered defenses, or Jackson Ragen pushing into the attack via long, releasing balls. Seattle had a creative offense for the first time in years – one that didn’t rely on a single key piece, but a true flexible system. That meant guys like Snyder Brunell could score in his first two appearances, or Georgi Minoungou could give Seattle even more ways to beat the competition.
What I didn’t like: The Sounders season ended too early, and by the slimmest of margins. If each tournament was a season, Seattle had one good season out of five. A dominant performance in Seattle against Cruz Azul should have sent them to Mexico with a strong lead during Concacaf Champions Cup. Instead, they went down to Estadio Azteca with a 0-0 scoreline; that brought too much pressure to be great on the road in a tough environment, and they couldn’t pull it off. Similarly, in the Club World Cup, Seattle played well and deserved better results, but fell just short, ultimately bowing out of the tournament without managing a point. Finally, after a middling MLS regular season, they dominated yet still managed to lose two shootouts and were a first-round failure in MLS playoffs, getting knocked out while not losing a game in regulation and outscoring Minnesota 7-5 over the three-match playoff. Each of these seasons within the season had a chance to prove true greatness, and the Sounders fell agonizingly short each time.
Moving forward: We must unequivocally acknowledge the Sounders 2025 MVP and genuine team leader: Cristian Roldan. Not only did he take a colossal leap forward in his technical and tactical development as a defensive midfielder, but his stellar success resonated through every competition the team entered. This high-level performance led to his well-deserved call-up to the U.S. national team over the summer. Cristian distinguished himself as the highest-rated player on the squad, the uncontested leader, the model of consistency, and the heart, soul and engine of the team’s effort. Looking ahead to 2026, the narrative is clear: this is Cristian’s team. Their ultimate ability to achieve success will depend on his continued, elevated standard of play. While the roster boasts impressive depth at all positions, the ceiling for Seattle’s season will ultimately be determined by how far Cristian Roldan can carry them.
The outlook for 2026 bears a striking resemblance to the solid foundation laid in 2025. The roster remains remarkably stable, retaining a core group of proven winners and veteran talent (with a moment of silence for the departure of Danny Leyva, whose contributions will be missed). This veteran-heavy squad is expected to meet high, perhaps even championship-level, expectations for positive results in all the competitions they enter. However, the most compelling question for 2026 is critical: Which players will emerge as the difference-makers? Who possesses the quality to transform the "almost" success that characterized 2025 into a definitive, triumphant 2026, a season in which Seattle competes fiercely at every opportunity and converts those opportunities into trophies? Finding that elite performance will determine whether 2026 becomes an all-time great season, or merely a repeat of last year’s promise.
