By Tony Álvarez
Seattle Sounders and Chivas de Guadalajara clash in Matchday 3 of Leagues Cup 2026 on Wednesday at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington. The Sounders’ title defense is still alive, but the hosts will need a big victory against one of Mexico’s most traditional teams to have a chance at the quarterfinals.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
- 1st meeting between the two clubs
- Record at Leagues Cup: Seattle Sounders (10-5), Chivas (2-6)
LAST FIVE GAMES
- Seatte Sounders:
- 1 Wins, 0 Draws, 4 Losses
- Chivas:
- 1 Win, 1 Draw, 3 Losses
MAIN STORYLINES:
- The Sounders are coming off a 3-0 win over Querétaro where they snapped a 7-game losing streak.
- Sounders must win in regulation and drástically improve its goal differential to strengthen its chances of advancing.
- Chivas de Guadalajara saw five of its players represent Mexico at the 2026 FIFA World Cup: Raúl Rangel, Luis Romo, Brian Gutiérrez, Armando González, and Roberto Alvarado.
- Chivas de Guadalajara is already eliminated from contention and will seek to depart with a victory.
KEY FACTORS:
- Seattle Sounders:
- Stefan Frei leads all players in the Leagues Cup with 19 saves.
- Paul Rothrock had two assists in the Sounders win over Querétaro.
- Sebastián Gómez scored and assisted in his first start with the first team.
- Chivas:
- Chivas failed to score despite recording 17 shots, including five on target.
- Roberto Alvarado has scored the teams only goal thus far in the tournament.
- Armando González, 23, is looking to score after finishing second in the Liga MX scoring charts in the Clausura 2026 (12 goals) and tied for first place in the Apertura 2025 (12 goals).
WHAT TO EXPECT?
As long as there’s a chance, there is hope, and that is enough for Seattle Sounders FC as they must defeat Chivas de Guadalajara to have an opportunity to advance to the Leagues Cup’s quarterfinals, in a game scheduled for Wednesday at Lumen Field at 10:30 p.m. ET on Apple TV.
Seattle ranks 14th among MLS teams in the Phase One standings and has a goal differential of 0. The club must defeat Chivas in regulation and needs to do so by as many goals as possible to position itself for a chance at a top-four finish, depending on other results.
Two players who could once again make a difference are Paul Rothrock and Sebastián Gómez. Both are products of the organization’s academy and were very important in the team’s last game against Gallos Blancos. Rothrock delivered two assists in the first half, one of them to Gómez, who scored and added an assist as well.
While playing at Lumen Field is always a huge advantage for the home team, there will be plenty of Chivas supporters in the stands, as usual. However, the home support has not been enough to lift the Mexican team in this tournament.
Guadalajara has only managed to score one goal in regulation thanks to Roberto Alvarado in its first game against LAFC. Chivas lost that game in a penalty shootout before dropping its second match, 1-0, to FC Dallas.
The Guadalajara side will look for a strong finish to its 2026 Leagues Cup run after falling short of advancing deeper in the tournament.
Polymarket bettors are leaning toward Chivas in what shapes up to be a closely contested matchup, giving the Liga MX side 43% of the market compared to 29% for Seattle.
