LAFC caps off regular season with loss to Seattle Sounders

The MLS regular season officially came to an end as Saturday marked Decision Day, with LAFC falling 2-1 to Seattle Sounders FC at Lumen Field. The Black & Gold completed their 2026 campaign 12-11-11, finishing as the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference and earning a first-round matchup with St. Louis City SC.

Under interim head coach Xavi Tamarit, the club went 1-2-3 to finish the year, with Saturday's defeat marking the end of a two-game win streak against Seattle. Los Angeles is now 15-8-4 all-time against the Seattle and just 2-5-3 on the road.

LAFC quickly allowed the Sounders to grab momentum in the match after some poor goalkeeping by Cabral Carter in the opening minute. His pass towards Ryan Porteus and Mathieu Choinière was intercepted by Cristian Roldan, who quickly fed Albert Rusnák across the middle for an easy score. 

Thirty minutes later, the Sounders doubled their lead. This time around, it was a close-range shot from Sebastian Gomez that deflected off LA's Eddie Segura and over the head of a helpless Carter to make it 2-0. Usual starting goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was held out of action with a back injury.

It marked the third consecutive game that LAFC had fallen down 2-0 to open a match. Once again, the momentum quickly slipped out of their favor and left an uphill battle ahead.

Despite a plethora of shot attempts and possession, the same issues continued to persist. A lack of cohesion, direction and intent left the Black & Gold looking uninspired as they fought to claw their way back into the match. Additionally, Sounders' goalkeeper Andrew Thomas made seven saves, his second-most in a single performance this year.

It was not until the 82nd minute that Segura managed to get LA on the board, cashing in off a well-executed set-piece play. Leo Walta's free kick was first met by the head of Ryan Porteous, who picked up the assist as Segura came flying in to deliver a goal-scoring header of his own.

It was the first goal of the season for the defender, who hadn't found the back of the net since June 2025.

There would be no equalizer for LA as Seattle picked up the three crucial points it needed to sneak into the postseason as the eighth seed. Their 46 points were just one behind LAFC's 47.

Forward Jacob Shaffelburg entered Saturday's defeat in the 72nd minute as a substitute for Armindo Sieb and exited just eight minutes later after taking a hard hit along the sideline. Tamarit said after the match that Shaffelburg was taken to the hospital, speculating that he might have sustained broken ribs.

Meanwhile, forward Denis Bouanga finished his season with 18 goals, falling just two short of becoming the first player in league history to score 20 or more in four consecutive seasons. He finished tied for sixth in goals, scoring the third-most in the Western Conference. Forward Son Heung-min finished tied for fourth in the assist category with 15.

Earning just a single victory since September 12, LAFC heads into the MLS Cup Playoffs in poor form. They'll face a St. Louis group that they split the season series with in 2026, dropping the most recent matchup 2-1 at Energizer Park on May 13. The two sides have never met in the postseason.