Arriola stars as Seattle Sounders top rivals Vancouver Whitecaps in first leg | OneFootball

VANCOUVER, Canada – The 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup continued with Seattle Sounders FC earning a 3-nil win over Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the First Leg of their Round of 16 series on Thursday at BC Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

The visitors got on the board right before halftime as they took advantage of a bad clearance and Jesus Ferreira connected with Paul Arriola for the opener in the 45’.

Seattle doubled its lead in the 58’ when Arriola knocked in a deflection off the goalkeeper to secure a brace in his first start for the Sounders in over a year.

Paul Rothrock delivered the dagger in the 70’ as he raced to a loose ball at the back post and put it away.

Seattle Sounders FC will host the Second Leg of the series next Wednesday at One Spokane Stadium in Spokane, Washington, USA. The winner on aggregate will advance to the Quarterfinals.

Post Match – Data

• Paul Arriola scored his fourth Concacaf Champions Cup goal since joining Seattle Sounders, averaging 0.8 goals per match in the competition (4 goals in 5 games). Among Sounders players with at least three appearances in the tournament since 2017, only Pedro de la Vega has a higher scoring rate (3 goals in 3 matches, 1.0 per game).

• Seattle Sounders are unbeaten in their last three Concacaf Champions Cup matches against Vancouver Whitecaps since the format change in 2008 (W2 D1). The previous meeting came in 2015, when the U.S. side defeated the Canadian club 3-0 in the group stage.

• This was Seattle Sounders’ largest away victory in the Concacaf Champions Cup since at least 2008. Previously, the club had recorded a two-goal margin away from home twice: against Caledonia AIA in 2012 and Antigua in 2025, both by a 3-1 scoreline.

• Jesús Ferreira reached 16 goal involvements for Seattle Sounders in MLS and the Concacaf Champions Cup (4 goals, 12 assists). Since joining the club in 2025, he ranks third in combined goal contributions in those competitions, behind Danny Musovski (22: 17G + 5A) and Albert Rusnák (26: 14G + 12A).

• Sebastián Berhalter led Vancouver Whitecaps in chances created (2), tied with Thomas Müller and Tate Johnson. The midfielder now has 14 shot-creating passes in the 2026 season (MLS and Concacaf Champions Cup), the most on the team.

• Paul Rothrock reached 12 goals for Seattle Sounders across MLS and the Concacaf Champions Cup. In the 12 matches in which he has scored, the team remains unbeaten (W9 D3). Tonight marked his first goal in the Concacaf Champions Cup.