| 2009 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Match ticket for the Sounders' first game in Major League Soccer | |||
| General manager | Adrian Hanauer | ||
| Head coach | Sigi Schmid | ||
| Stadium | Qwest Field | ||
| Major League Soccer | Conference: 3rd Overall: 4th | ||
| MLS Cup Playoffs | Conference Semifinals | ||
| U.S. Open Cup | Winners | ||
| Top goalscorer | Fredy Montero (12) | ||
| Highest home attendance | All: 66,848 (Aug. 5 vs Barcelona) League: 33,108 (Oct. 24 vs. Dallas) Playoffs: 35,807 (Oct. 29 vs. Houston)[1] | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 28,548 (Mar. 28 vs. Salt Lake)[1] | ||
| Average home league attendance | 30,943[2] | ||
| Biggest win | League: 3–0 vs. New York RB (Mar. 19)[1] | ||
| Biggest defeat | League: 0–4 at San Jose (Aug. 2)[1] | ||
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The 2009 season was Seattle Sounders FC's first in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top flight of American soccer. It was the 29th season played by a professional team bearing the Sounders name, which was chosen for the MLS expansion team by a fan vote. An MLS franchise was awarded to a group from Seattle in 2007, including Adrian Hanauer, the owner of the second-division incarnation of the Sounders.
The Sounders hired head coach Sigi Schmid, who had won the MLS Cup with the Columbus Crew in 2008, and retained Hanauer as general manager. The club made their home debut on March 19, 2009, at Qwest Field against MLS Cup runners-up New York Red Bulls and won 3–0. During their inaugural season, the Sounders set MLS records for attendance, averaging 30,943 per match; the highest attendance of 66,848—a Washington state record for soccer—was recorded on August 5 during a friendly against FC Barcelona.
Seattle won the U.S. Open Cup, defeating D.C. United 2–1 in the final in Washington, D.C. The club finished third in the Western Conference and became the first MLS expansion team to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs since 1998. In the first round of the playoffs, they were defeated in the Conference Semifinals by the Houston Dynamo. Colombian forward Fredy Montero scored 12 goals and was the team's top goalscorer; four Sounders players were also named to the All-Star Game roster.
- ^ a b c d "Seattle Sounders FC Performance Stats – 2009–10". ESPN. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ "Sounders FC set all-time attendance mark" (Press release). MLSNet.com. October 25, 2009. Archived from the original on January 19, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2009.