At this time of year, it usually takes two teams in the MLS playoff hunt to kick up a major media fuss.
A club led by someone chasing historic scoring records is an exception. (C’mon, Chris Wondolowski; You can do it!)
Oh! And you know what else draws out the high-profile types and creates a media ruckus? A night that draws 66,000 and change for a match between rivals, even if one has long, long since been eliminated from any playoff conversation.
That match, last night in Seattle, didn’t just draw the ESPN cameras, it drew the commissioner. And he was more or less just there to watch. What he told reporters at halftime, courtesy of The Seattle Times:
I’m not even here on official duties tonight. I’m here just to experience it. I knew this would be a historic event as it was leading into this weekend. I was in New York at the Red Bulls game last night. I spoke with (Sounders majority owner Joe Roth) and I said, ‘Where are you?’ He said, ‘We’re at 67,000,’ and I hopped on a plane this morning and I’m going home on a red-eye in about an hour. It’s just another one of these great moments. We’ve been saying that a lot lately, but it’s really true. To be out in that stadium walking around on the field and seeing the fans — also seeing the Portland fans, 1,200 of them come up the freeway — is a great moment for the sport. Very exciting.”
