Sounders Outclass Inter Miami in Leagues Cup Final as Post-Match Chaos Erupts
Seattle Sounders lifted the 2025 Leagues Cup on Sunday night, sweeping aside Inter Miami 3-0 in a fiery contest overshadowed by an ugly post-match brawl.
Alex Roldan was the hero. The right-back set the tempo in the first half with a pinpoint cross that allowed Osaze De Rosario to head home. Then, with the game still in the balance late on, Roldan stepped up from the penalty spot to double the lead. Calm. Composed. Clinical.
The Seattle Sounders destroyed Inter Miami to win the 2025 Leagues Cup final pic.twitter.com/1TYXPRAOiN
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 1, 2025
Paul Rothrock added a third in stoppage time, putting the game beyond doubt and securing Seattle’s ninth major title since entering Major League Soccer in 2009.
“This was about us making history again,” Sounders boss Brian Schmetzer said afterwards.
But what should have been a night of celebration turned sour. At the final whistle, tempers flared. Players clashed. Pushing, shoving—then more.
Miami forward Luis Suárez was at the centre of the storm. Cameras appeared to show him spitting towards a member of Seattle’s staff as order broke down.
Concacaf’s independent disciplinary committee is expected to review the incident. Sanctions could follow.
For Lionel Messi and Inter Miami, it was a painful evening. The Herons, who had hoped to secure their third major trophy since the Argentine’s arrival in 2023, fell flat.
They had their chances, Messi himself went close early in the second half, firing over from Suárez’s cut-back. Minutes later, Tadeo Allende missed a golden one-on-one.
Those wasted opportunities proved costly. In truth, Seattle were superior. Their energy, organisation and clinical finishing proved too much for Miami.
The victory not only delivered silverware but also ensured the Sounders a direct place in the Round of 16 at next year’s Concacaf Champions Cup.
Nights like these pic.twitter.com/lbJXJmRNPO
— Seattle Sounders FC (@SoundersFC) September 1, 2025
For Miami, the road is longer. They will enter that same tournament from the first round—unless they can claim the 2025 MLS Cup.
The final drew a record-breaking attendance of 69,314 at Seattle’s Lumen Field. It was the largest crowd for any Sounders game and the biggest in Leagues Cup history. Fans came for Messi, but they left talking about Seattle’s dominance.
This win marks Seattle’s second international honour, following their famous 2022 Concacaf Champions League triumph over Pumas UNAM.
For Inter Miami, the defeat stings. Messi’s aura wasn’t enough to save them on a night where American grit outshone South American flair.
