The Sounders are bringing the MLS Cup back to Seattle if Roger Levesque’s prediction holds true.
Levesque dropped by our big GeekWire Gala party on Wednesday and we had a chance to catch up with the former Sounders star who retired in 2012 and recently took a job as a business development manager at Seattle sports tech startup Vicis.
The Sounders face Toronto on Saturday at 1 p.m. PT for an MLS Cup rematch, one year after Seattle won its first title in the Canadian city.
Levesque predicts another Sounders victory — a 2-0 win — but noted that “in championship games, you throw everything out the window.”
“The Sounders have momentum, but they’re playing in Toronto,” he added.
Levesque said this season has been “a little less of a roller coaster” than last year.
“They’ve been consistent and playing their best soccer at the most important time of the year,” he said. “The guys battled a little bit of injuries but have done so well and are winning games that they need to.”
Computers tend to disagree with Levesque. EA Sports ran a MLS Cup simulation and came out with Toronto winning 2-1.
Giovinco free kick ✔️
Dempsey header ✔️
________ game-winner ✔️An @EASPORTSFIFA #MLSCup simulation! https://t.co/Pgja2cx5UY
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) December 7, 2017
The match also features a high stakes bet between two mayors:
The big bet has been set with Mayor Jenny Durkan for Saturday's #MLSCup game between Toronto FC & Seattle FC. I'm betting on the Reds to win! Come on you Reds! #TFCLive pic.twitter.com/K7xURc9nb3
— John Tory (@JohnTory) December 8, 2017
Levesque, a Stanford grad who played nearly 10 seasons for the Sounders — both when Seattle was a USL club and later as the team joined MLS — spent the past two years as the club’s director of community outreach. Now he’s working at Vicis, a Seattle startup that has created a high-tech football helmet worn by NFL and NCAA players across the nation.
In his new role, Levesque will look into how Vicis’ head protection innovation can be applied in other sports, particularly with younger players.
“I’m passionate about the positive influence participation in sports has on young people and keeping kids safe is part of that,” he noted.
Vicis, which spun out of the University of Washington and has raised nearly $50 million to date — Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson recently invested — has players from more than 15 NFL teams and 20 NCAA programs wearing its helmet this football season. Vicis also last month announced the general availability of its helmet to any football players at the high school level and above. Athletes can pre-order the helmet, with an expected delivery by July 31 of next year for orders placed by March 31 — in time for the 2018 football season.