If rivalries are really born from repeated meetings in high-leverage matches, rather than merely geographical convenience, there’s a pretty good case to be made that the Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles FC are close to as good as it gets in MLS. The Sounders and LAFC have now met two straight years in the playoffs and every regular-season meeting seems to be a statement game for at least one of them.
Put this one in the latter category. Both the Sounders and LAFC are coming off season-opening wins in which they again look like two of the top teams in the Western Conference, again.