Columbus Crew players celebrate a goal against the Seattle Sounders during the first half of the MLS Championship soccer match Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)COLUMBUS, Ohio – Lucas Zelarayán scored midway through the first half and added the clincher in the 82nd minute and the Columbus Crew won their second MLS Cup title, beating the defending champion Seattle Sounders 3-0 on Saturday night. Columbus claimed its first title since 2008 and denied Seattle a chance at being just the fourth back-to-back champions in league history. It was the first appearance in the final for Columbus since 2015 when the Crew were denied a title by the Portland Timbers and current Columbus coach Caleb Porter. Down 2-0 to Minnesota, the Sounders scored three times, including Gustav Svensson’s winner in stoppage time off a corner kick.

Seattle Sounders forward Will Bruin (17) shoots to score against Minnesota United during the second half of an MLS playoff Western Conference final soccer match, Monday, Dec. 7, 2020, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)SEATTLE – Gustav Svensson scored off a corner kick in the final moments of second-half stoppage time, and the Seattle Sounders beat Minnesota United 3-2 on Monday night to advance to the MLS Cup final. Seattle scored three times in the final 15 minutes of regulation and stoppage time to stun Minnesota and claim the Western Conference championship for the fourth time in the past five seasons. Will Bruin scored in the 75th minute to pull Seattle within 2-1 and set the stage for the wild final moments when the Sounders scored twice off corner kicks. But Svensson came through by rising above on the final corner kick and giving the Sounders the victory.