[MLS] Striker Blaise N'Kufo has signed with the Seattle Sounders and will join the second-year MLS club after the World Cup, at which he is expected to represent Switzerland.

The 34-year-old N'Kufo will finish the 2009-2010 season at Dutch FC Twente and then join the Sounders in July on a free transfer. He recently made a trip to Seattle and met with Sounders general manager Adrian Hanauer and head coach Sigi Schmid.

“Adrian gave me a very good impression about the club. I have a really good feeling about the club and the people involved with the club. That's why I chose Seattle. I'm really happy to come to this club,” Nkufo said. “Sigi likes playing football and he has experience with European soccer players. That's another reason I chose to come. He gave me a good feeling.”

Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nkufo moved to Switzerland at a young age. He has played for clubs in Switzerland, Qatar, Germany and the Netherlands.

The Sounders had hoped to sign Nkufo, who has 27 caps for Switzerland, this winter from Twente.

“You’d always like to add a player at the beginning of the season," Schmid said, "but because of how our calendar works and the way the calendar works internationally, that’s not always possible. But it’s better to add him in July than to not add him at all."

N'Kufo will be available for the CONCACAF Champions League in which Seattle will compete in 2010.