SDFC closes 2026 campaign with 1-0 defeat to Sporting Kansas City

SAN DIEGO — Saturday's 1-0 Decision Day defeat to Sporting Kansas City at Snapdragon Stadium wrapped up San Diego FC's 2026 season.

The Chrome & Azul were back at home for their season finale, hosting also playoff-eliminated side Sporting Kansas City for the pair's final matchday of 2026. 

SDFC came into Saturday with their last chance to leave the home supporters at Snapdragon Stadium with a positive result and victory, looking to avoid ending the season with a five-match winless streak on their home field. 

With these two sides’ earlier season matchup back on March 7 ending in a 1-0 away from home win for SDFC at Sporting Park, the season double and sweep was on the table for the Chrome & Azul. 

The first half of this Saturday's season finale saw a scoreless opening 45-minutes, with both sides unable to break the deadlock despite combining for 19 total shots and five on target. 

Both of these backlines ended the opening period as the top performers, seeing seven combined blocked shots to keep the match at 0-0. 

SDFC ended the first half dominating possession, finishing with over 70% of the ball. 

SDFC goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega had the highlight of the half, making a crucial save in the 29-minute to deny Sporting forward Stephen Afrifa’s clear scoring chance after being played through on goal. 

Sisniega’s goalkeeping heroics continued in the second half, blocking Sporting forward André Luiz’s one-on-one opening scoring chance to retain the score at 0-0 in the 62-minute. 

The visitors finally broke the scoreless tie in the 76-minute, with forward André Luiz winning the foul and converting from the penalty spot to give Kansas City the 1-0 advantage late in the match.  

SDFC were unable to find an equalizer with the remaining time left in the match as the full-time whistle blew, putting an end to the match and season for the Chrome & Azul. SDFC’s season finale finished in a 1-0 Snapdragon Stadium loss to Sporting Kansas City. 

Although conceding from the penalty spot, Pablo Sisniega finished Decision Day as SDFC’s top performer on the night, ending with five saves off multiple clear goal-scoring chances from Sporting Kansas City.  

Following the season finale defeat to Sporting Kansas City, SDFC head coach Mikey Varas spoke to the media about his team's struggles throughout the season, his confidence in the group's ability to bounce back and the disappointment of falling short of the fans' expectations. 

“It's not the season any of us wanted. At the same time, when things are good, like they were last year, they're never as good as you think they are. And when things are bad, they're never as bad as they seem.”

“Now we have some time to reflect, to rest, and to really challenge ourselves so that we come back stronger.” 

“I told them that I know that we're going to bounce back.
And I know it not because I'm saying it or because they're saying it, but because we had a lot of difficult moments this year, and Monday through Friday, these guys are showing up.” 

“I'm most disappointed with letting the fans down.” 

“They invest a lot of time, money, pride, and passion into coming here. 
And I know that when we win, we really make their weekends great, and when we don't, we don't.”

SDFC’s disappointing 2026 campaign finished with 38 points with a 9-win, 14-loss and 11-draw record. 

This followed last year’s outstanding inaugural season that ended in a top-seeded Western Conference finish that left the young club a game shy of an MLS Cup Final appearance.

As for the Chrome & Azul’s top performers, star forward Anders Dreyer finished the 2026 MLS campaign as the club's top scorer and assister with 15 goals and 13 assists. 

The three-way battle between the sticks for the SDFC starting spot at goalkeeper saw 20-year-old Duran Ferree lead the club in clean sheets (5) through 16 MLS appearances. 

Defender Manu Duah and Dreyer led the club in most games played (33) through the regular season, with the pair only missing out in one appearance, as Dreyer just edged out the young Ghanaian center back with more minutes played.