SDFC snaps two-month winless streak with rout of Austin FC at Snapdragon Stadium
The Major League Soccer scheduling gods finally did San Diego FC a solid, sending the ultimate slumpbuster to Snapdragon Stadium in the midst of a 10-game winless streak.
Austin FC is a tough out at home, losing only one of six games this season.
Not so much on the road, where they extended their winless streak to 11 games after SDFC did what it hasn't in more than two months and actually won, 5-0 on Wednesday night in the kind of dominant display that took them to the Western Conference final last season.
The only negative is that more people didn't see it. The crowd for the weeknight 6:30 p.m. kickoff - announced at a generous 19,194 - was the smallest for an MLS game at 35,000-capacity Snapdragon Stadium in the club's two-year history by nearly 3,000.
But they won't quibble. A performance like this had been bubbling for weeks, even if the results didn't reflect it.
Their last win in any competition: 3-2 against Toluca on March 11 in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Their last MLS win: 1-0 against Sporting KC on March 7.
"Everybody feels better when you win," coach Mikey Varas said. "But after the last few matches, this is not an overnight thing. This was building little by little, the performances were getting better and better. You could feel the group was building momentum.
"We were clean on the ball and at the same time vertical with it. It was a good balance between having strong possession and controlling the match but at the same time hurting the opponent."
And they did, scoring twice in the opening 17 minutes and three more in the second half with savvy ball possession followed by incisive passes in the final third.
It was 1-0 after eight minutes on an intricate sequence from Luca Bombino to Marcus Ingvartsen to Onni Valikari to David Vazquez, who lunged for the ball with Austin defender Jon Gallagher and watched it fortuitously roll into the net. After examining replays, Vazquez was awarded his first career MLS goal instead of it being deemed an own-goal.
Anders Dreyer made it 2-0 just nine minutes later with the kind of skill that's come to be expected from the league's 2025 MLS Newcomer of the Year. Dreyer received a pass in the right channel, cut back onto his preferred left foot and curled a low shot into the far-left corner.
Midfielder Pedro Soma, starting for the first time since March, made it 3-0 with a long-range blast from the left side early in the second half. Ingvartsen made it 4-0 in the 80th minute, and Vazquez added his second goal in injury time.
"That early 3-0 in the second half helped us a little, especially in this period where later in the game we've thrown away our win," said forward Marcus Ingvartsen, referring to the team's recent habit of surrendering late goals. "It allows us to play with confidence and keep doing what we're doing all game.
"It's was nice to see a lot of goals scored."
In all, through injuries and midweek rest for veterans, Varas started five players who are 20 or younger.
Soma is 19 and was named man of the match. Goalkeeper Duran Ferree, who made a big save with the score at 1-0, is also 19. So is Luca Bombino, who started at right back instead of his usual left side. Vazquez and starting center back Manu Duah are both 20.
"The guys are dancing right now," Soma said. "David (Vazquez) is the guy on Aux, so he's blasting some music. We didn't change anything. It's something we've been consistently working on the last few games. We deserved to win. We felt that.
"Today, we felt like we were ourselves again. We're very happy."
SDFC has two more home games - Saturday against FC Cincinnati and May 23 against the Vancouver Whitecaps - before the MLS takes a seven-week break for the World Cup. Over the ensuing two months, they play only one MLS game at home, July 25 against FC Dallas.
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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 9:13 PM.