Forward Anders Dreyer’s second goal of the season sealed the shutout win at Sporting Park
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (Saturday, March 7, 2026) – San Diego FC (SDFC) defeated Sporting Kansas City 1-0 at Sporting Park to remain unbeaten in the 2026 MLS Regular Season. The win marked the third-straight victory to open the season, as well as the 11th straight regular season match unbeaten on the road. Forward Anders Dreyer scored his second goal of the 2026 season and goalkeeper Duran Ferree made three saves, including two in the last ten minutes, to preserve the Club’s third straight clean sheet this season.
Dreyer opened the scoring in the 39th minute of the match, finishing a left-footed shot from just outside the top of the 18-yard-box for his second goal of the 2026 campaign. Midfielder Onni Valakari provided the assist, his first of the year.
SDFC looked to double their advantage in the 62nd minute after forward Amahl Pellegrino scored inside the box off a cross from Dreyer, but the goal was disallowed after it was determined the ball struck Pellegrino on the arm after his initial shot.
Goalkeeper Duran Ferree preserved the clean sheet with two late saves in the final ten minutes. In the 88th minute, he dove low to his left to deny substitute forward Taylor Calheira’s right-footed effort. Ferree made his final stop in the second minute of stoppage time, turning away substitute midfielder Stephen Afrifa’s right-footed shot headed toward the back post.
SDFC now returns to international competition when it hosts Deportivo Toluca F.C. in Round of 16, Leg One of the Concacaf Champions Cup on Tuesday, Mar. 11, at 8:30 p.m. PT at Snapdragon Stadium. Tickets for the match are available here. SDFC then returns to MLS Regular Season action when it visits FC Dallas on Saturday, March 14 at 5:30 p.m. PT at Toyota Stadium.
Goal Scoring Plays: SD – 1-0 –Anders Dreyer (Onni Valakari), 39th minute: Capitalizing on a turnover near midfield, midfielder Onni Valakari played a ball into the feet of forward Anders Dreyer, cutting in from the right side of the pitch. Dreyer collected the ball with his right foot and curled a left-footed shot past a sprawling John Pulskamp into the bottom right corner. Dreyer’s second goal of the year was the lone goal of the match.
Postgame Notes:
- With tonight’s 1-0 win against Sporting KC, SDFC is unbeaten in the 2026 Regular season with a 3-0-0 record and nine points, outscoring opponents 8-0.
- SDFC has now gone 11 straight MLS Regular Season matches unbeaten on the road, inlcuding matches from last season. They are 10-0-1 over that span. The streak began with the 4-2 win against Minnesota United on June 14, 2025 at Allianz Field. SDFC’s last loss away from Snapdragon Stadium come on May 25th, 2025 (0-1 @ SEA).
- SDFC has outscored MLS opponents 8-0 in its first three matches of the regular season and is tied with Chicago (1999), Atlanta United (2017), and Austin FC (2022) for the best goal differential (+8) through the first three games of the season.
- With tonight’s 1-0 win, SDFC has scored 72 MLS Regular Season goals and 82 combined regular season and post-season goals. The Club has scored 91 goals across all competitions, including five in Leagues Cup and four in Concacaf Champions Cup.
- SDFC is 13-4-1 All-Time on the road in MLS regular season play.
- SDFC is 17-7-4 against Western Conference teams all-time in the regular season.
- SDFC is now 2-0-1 against Sporting KC (1-0-1 in 2025) outscoring them 3-0.
- SDFC had 782 passes completed compared to Sporting KC’s 374.
- SDFC out-possessed Sporting KC 69 to 31 percent.
- Tonight’s win is also SDFC’s 22nd MLS Regular Season win. SDFC now holds a 22-9-6 all-time regular season record.
- Forward Anders Dreyer recorded his second goal of the 2026 regular season. Dreyer now has two goals and three assists through the first three games.
- Dreyer has now registered at least one goal or assist in three straight matches. Dreyer has contributed to five of the Club’s eight regular season goals this season.
- Dreyer has now scored 18 goals on the road in MLS Regular Season competition
- Dreyer now has 25 goals with SDFC in MLS competitions (regular and post-season).
- Dreyer became SDFC’s second multi-goal scorer in 2026 (Ingvartsen, 2).
- Overall, Anders Dreyer has recorded 43 combined goals and assists (21 goals, 22 assists), accounting for 59 percent of San Diego FC’s 72 regular-season goals.
- Dreyer has 26 assists across all competitions and 24 in MLS play (regular and post-season).
- Dreyer now has a combined 42 MLS career starts with SDFC.
- Midfielder Onni Valakari recorded his first MLS assist of the season.
- Valakari has now provided 13 assists in his SDFC career, with 12 coming in the regular season and one MLS Cup Playoff assist.
- Valakari now has two goal contributions (1 goal, 1 assist).
- Dreyer and Valakari are the only two players to feature in all 37 of SDFC’s regular season and five post-season matches for a total of 42 MLS career appearances.
- Goalkeeper and San Diego native Duran Ferree made his third career MLS and SDFC start, his first start away from Snapdragon Stadium.
- Ferree made his second MLS start in last week’s 2-0 win against St. Louis CITY SC, registering just his fourth appearance for the Club tonight. In his first-ever MLS appearance for SDFC, he came on in the 80th minute of the 2025 Audi MLS Playoffs Western Conference Final against Vancouver Whitecaps on Nov. 29, 2025.
- Ferree, SDFC’s first-ever player signing, had his third career clean sheet tonight with three saves. He now has 10 total career MLS saves. He recorded two saves in the Western Conference final against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
- Forward Lewis Morgan made his first appearance for SDFC, coming on as a substitute for forward Marcus Ingvartsen in the 76th minute.
Match Information
2026 MLS Regular Season
San Diego FC vs. Sporting Kansas City
Saturday, March 7, 2026 – Sporting Park (Kansas City, Kan.)
Scoring Summary:
SD – (1-0) – Anders Dreyer, 39’
Misconduct Summary:
SD – Luca Bombino (caution, 27’)
SKC – Jansen Miller (caution, 36’) SKC – Manu Garcia (caution, 38’)
SD – Manu Duah (caution, 75’) SD – Christopher McVey (caution, 78’)
SD – David Vazquez (caution, 80’)
SKC – Jake Davis (caution, 81’)
Lineups:
SAN DIEGO FC: GK Duran Ferree; D Luca Bombino (D Oscar Verhoeven, 64’), D Christopher McVey, D Manu Duah, D Kieran Sargeant; M Onni Valakari (M Anibal Godoy, 90 +4’), M Jeppe Tverskov –C–, M Pedro Soma (M David Vazquez, 64’); F Amahl Pellegrino (D Ian Pilcher, 90 +4’), F Marcus Ingvartsen (F Lewis Morgan, 76’), F Anders Dreyer
Substitutes Not Used: GK Pablo Sisniega, F Alex Mighten, F Bryan Zamblé, F Bryce Duke
TOTAL SHOTS: 15; SHOTS ON GOAL: 5; FOULS: 12; OFFSIDES: 2; CORNER KICKS: 6; SAVES; 3
SPORTING KC: GK John Pulskamp; D Jayden Reid, D Wyatt Meyer, D Ethan Bartlow, D Jansen Miller; M Manu Gracia, M Jacob Bartlett (M Stephan Afrifa, 71’), M Shapi Suleymanov (M Kwaku Agyabeng, 79’), F Calvin Harris (F Taylor Calheira, 79’), F Dejan Jovelic –C–, F Jacob Davis (M Shane Donovan, 90’)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Stefan Cleveland, D Pierre Lurot, M Lasse Johnsen, M Cielo Tschantret, M Zamir Loyo Reynaga
TOTAL SHOTS: 6; SHOTS ON GOAL: 3; FOULS: 11; OFFSIDES 2; CORNER KICKS: 2; SAVES: 4
Referee: Malik Badawi
Assistant Referees: Jeremy Hanson, Eduardo Jeff Fourth Official: Drew Klemp VAR: Ekaterina Koroleva AVAR: Jeff Muschik Weather: 47-degrees, Clear Attendance: 14,294 All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial
SDFC HEAD COACH MIKEY VARAS
On the layers that this team has and the next couple of games moving forward:
“Yeah, I think we had a really professional performance where we controlled large portions of the game, created a lot of big chances so... I think we have to be really happy about, how we came, what kind of attitude we [brought] to come here and go after the game. And of course, there’s still things to improve on, but there always is, and I think at the end of the day, we have to be proud of this kind of strong professional win on the road, and then, yeah, it’s just another step in the right direction, because we got a lot of games coming up, so... It’s not about getting too high or too low, moment of success or adversity, it's just about taking it one step at a time. Now, we’ll enjoy this one for the night, because you can never take for granted three points at this level. But all of us tomorrow will use the day to make sure that we’re recovering, recharging batteries, and getting ready for the next one at home, which will be in a week.”
On the team having an eight goal differential through three games: “Yeah, the same thing as always, like, when you have a group of people, completely united by the convictions and efforts they put toward a mission they are on. Every single day, authentically and fully, then you have the opportunity for these things to happen, although it’s never a guarantee. At the end of the day, we also know that, that life is full of ups and downs, so we’re also ready for the adversity that we’ll face, but...We’re happy with where we are at right now, and we’re also looking to see how we can improve. And be ready for every moment that life throws at us.
On the team’s individual performances:
“Yeah, I think it’s another testament to us giving opportunities to young players, so Pedro getting the opportunity to come in and, and get some minutes in an away match. I think that we came off the bench really well. I think that was really important. I think that Onni Valakari, he was unlucky to [not] score a goal, but he had some pretty good actions, and I think we he dropped down into the pivot, he also gave us a lot of clear breakthrough moments. Anders [Dreyer], Pelle [Amahl Pellegrino] and Marcus [Ingvartsen], I think also had solid games. Everybody really had, overall, pretty solid games. And the Duran [Ferree] again, I think he, he took advantage of the his opportunity, and today he showed a big save moment too. So he’s kind of adding on to the things we can trust him with in his tool belt. And, at the end of the day, I think everybody did their part, and that includes the guys who, who were rostered, that includes the guys that didn't even some in the game. You know you can just feel completely united behind the effort that they want to make to help the club win games.”
SDFC GOALKEEPER DURAN FERREE
On tonight’s match and making three saves:
“Yeah, we're pretty happy with the way it went, we were able to hold them off. You know, it’s a team effort, the guys working back to block these shots. And of course, I got a few opportunities to show my stuff, and I'm glad I was able to make those saves.”
On how he was able to stay engaged during the match, despite most of his work coming late in the match:
“Yeah for me, I'm always trying to talk to my teammates, you know, trying to stay engaged with what's going on. I think, always trying to move around, keeping my body warm, it's always a good thing for me to stay locked in.”
On the first road MLS start of his career and what was different being away from Snapdragon Stadium:
“Yeah, I'm happy with the way it went, you know. We're taking steps forward as a team. We're taking territory and building fortress at home, so what we're doing is special. And we're looking forward to keeping it going on these away trips and bringing it back home as well.”
On keeping three clean sheets in his first three MLS starts:
“Yeah, it's really important for us as a team to just keep moving forward, keep making these good wins, get the points in and start building that up early in the season so that we can have momentum. So, these games are really important for us, and we're happy with the way we're performing.”
On his message to the group of traveling supporters who attend every match:
“Yeah, I was able to talk to a few of them, and you know, it means a lot for us to see that. It just sends a message that anywhere we go, we have our support. We have people watching, and we're always loved wherever we go. So, we're very appreciative of those people coming out.”
