Sporting KC
Sporting KC fails at Colorado Springs
Switchbacks takes the win over SKC
Sporting Kansas City’s chances in the Open Cup came to a sputtering halt Tuesday evening. The Colorado Springs Switchbacks scored early and dominated most of the match in a 3-0 win over the visiting Sporting KC. Colorado Springs plays in the second division USL Championship, but came out strong and ready, looking for the “Cupset” in the first minutes of the 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 match.
Sporting KC head coach Raphaël Wicky took the match seriously. Despite having just played on Saturday and another road game on Friday, he played a strong lineup with regular starters throughout the starting eleven.
The Switchbacks last played on April 4th, so they were well rested. Colorado Springs head coach Alan McCann had no concerns about rest when he chose his lineup. One of his starters was selected by Sporting KC in December in the MLS Draft. Forward Sadam Masereka was taken in the second round by SKC, but he chose to sign with Colorado Springs.
The Switchbacks started on the front foot and carried that momentum throughout most of the first half. While Colorado Springs started well, Sporting KC’s defense was not on the same page early. In the 8th minute, the first shot on goal was an open header for the home side.
Just a couple of minutes later, the Switchbacks capitalized on the disjointed Sporting KC side. SKC draft pick Masereka sped down the wing and then slcied through the SKC defense before sliding the ball to Panamanian striker Juan Tejada in the middle of the box. Tejada calmly places the ball past John Pulskamp and the retreating cover of Jansas Miller.
In the 31st minute, Masereka took advantage of a miscue when Jayden Reid misplayed a ball back to Diego Borges. Reid tried to play a short pass to Borges, but the Switchbaks attacker slid past and was directly in on goal. Masereka picked his shot and put it past Pulskamp.
With his team down by two at the half, Wicky made three changes coming out of halftime. Jayden Reid, Justin Reynolds and Capita Capemba subbed off. Ethan Bartlow, Calvin Harris, and Taylor Calheira entered the match. With the subs, Sporting KC started to get glimpses of attacks but were still not creating enough quality chances.
Sporting KC lost their composure and the match in the 78th minute when Shapi Suleymanov received a red card. The fracas started when a reckless, tough tackle took Suleymanov out; he did not respond well. Players from both sides came together and a shove from a Sporting KC player prompted the referee to give a straight red. It appears to have been from Borges but Suleymanov received the card.
Sporting KC was not playing well when the numbers were even. Wicky’s side pushed to get a goal and had some threatening looks, ultimately it was Colorado Springs that found the back of the net again to put the comeback out of reach.
Sporting KC returns home to look for answers before a quick turnaround and heading to Vancouver to face the Whitecaps on Friday.
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Ugh…
You can say that again. Tough to watch.
I was trying to stay positive. But that’s all that came out.
This team is embarrassing!!
It’s getting to the beyond apathy part and to the oh yeah I used to watch this team part for so many fans. I do wonder how many years of an empty stadium they have financially planned for as they must be expecting revenue loss.
At this point they have a full team – maybe not all the pieces they want. I supposed the excuse is that some players have just shown up and that there will be some more additions in the summer when European leagues end. But holy hell, what are we watching? Where’s the glimmer of hope? What is there to focus on to make us watch?
Colorado Springs is a pretty decent USL side – including our draft pick that signed there instead of with SKC, but they are currently 8th, not tearing up the league. And that game wasn’t really close (full disclosure – I did not watch the second half). So what do we have – a middle of the pack USL team?
I remember the down years for the Chiefs and Royals. Mostly empty stadiums game in and game out. I keep holding out hope that SKC will find the right formula the way those two teams did. But nights like last night make it harder to keep that hope.
I don’t expect them to be good. I do expect them to at least look like they have had more than one practice as a team. Even with bottom dweller expectations, SKC still finds a way to disappoint. Sigh