The newest team in Major League Soccer, San Diego FC is fast running out of firsts — good and bad.

Last weekend’s 4-3 loss to the Houston Dynamo at Snapdragon Stadium may go down as the first gut-punch in franchise history.

SDFC allowed goals in the 87th and 99th minutes, resulting in a defeat that was as rare as it was surprising.

For starters, SDFC hardly ever allows second-half goals — much less two of them by the same player during a span of 12 minutes.  And visitors’ second-half goals at Snapdragon Stadium have been as rare as snowballs in summer.

So, yes, visiting SDFC is in uncharted territory — first bounce-back game? — heading into Saturday’s 5:30 p.m. matchup against the Chicago Fire. But there’s also enough of a sample size, defender Chris McVey said, to believe last week’s lapses were merely a one-off. At 12-6-3, SDFC remains atop the conference standings. Chicago (8-8-4) sits ninth in the Eastern Conference.

“We had moments (last week) where we played really well and especially in the second half, we came out really strong,” McVey said.

Then disaster struck. San Diego FC led 3-2 in the 78th minute when San Diego defender Luca Bombino attempted to pass the ball back toward goalkeeper C.J. dos Santos. His pass wasn’t firm enough, and Houston pounced. The Dynamo’s Ezequiel Ponce sprinted toward the goal in an attempt to corral the ball before dos Santos got there. The two collided, and Houston was awarded a penalty kick. Following a lengthy injury delay — dos Santos’ nose was bloodied in the collision — Ponce nailed the free kick, and the match was tied.

“Obviously, we gave away that penalty and they kind of got back into it,” McVey said. “But even in that moment, I kind of felt like we’ll score another one. We kept pushing for it, but then the fourth one came.”

The game was nine minutes into stoppage time when Houston advanced past midfield and began its attack. Ethan Bartlow brought the ball slowly to the top of the goal box; rather than attack him, SDFC’s Jeppe Tverskov and Onni Valakari hesitated briefly. Bartlow laced a pass through them and to Ponce, who beat SDFC’s Ian Pilcher for a clean look at the goal.

Houston’s accomplishment was even more impressive considering how SDFC has played at Snapdragon. The club had allowed just two second-half goals at home all season before Ponce’s brace on Saturday.

And SDFC has the highest second-half scoring differential — plus-13 — of anyone in the 30-team league.  The next-closest team, Nashville SC, is at plus-seven.

So SDFC spent this week trying to tighten up the back line without, well, tightening up. There’s a fine line between addressing issues and dwelling on them.

Saturday’s gameplan is simple, McVey said.

“Stick to our principles and make sure we do it for 90 minutes,” McVey said. “I thought that last game, we had good moments. I thought we started a little slow, but then we have moments where we start picking it up and we start playing like us again. And when we do, we’re  a really good team and we can hurt a lot of teams. … If we do, then we’re a hard team to beat.”

Travel talk

McVey, like many of his SDFC teammates, got his start playing internationally. Road trips in Sweden were short, made mostly via bus.

Thursday, SDFC flew 2,000 miles to Chicago. It’s the latest lengthy road trip for a club that in the last month has trekked to Minneapolis, Vancouver and Dallas.

“It is what it is,” coach Mikey Varas said. “I don’t know if you ever get used to it. But I do know we have a belief that it’s not a deterrent.”

Indeed, SDFC was a perfect 3-0 on the road last month, outscoring its opponents 12-7. The club is 6-4-0 on the road this season.

After Saturday, SDFC will play its next six matches at home, starting with Wednesday’s match against Toronto. The club will take on second-place Vancouver on July 19 and host Nashville on July 25. After that, SDFC will host Leagues Cup matches against Liga MX clubs Pachuca (July 29), Tigres (Aug. 1) and Mazatlán (Aug. 5) before returning to the road Aug. 9 against Sporting Kansas City.

They’re baaack

Midfielder Luca de la Torre returned to SDFC on Thursday after playing for the United States in the Concacaf Gold Cup.

“It’s so good to have one of our brothers back. He had a great tournament, a great adventure with the national team,” Varas said. “I think all of us are happy to have him back, and he’s happy to be back. This is his home.”

Another newly returned player, midfielder Anibal Godoy, did not accompany the team to Chicago.

“It’s not an injury,” Varas said. “He’s just coming back from time with the (Panama) national team, and he has a little bit of sensation in his legs. So we’re not going to bring him on the trip. We’re going to let him focus on his recovery.”

Player loaned out

SDFC has loaned midfielder Heine Bruseth to Sarpsborg 08 of Norway’s Eliteserien through the end of the season. SDFC selected the 21-year-old from Orlando City in this year’s expansion draft.

San Diego FC (12-6-3) vs. Chicago Fire (8-8-4)

When: 5:30 p.m. Saturday

TV: AppleTV

Radio: 760-AM (English), 1700-AM (Spanish)

Originally Published: July 11, 2025 at 5:10 PM PDT