Usually, it’s the other teams in MLS that are looking for their first-ever win over LAFC when seeing one another after the first couple of meetings. This time around however, it’s the black & gold looking to get their first ever win over MLS newcomers and budding Southern California rivals, San Diego FC. This will be just the third time these two meet after San Diego’s red-hot start to their inaugural season saw them sweep the series last year, beating LAFC both times they played. The only bad part about this matchup coming now, is it lands just days before a very crucial second leg in the Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals, putting it a bit lower on the priority list for Los Angeles.
Matchday: #SDvLAFC
⏰ 6:30 PM PST
🖥️ @appletv
🎧 @espnlosangeles & K-Radio 1230
🇰🇷 Spotv & Coupang Play pic.twitter.com/YREgCklyvw— LAFC (@LAFC) May 2, 2026
Last year, San Diego hit the ground running. This season, it’s been a real “back down to earth” year for the new MLS side. Through 10 matches they sit 11th in the Western Conference and are in some pretty awful form having lost their last five matches. The goals from earlier in the year have dried up for San Diego and the defense has been a bit leaky as of late. That said, forwards Marcus Ingvartsen and Anders Dreyer are two players that you don’t want hitting their stride because they can absolutely find the back of the net in a hurry.
This is a bit of a weird one for LAFC. As we mentioned earlier, it’s the timing of this match that makes it very much a trap game for the black & gold. At the midweek the team will make a very important trip to Mexico to face Toluca in the second leg of their semifinal in the Champions Cup, while holding just a one goal aggregate lead. That means, as much as we don’t want it to happen, this will almost definitely be a fairly rotated squad taking the pitch for this trip to San Diego. The club have made no secret about the importance of the Champions Cup, and while they will definitely want to get that first win over San Diego, they will also have one eye on the midweek. Even still, we should see a team strong enough to get the result on the road, if they can keep it close late, they may be able to sneak another late winner for the full three points.
How To Watch
Saturday night’s SoCal rivalry match is set for a 6:30pm PST kickoff from Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California. The match will be broadcast live and can be watched on AppleTV. The match will also be streamed on Coupang Play (Korea) as well as SpoTV (Korea). The match will also be available on radio broadcast on 710 AM Los Angeles, 980 AM La Mera Mera for Spanish broadcasting, and KYPA 1230 AM for Korean broadcasting.
Thoughts ahead of the rivalry match with San Diego? Drop a comment below!