Below is a selection of the notable performances and moments from the 13 matches played on the 25th matchday of the 2024 MLS regular season.
Peter Vermes Joins Historic Company With Win No. 200
In a back-and-forth match at Children’s Mercy Park, Sporting Kansas City pulled out a 3-2 victory over FC Dallas, which made history for head coach Peter Vermes. The win was Vermes’ 200th in the regular season, joining Bruce Arena (262) and Sigi Schmid (240) as the only coaches in MLS history to hit this milestone. Vermes’ 200 wins are the most among active managers, and 34 more than the second-closest, Orlando City SC’s Óscar Pareja (166).
The first two goals of the game were scored by Kansas City forward Willy Agada, who has a club-high seven in 2024. Agada produced his sixth multi-goal game since joining the club, which is tied for the fifth-most in SKC history, despite playing in less than 2,700 minutes for the team.
Lucho, FC Cincinnati Take Over the Top Spot in Eastern Conference and Supporters' Shield Race
In a showdown between the top two teams in the Supporters’ Shield race, reigning Landon Donovan MLS MVP Luciano Acosta and FC Cincinnati powered past Inter Miami CF, 6-1, on Saturday night at TQL Stadium.
Four different FC Cincinnati players scored in the first half, including Acosta (10 goals, 17 assists) who became the fourth player in MLS history to record at least 10 goals and 10 assists in four different seasons. (Watch all four first-half goals Here).
With his two assists, Acosta moved ahead of Marco Etcheverry (49 from 1996-98) for the third-most assists in a three-season span (2022-present) in MLS history.
The six goals scored by the Blue and Orange were tied for a single-game club record. Cincinnati last scored five or more goals in an MLS match on October 9, 2022, in a 5-2 victory over D.C. United. With the victory, FC Cincinnati and the 2018 Seattle Sounders are the only teams in MLS history (excluding the shootout era) to win 12 matches in a 14-game span in a single season.
Timbers’ First-Half Outburst Sends Them Soaring Up Standings
Entering Sunday, the Portland Timbers sat in ninth in the Western Conference standings. However, after a 4-1 thrashing of Nashville SC at home, the Timbers rocketed up to fifth place in the conference (33 points, 9-8-6). The victory was led by a four-goal outburst in the first half, with all four coming between the 18th and 29th minute. It marked just the sixth time in MLS history that a team scored four goals within the first 29 minutes of a match, and the Timbers were the first team to do so since LAFC in 2020.
Of those goal scorers were Jonathan Rodríguez (two) and Felipe Mora (one), who each joined Evander in eclipsing the 10-goal threshold in 2024. It marked the first time in club history that three different players each produced at least 10 goals and Portland became the first MLS club to do so since FC Cincinnati and the Philadelphia Union in 2022.
Facundo Torres Seals His Name in The History Books For Orlando City SC
Behind the goal-scoring of Uruguayan midfielder Facundo Torres, Orlando City SC routed D.C. United 5-0 at INTER&CO Stadium on Saturday evening.
Orlando City opened up the scoreline in the 19th minute following a goal from the Argentine forward Martín Ojeda (Watch Here) quickly followed through by a second goal from Robin Jansson on a corner kick (Watch Here). Iván Angulo extended the lead after scoring the third goal of the night in the 42nd minute following an assist from Ojeda (Watch Here).
Facundo Torres extended the team’s efforts after scoring his first goal of the night in the 70th minute from close range (Watch Here). With five minutes left in the match, Ramiro Enrique secured the three points for Orlando by scoring the fifth goal of the night following a corner kick ( Watch Here).
Five different Orlando City SC players scored throughout the match, including Torres who moved ahead of Kaká (10) for the most games with multiple goal contributions in club history. Additionally, Torres (29) moved ahead of Nani (28) for the second-most regular-season goals in club history. Orlando City’s five goals on Saturday night were a season high. The last time the Lions scored five times in a league match came on June 22, 2021, in a 5-0 victory over San Jose.
Zardes’ Brace Lifts Austin FC Past New York City FC
Austin FC forward Gyasi Zardes got back to scoring ways with two goals en route to the club’s 2-1 victory over New York City FC at Q2 Stadium. The goals, which were the first of the season for the MLS veteran, were the 104th and 105th of his MLS regular season career, moving him into 10th place all-time in the MLS record books.
With the victory tonight, Austin FC moved into ninth place in the Western Conference standings and are tied with Portland and Houston with 30 points each.
Zardes scored his second goal of the evening, which proved to be the game-winner, in the 69th minute (Watch Here) and the goal tied Bradley Wright-Phillips (68) for the sixth-most goals scored at home in MLS history.
