San Diego FC head coach Mikey Varas praised the “unbelievable” support from the Snapdragon Stadium faithful in his side’s opening MLS fixture against CF Montreal, ahead of their second match against St. Louis City SC.
Varas’ side cruised to a 5-0 victory in their first-ever match against Montreal last Sunday, with Christopher McVey, Onni Valakari, Amahl Pellegrino, Marcus Ingvartsen, and Byran Zamble all getting on the scoresheet.
The victory saw San Diego’s scoring run stretch to eight MLS matches.
Despite finishing as Western Conference champions in their maiden MLS campaign last term, San Diego fell off in the Western Conference Final, going down to the Vancouver Whitecaps, though they could not have asked for a better start to their second season.
And one of the biggest factors behind their success, Varas believes, is the support they receive from the fans at Snapdragon Stadium.
“It’s unbelievable. I mean, it’s unbelievable here,” he said after their demolition job over Montreal.
“I hope that it’s not for a long, long time, but whenever this adventure is done with me, I think I’ll dream about these nights for the rest of my life with the people of San Diego and the energy that’s inside this stadium.”
The San Diego head coach was also full of praise for debutants Zamble and Duran Ferree, both of whom impressed with standout performances.
“We always talk about having a big squad mentality and trusting the next guy up and that’s what we did with Duran and I think he just played a phenomenal game,” Varas added.
“So brave on the ball and really proud of him, shut out, 19 years old, amazing.
‘Then Brian getting in the game and scoring a goal, I think that would be really important for his confidence.
“Being scouted in Ivory Coast, going through the Academy in Ghana, then into [International Academy], and now to us. The future is bright for him and he’s really happy, we’re happy for him.”
The work doesn’t stop. pic.twitter.com/h8L7E3hgFa
— San Diego FC (@sandiegofc) February 25, 2026
St. Louis, meanwhile, played out a 1-1 draw with Charlotte FC in their opening match at Energizer Park after Pep Biel cancelled out Marcel Hartel’s second-half opener.
Despite squandering the lead, St. Louis will hope to build on their momentum as they remain undefeated across their last three matches, having found the net in all three.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
San Diego – Anders Dreyer
McVey, Pellegrino, Valakari, Ingvartsen and Zamble all found the net in San Diego’s win over Montreal, making them the first team in MLS history to have five different players score in the team’s first match of a season.
But it was Anders Dreyer who stood out with two assists, pulling the strings from midfield. In total, the Dane created two chances off 23 passes in the final third and completed a match-high three dribbles (out of four).
St. Louis City – Marcel Hartel
Hartel scored St. Louis City’s first goal of the season in their draw with Charlotte on Saturday.
Dating back to last season, Hartel has been involved in six (five goals, one assist) of St. Louis’ last 10 regular-season goals.
MATCH PREDICTION: SAN DIEGO WIN
San Diego are heavy favourites to take all three points on Sunday, with home advantage once again expected to be an important factor.
The hosts took four points off St. Louis in the 2025 season, recording a draw at home and a win on the road. Their first meeting – a scoreless draw at Snapdragon Stadium – marked San Diego’s first-ever regular-season home match.
Varas’ side also became only the second team in MLS history to win their season-opening match by five goals, following their 5-0 victory over Montreal. They join Austin FC, who opened the 2022 season with a 5-0 victory over FC Cincinnati.
Conversely, St. Louis might be bracing themselves for a difficult outing as they prepare for their first away match of the season.
But Yoann Damet’s side closed the 2025 season with three straight road wins – the club’s second-highest road winning streak in all competitions after winning the first three road matches in club history.
Between those two streaks, St. Louis managed only five wins in 50 away matches across competitions (D13 L32).
Bringing this energy into the weekend pic.twitter.com/Q7qWqVUb5J
— St Louis CITY SC (@stlCITYsc) February 27, 2026
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
San Diego FC – 60.9%
Draw – 20.6%
St. Louis City SC – 18.5%