The upcoming MLS season doesn’t begin for three weeks, but San Diego FC’s next competitive match – one with championship implications – comes much sooner than that.
On Tuesday, SDFC begins play in its first-ever Concacaf Champions Cup. The Cup is an
annual international competition between clubs based in the globe’s northwest
hemisphere – sort of like a mini-World Cup for soccer franchises in the region.
The tournament’s organized by the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean
Association Football (Concacaf), one of six soccer governing bodies around the world.
MLS and Liga MX clubs are among those that take part in the event each year.
In all, 27 franchises are participating in the 2026 iteration of the tournament, which includes nine MLS teams, six Liga MX clubs and clubs representing Canada, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and other countries throughout the Americas.
There are a number of ways that MLS teams can qualify to participate in Champions Cup,
including winning their league’s championship, winning the most games in a league’s regular
season or holding an Eastern or Western Conference regular season title.
SDFC punched its ticket into the Cup when it finished with the best record in the MLS’
Western Conference during its inaugural season in 2025.
Its opening match in the tournament takes place at Snapdragon Stadium against Liga MX
club Puma UNAM, a three-time Champions Cup winner. It will be a home-and-away series, with the second round set for Feb. 10 in Mexico City.
The aggregate score winner in each matchup advances to the Round of 16 and will face
powerhouse Mexican club Toluca FC, which received a first-round bye due to its status as the
reigning Liga MX champion.
Tuesday’s match starts at 8 p.m. Tickets remain, with prices starting at $54.
One player who won’t be participating in any San Diego matches is Hirving “Chucky” Lozano. SDFC announced Jan. 9 that Lozano was not in the club’s future plans and that it would work with the forward to find him a new team. Yet Lozano is still training with San Diego until he gets moved elsewhere.
While Lozano nears an exit, his replacement, forward Lewis Morgan, is gearing up to make
his SDFC debut. Morgan, a talented, but injury-prone Scot, was transferred to SDFC from the
New York Red Bulls for up to $1.1 million and a draft pick on Dec. 16.
The 29-year-old was MLS’ Comeback Player of the Year in 2024, one season after returning
from a hip injury that required surgery. He missed most of the 2025 season due to knee and
quad injuries.
In his six-year MLS career, Morgan has 38 goals and 17 assists in 140 matches. It remains
to be seen, however, if he will actually play in the tournament or, if given his injury history, SDFC elects to hold him back for the launch of the club’s second MLS campaign, which kicks off with a Feb. 21 home match against CF Montreal.
None of San Diego’s Concacaf tournament matches will count in the MLS standings, but the
winner of Champions Cup receives more than $5 million in prize money, plus entry into the 2029 FIFA Club World Cup and the 2026 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, which features the reigning club champions of each of FIFA’s six confederations.
