Season 2 starts with 5 bangs!
It was Saturday, February 21. My wife and I eagerly arrive at Snapdragon Stadium to finally get back into the Major League Soccer state of mind. As we pull up to the Thrive parking lot, the feelings that glorious structure fills me with memories of glory and passion. It was only a few weeks since we witnessed our first CONCACAF Champions Cup win against Pumas, but now we are back to playing a league game. Now the 31st season of the MLS, San Diego has set the impossible expectation of being top of the league again. But this time, lots of drama unfolded. Most notably, Hirving “Chucky” Lozano has been announced to not be part of the clubs plans thus fracturing a portion of the fanbase. It was hard to tell at first how much this would affect the teams ability to bring in fans. Although we are getting rid of a star player, San Diego FC left a beautiful taste in everyone’s mouths with their inaugural season performance and won many fans, some weren’t even soccer fans. So this game was going to be interesting. A big pull for San Diego FC was that their last home game was a 4-1 win against Pumas showing that San Diego FC still has that winning formula even with out their star #11. As my wife and I head towards the Tailgate party at the purple lot, we can see for a fact that nothing has changed in terms of what the population “feels” like. It was packed! It was celebrations from one end of the tailgate to the other. The supporter groups of the Union are back with full joy and blasting their high energy in the atmosphere. It was the feeling like we were home again. A feeling that is so necessary to feel before entering the stadium. The hype before the hype. Live band performing Mexican songs, beers and shots, families playing soccer on the dirt parking lot, air horns disturbing the peace, masked men hanging and speaking with various content creators, and your curious wonderers who had no idea that the party was more vibrant at the parking lot.
After getting our fill of the energy of Frontera SD, we walk along the Fan Fest set up right outside the stadium on its east end. It feels like your typical corporate team set up with all the major sponsors having their various tents. A large stage with a host and a band welcome San Diego FC’s second goalkeeper Pablo Sisniega on stage to welcome the crowd. The beer gardens host a much less rowdy group of drinkers as compared to the Tailgate, but that’s expected. We walk into the team store to scope all the new overpriced clothes, hats, and knick-knacks hoping to find a new memorabilia to add to our little shrine to our team at home. Nothing today caught our eye. Although the feeling of social status was clearly in full display between fan fest and the tailgate party, you couldn’t deny that everyone there was ready to finally celebrate the return of our beloved Azul y Chrome back on Bashor Field, As the supporter groups line up at the north end to enter the stadium, all other gates start filling up with the eager spectators lining up as well. Jerseys of Anders Dreyer and Chucky Lozano still dominate the crowds surrounding the stadium even though one of them will no longer make an appearance. Further evidence of the division of opinions. Or maybe it’s too expensive for some to just replace with another shirt. Just as well, I was counting with one hand how many people were wearing the “Unprecedented Community Kit”. Not many people looking to wear the new kit as many have shun its design and compared it to a white shirt stained by Michelada by fans. I have no problem rocking the new kit. As a dedicated fan, I will shine the ugly diamond loud and proud regardless of popular or unpopular opinion.
As soon as the gates to the stadium opens, the social classes disappear. The differences in culture mixes into one beautiful mash up of robust humanity. From elderlies to infants, From Men to boys, and Women to girls. We file into the 35,000 seating capacity stadium ready to finally see the opening ceremonies, the fireworks, the teams walking in, the vibrant chanting and drums from the north end, and finally, kickoff! It was a glorious night of 26,000 ± fans in the stadium watching our team devour a hapless and low ranking CF Montreal. San Diego FC executed every play with meaningful movements and strategic care. Knowing our number 10, Anders Dreyer was going to be a target all night, we anticipated him to be heavily manned, which he was for good reason. What we the fans and CF Montreal did not see coming, was that the goals were going to come from everyone else BUT Dreyer. 5 goals erupted the blue cannons that night. 5 different players found the back of the net with emphatic joy. McVey, Pellegrino, Valakari, Ingvartsen, and the new kid from the Right to Dream Academy Bryan Zamble inked their stats on the 2026 scoreboard. 5 goals for the first night of the league game for San Diego. A gift from the soccer Gods. A magnificent celebration bursting through Mission Valley where the stadium sits, and Aerosmith’s “Dream On” carries the fans back out to the parking lot with our heads in the clouds and hope in our hearts. Oh to witness glory and smell the atmosphere all while wearing your team scarf and the chants ringing vibrantly in your mind. We have become one community once more. One mighty roar from the Southwest region of the country. The fans are back. The team is back, and we are ready for season 2.
