Those who watched Saturday's final Austin FC match at the 2026 Coachella Valley Invitational — a 2-0 loss to Sporting Kansas City — saw a Verde team that looked incredibly exciting and threatening at times and defensively haphazard at others. That's not lost on the coach and one of its veteran leaders.
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At the Whistle: Austin FC 0, Sporting Kansas City 2
Since it's Valentine's Day: Roses are red/some cards are too/Verde lost two players/and then lost 0 to 2.
What we can glean from Austin FC's 2-2 draw vs. Chicago Fire FC in preseason action
The good news is Austin FC scored two goals in a match. The bad news is the two goals scored against them came off corner kicks.