Why Sporting KC is confident in progress — even after one win in five matches
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Sporting KC sits last in Western Conference after five games, 1-3-1 record.
- Raphael Wicky and GM Lee expect a two-year roster rebuild under new ownership.
- Injuries and lapses exist, but LA win and player form keep confidence high.
Sporting Kansas City’s new leadership group was adamant it would take time before success came back to the club. The first five matches provided some encouraging evidence, but the path to success is an uphill climb.
At the first international break in the Major League Soccer schedule, Sporting is right back where it left last season: last in the Western Conference.
SKC has scored five goals and given up 11 in starting 1-3-1 (4 points).
The possession-based squad under first-year coach Raphael Wicky runs fluid formations, alternating between a four and five-man backline with wingbacks making runs up the flanks. Maintaining possession has been difficult for the young team, which sits near the bottom of the league at 44%.
Wicky and general manager David Lee are in for the long haul, emphasizing that the roster overhaul could take two years to ripen under new primary ownership, a new head coach and new GM.
On the pitch, the slim margins of professional soccer have rattled the team in most of its matches. Mental mistakes have led to losses, such as SKC’s most recent 4-1 defeat to the Colorado Rapids on Saturday.
Colorado took an early lead before SKC attacker Shapi Suleymanov tied the match in the 44th minute. But Colorado took the lead just minutes later in stoppage time.
“I still believe that you’re in the game after that, and I think it’s up to us in these moments to react, to stay calm, not to lose our heads, not to chase blindly and to keep believing that we can come back like we already did and showed,” Wicky said after the game.
The Rapids were able to play through the middle of SKC’s defense on counterattacks.
The injury bug has also hit SKC early in the season. Defender Wyatt Meyer left the Colorado match with an injury.
Defenders Justin Reynolds and Ian James are returning from injuries; midfielder and captain Zorhan Bassong has yet to make his debut this season.
That said, Wicky isn’t using injuries as an excuse for losses.
“Of course, it doesn’t make it easy if we can never play with the same team,” he said. “I think the expectation is that we try to find solutions and not problems. That’s part of my job.”
Has the team shown progress? Sporting players have expressed confidence in their ability to compete this season.
A 2-1 win on the road against perennial contender and 2024 MLS Cup champion LA Galaxy was an impressive feat in itself. So was coming back from 1-0 down to tie 2-2 with perennial contender and 2023 MLS champion Columbus Crew.
The attack has show moments of brilliance, with star striker Dejan Joveljic getting a call-up to the Serbian national team after scoring three goals so far. Speedy winger Calvin Harris’ ability to get in behind often sparks the rush down the pitch.
And several signings in this transfer window and the next are expected to boost the club. Midfielder Lasse Berg Johnsen is already influential in orchestrating the offense. Center back Diego Borges was on the bench for the Colorado match, and another pacey winger in Capita will be joining the squad once he gets his P-1 visa.
The outlook is positive for the players, who are envisioning their hard work and team chemistry translating into wins in the near future.
“I think we showed it against LA: We can do it, and I truly believe we will,” midfielder Jacob Bartlett said after the Colorado match. “It’s just sharpening little details. I think little mistakes throughout the game, you’ll see those slowly fade away. ... Obviously the result’s tough, you never want to lose — but I think we’re trending in the right direction, the way we’re playing and the process and ideas.”
This story was originally published March 26, 2026 at 6:30 AM.
