Inside KC soccer: Sporting Kansas City upgrades defense & Current ready to return
Sporting Kansas City’s defense set off on a historic pace through the first 14 matches of 2026 — and not in a good way.
Through the team’s first 14 games, SKC conceded 36 goals, leaving it on pace to concede 87 goals over the course of a season.
To remedy that, Sporting KC has welcomed three new defenders this summer. After announcing the signing of Emir Karic last Wednesday, the club announced the signing of Moises Mosquera a week later.
Combine those two with Or Blorian, who was signed during the winter window with an arrival date for June and is now in training, and Sporting’s back line when the team returns to action on July 16 might look very different from when the team left off at the end of May.
Blorian has been training with Sporting since the team returned to a mini-preseason on June 11 and was involved in Sporting’s scrimmage with England. Blorian is just as physically imposing as Mosquera and comes off captaining Hapoel Be’er Sheva to a cup and league double.
He has spent his whole career in his home country of Israel and felt that the opportunity at Sporting was the perfect place to test himself by playing in a different league and country. Blorian said Sporting’s current last-place standing is motivating and a welcome challenge to bring the club back up.
“For me, this is one of my goals: to achieve trophies here,” Blorian said. “I think me, Deki (Joveljić), Lasse (Berg Johnsen), Manu (Garcia), Zorhan (Bassong) — all the experienced players — we need to step up and give from our experience.”
Karic, 29, is a veteran left-back who has played in the German Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga (German second division) as well as the Austrian Bundesliga. He signed a two-year contract with an option. He will bring a bite and experience the back line has needed, as well as some depth at left back.
Sporting has had to scramble to cover play there, at times moving players out of position when injuries hampered the existing depth.
Mosquera, on the other hand, just turned 25. He is a physically imposing central defender with his size and strength, and is one of the fastest center backs in Liga MX.
Mosquera has been on the radar of a few MLS teams in previous years. He spent the last three seasons with FC Juarez after his professional breakthrough with Marítimo in Portugal.
Current seeks to build off scoreless Challenge Cup showing
The Kansas City Current looked phenomenal in attack at times last Friday, yet was caught on the counter twice in a 2-0 defeat to Gotham FC.
It was the team’s first match since trading Ally Sentnor to Angel City FC, and Haley Hopkins started in her place. The chances came in droves through the first 20 minutes of each half, but they didn’t lead to shots on target. And when those chances did lead to a shot, the finishing left a bit to be desired.
One thing is true about this KC Current team: It will create lots of chances. The key will be neutralizing the quality of the chances the team gives up, as Gotham got several high-quality chances.
One way the team can do this is by addressing the midfield. There seems to be a host of attackers, but not enough midfield depth beyond Bayley Feist and Lo LaBonta.
With Sentnor’s departure and Temwa Chawinga’s cap hit converted into an HIP contract, it would make sense for the Current to explore the market for another impact player. But where?
The Current doesn’t really need more attackers. Hopkins and Debinha both could handle the striker’s role, as could rookie Gianna Paul or even Chawinga.
It’s clear that the impact of Claire Hutton’s absence was miscalculated, as no adequate cover was brought in as a more defensively minded midfielder. It would make sense for the Current to target the midfield in the long run.
The NWSL secondary transfer window opens July 14 and runs through Sept. 7, allowing the Current to bolster the roster for a second-half push.
KC’s NWSL campaign is back underway this Friday. The Current heads west to face Denver Summit FC for the first time, with an 8:30 p.m. Central kick time from Commerce City, Colorado.
Where does Sporting KC’s roster stand?
Like the NWSL, Major League Soccer’s secondary window opens July 14. Sporting still has four open roster spots, three of which can be used on another designated player — or up to three U-22 initiative signings, should Sporting elect not to sign a DP.
With the arrivals of Blorian and Mosquera, Sporting now has seven center backs on the roster. With multiple players on veteran minimum salaries, opening further roster spots, if all were to be filled, comes easily.
Sporting can simply waive one or two of those center backs should the club end up acquiring more than four players between now and the window’s closing.
KC Current declines options on two
Due to free agency rules in the NWSL, players who will be out of contract at the end of the 2026 season may now negotiate new deals with clubs both inside and outside the league. In turn, clubs must announce whether they are exercising or declining contract options.
The Current announced Tuesday that the club has declined the 2027 options for Rocky Rodriguez and Vanessa DiBernardo. The team has not exercised the options for either Elizabeth Ball or Debinha, but has extended contract extension offers to both players.
Other players out of contract heading into next season are Feist, Clare Gagne and Kolo Suliafu. In addition, Kaylin Williams-Mosier’s short-term contract concludes at the end of July.
Flora Marta Lacho, currently on loan with HB Køge in Denmark, is also out of contract after the 2026 season. Her loan was recently extended through the end of that contract.
Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.