Austin FC Look to Seal Playoff Spot as Sporting KC Play Spoiler on Sunday Night

Sporting Kansas City will host Austin FC on Sunday night in a matchup with different stakes for each side. As reported by MLSsoccer, kickoff at Children’s Mercy Park is set for 7 pm ET, with SKC already out of the playoff picture and Austin pushing to clinch just their second postseason berth.

Interim coach Kerry Zavagnan has leaned on youth and attacking freedom in a difficult season for Kansas City. Despite holding the league’s worst underlying numbers, they’ve produced some entertaining games, highlighted by Dejan Joveljić’s 16 goals and Dániel Sallói’s continued impact. On defense, Mexican center back Alán Montes could earn his first significant minutes since arriving on loan from Necaxa.

For Austin, momentum is building. Nico Estévez’s side has scored multiple goals in five of their last six matches, moving into seventh place in the West. With Myrto Uzuni away on international duty and Brandon Vázquez sidelined, veteran Diego Rubio is expected to lead the line, joined by winger Osman Bukari and 20-year-old Owen Wolff, who has emerged as a creative force.

The stakes are clear. Sporting are aiming to extend faint mathematical hopes and continue reshaping their identity post-Peter Vermes. Austin, meanwhile, know a victory would all but lock up a playoff berth and create a nine-point cushion over 10th-place Houston—potentially decisive with five games left.