San Diego FC’s improbable run in the Concacaf Champions Cup continued on Wednesday night.
This time, the azul and chrome offered a new degree of difficulty: They beat Toluca of Liga MX 3-2 at Snapdragon Stadium despite playing down a man for most of the match … and down two men for the final two minutes of regulation and all of stoppage time.
The result was SDFC’s third straight victory in the Champions Cup. The Major League Soccer club advanced past Mexico City’s Pumas UNAM in the first round; Wednesday marked the first of two legs in the Round of 16.
Forward Marcus Ingvartsen was given a red card in the 16th minute after appearing to kick a Toluca attacker in the face on a set piece. Toluca’s Jesus Gallardo drilled the ensuing free kick and the visitors took a 1-0 lead to go with their one-man advantage.
And most times, the story might end there. But San Diego FC, showing the resilience that was a hallmark of their record-setting 2025 team, battled back.
David Vasquez pulled SDFC even in the 36th minute, and then improbably gave them a lead with a score just before halftime.
Manu Duah #26 of San Diego FC moves the ball against Paulinho #26 of Toluca at Snapdragon Stadium on March 11, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Meg McLaughlin/Getty Images)
With the match tied, SDFC looked to its superstar for a score. Anders Dreyer gave the home team the lead with a golazo that will go down as one of the best of San Diego’s young season.
A match that was never short on drama had more ups and downs in the final 30 minutes. SDFC defender Manu Duah was hit with a red card in the 88th minute, and Toluca’s Helinho connected on the ensuing penalty kick to make it a one-goal game again.
But San Diego survived a late threat, despite being two players down. Toluca outshot SDFC 20-8, though each team had exactly five shots on goal. The visitors also attempted five corner kicks.
The clubs conclude their two-leg series next Wednesday at Nemesio Díez Stadium in Toluca.