HOUSTON (Oct. 17, 2025) – Houston Dynamo FC close regular season play with a trip to historic rivals Sporting Kansas City on Saturday, Oct. 18, at Children’s Mercy Park. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. CT, and fans can stream the final match of the season live via MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
Saturday’s fixture marks the 46th all-time regular season meeting between Houston and Kansas City. The most recent matchup at Children’s Mercy Park came last season, when the Dynamo earned a 2-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City, with goals from former Dynamo players Héctor Herrera and Aliyu Ibrahim.
While both sides have been eliminated from 2025 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs contention, they share a rich postseason history, having met in six playoff series over the years. Houston advanced in five of those six and holds a 22-19-18 (WLD) record against their longtime rival across all competitions.
Forward Ezequiel Ponce leads the team’s attack with 12 goals across all competitions, including 10 in regular season play, while midfielder Jack McGlynn sits second with seven goals in all competitions. McGlynn also leads the team in distribution with eight assists, followed by defender Griffin Dorsey with six assists.
Houston enters the weekend aiming to finish the season on a high note following a back-and-forth 4-2 defeat to San Diego FC on Oct. 4. Defender Felipe Andrade and forward Sérgio Santos both scored, with Santos netting his first Dynamo goal. In the 15th minute, midfielder Júnior Urso redirected a cross to Andrade, who finished from the center of the box for his fourth goal of the season. Santos, who made his first home appearance for Houston, came on in the 80th minute and scored seven minutes later, capitalizing on a San Diego error near the box.
Kansas City heads into Saturday’s match following a 3-0 road loss to Minnesota United FC at Allianz Field on Oct. 4. Anthony Markanich scored a brace, and Joaquin Pereyra added the third goal, marking Kansas City’s fifth straight defeat in its final road match of the season. Sporting currently sits 14th in the Western Conference with a 7-20-6 (WLD) record. Dejan Joveljić leads the team’s attack with 18 goals, while Manu García leads the team in assists with nine.
In terms of connections, former Dynamo Academy player and Homegrown midfielder Jose “Memo” Rodriguez is currently on Kansas City’s roster, making 19 appearances and recording one assist this season. On the Dynamo side, former Kansas City defender Aurélien Collin is currently in his third season as an assistant coach with Houston, after winning and MLS Cup (2013) and U.S. Open Cup (2012) during his time with Sporting.
Homegrown midfielder Brooklyn Raines recently returned from international duty with the U.S U-20 Men’s National Team after competing in the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile. Raines helped the U.S. win their group stage and make a run to the quarterfinals, while appearing in every match and recording a goal and an assist. He tallied the assist during the team’s 9-1 victory over New Caledonia on Sept. 29, before netting his goal in a 3-0 victory versus France on Oct. 2. The 20-year-old also started in the 3-0 Round of 16 victory over Italy and again in the Quarterfinal match against Morocco, where the U.S. was eliminated following a 3-1 defeat.
Notably, Raines was recently named to the **2025 22 Under 22 class**, which highlights the league’s top young players as voted on by coaches, general managers, MLS Season Pass talent and select media members.
The Dynamo also had three other players return from international duty. Midfielder Ondřej Lingr appeared for the Czech Republic in UEFA 2026 World Cup Qualifying, coming on as a substitute in a scoreless draw against Croatia and a 2-1 loss to the Faroe Islands on. Defender Damion Lowe represented the Jamaican National Team in the CONCACAF 2026 World Cup Qualifying, where Jamaica split its two matches, a 1-0 loss to Curaçao and a 4-0 victory over Bermuda. Homegrown midfielder Sebastian Rodriguez joined the Mexico U-18 National Team for its Preparation Tour in Portugal, which featured matches against Sporting Lisbon U-19, Porto U-19 and Paços de Ferreira U-19.
