2023 San Diego Loyal SC season
San Diego Loyal SC 2023 soccer season
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The 2023 San Diego Loyal SC season was San Diego Loyal SC's fourth, and last, season of existence and their fourth season in the USL Championship (USLC), the second division in the American soccer system.
League Standings: 6th
| 2023 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Andrew Vassilanis | |||
| Manager | Nate Miller | |||
| USL Championship | Western Conference: 3rd League Standings: 6th | |||
| USLC Playoffs | Western Conference Quarterfinals | |||
| U.S. Open Cup | Third Round | |||
| Top goalscorer | League: Ronaldo Damus (15) All: Ronaldo Damus (15) | |||
| Highest home attendance | 5,671 (3 times) | |||
| Lowest home attendance | 3,214 (August 9, against Loudoun United FC) | |||
| Average home league attendance | 4,754 | |||
| Biggest win | 5-0 (July 14, against Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC) | |||
| Biggest defeat | 0-2 (Twice, against Oakland Roots SC and Charleston Battery) | |||
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After the announcement of a new MLS expansion franchise, called San Diego FC, the club announced they would cease operations at the end of the season, citing stadium struggles.[1] With supporter groups running with the catchphrase, "Bury Us With The Cup",[2][3] the Loyal would qualify for the USL Playoffs as the 3rd seed in the Western Conference, and played in what would end up being their final match in the Western Conference Quarterfinals on October 22 at Torero Stadium, in a 4–3 loss in extra time to Phoenix Rising FC.[4]
Season summary
During the offseason, the Loyal experienced a coaching change when coach Landon Donovan made the move to the front office. He was later replaced by Nate Miller.[5]
As a member of the USL Championship, the San Diego Loyal entered the U.S. Open Cup in the second round on April 5, matched up against third division club Albion San Diego, a member of the National Independent Soccer Association.[6] After winning 2–0 at home,[7][8] the Loyal would be matched up against the Seattle Sounders FC, a member of Major League Soccer, the highest division in soccer.[9][10] After forcing added extra time away in Washington with a stoppage time goal by defender Kyle Adams, the Loyal would eventually lose 5-4 via a stoppage time penalty kick goal by Sounders' forward Fredy Montero.[11][12][13]
On August 24, 2023, owner Andrew Vassilanis released a statement that he would shut down the team,[14] and the USL announced that it would transfer the franchise rights of the Loyal due to an inability to find a "viable near- and long-term stadium solution", with the 2023 season set to be the club's last.[15] The team had searched for a venue to replace Torero Stadium but were unable to find suitable facilities in San Diego County; a plan to relocate to Santa Barbara was also considered, but negotiations failed to produce a solution. The announcement came three months after Major League Soccer's newest expansion franchise, San Diego FC, was announced.[16]
The Loyal qualified for the USLC Playoffs with a 16-9-9 record, securing home advantage for the first round of the playoffs on October 8.[17] Despite winning home advantage, they played their final match in the Western Conference Quarterfinals on October 22 at Torero Stadium in a 4–3 extra time loss to Phoenix Rising FC,[18][19] who would eventually win the 2024 USL Championship Playoffs.[20]
Roster
- As of July 25, 2024[21]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Competitions
USL Championship
Regular season
Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sacramento Republic FC | 34 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 51 | 26 | +25 | 64 | Playoffs |
| 2 | Orange County SC | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 46 | 39 | +7 | 57 | |
| 3 | San Diego Loyal SC | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 61 | 43 | +18 | 57 | |
| 4 | San Antonio FC | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | 63 | 38 | +25 | 56 | |
| 5 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | 34 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 49 | 42 | +7 | 53 |
Rules for classification: 1) head-to-head points; 2) head-to-head goal differential; 3) points-per game within conference; 4) total wins; 5) total goal differential; 6) total goals scored; 7) points earned against top four Conference finishers; 8) disciplinary points; 9) coin toss or drawing of lots
Results summary
| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 61 | 43 | +18 | 57 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 32 | 20 | +12 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 29 | 23 | +6 |
Match results
On January 9, 2023, the USL Championship staff released the schedule for all 24 teams.[22]
All times are in Pacific Time.
March
| March 11 1 | San Diego Loyal SC | 1–0 | Detroit City FC | San Diego, California |
| 8:00 PM | Conway  28' Kasanzu  42' Ackon 66' |
Report | Carroll 54' Matthews 59' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,671 Referee: Ricardo Fierro |
| March 19 2 | San Diego Loyal SC | 3–0 | Phoenix Rising FC | San Diego, California |
| 3:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,114 Referee: Matthew Corrigan |
| March 25 3 | Sacramento Republic FC | 1-0 | San Diego Loyal | Sacramento, California |
| 7:00 PM | Fernandes 41' Cicerone 61' Lopez 67' Donovan 80' |
Report | Martin 26' Kasanze 34' Bodily 40' Collier 69' Guido 75' |
Stadium: Heart Health Park Attendance: 9,088 Referee: Malik Badawi |
April
| April 1 4 | Phoenix Rising FC | 2–2 | San Diego Loyal SC | Phoenix, Arizona |
| 7:30 PM | Report | Stadium: Phoenix Rising Soccer Stadium Attendance: 10,437 Referee: Elton Garcia |
| April 8 5 | San Diego Loyal | 2-1 | FC Tulsa | San Diego, California |
| 2:00 PM | Conway 63' Fernandez  90+4' (o.g.) |
Report | Dyer 60' Corrales 62' da Costa 65' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,412 Referee: Corbyn May |
| April 15 6 | New Mexico United | 1-1 | San Diego Loyal SC | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| 6:00 PM | Hamilton 9' Moreno 29' Swartz 33' Rivas 45+1' Yearwood 57' |
Report | Martin 11' Conway 45+1' Damus 68' Stoneman 90+5' |
Stadium: Isotopes Park Attendance: 11,233 Referee: Eric Tattersall |
| April 23 7 | San Diego Loyal | 1-0 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | San Diego, California |
| 3:00 PM | Perez 42' |
Report | Dennis 89' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,814 Referee: Alexis Da Silva |
| April 29 8 | San Diego Loyal SC | 1–2 | El Paso Locomotive FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Corona 7' Guido 45'Perez 60'Moshobane 61' |
Report | Calvillo 9' Zacarías 13'Clarhaut 23'Pávkovics 56'Kostyshyn 65'Borelli 82'Lyons 88'Herrera 90+6' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,414 Referee: Katja Koroleva |
May
| May 6 9 | Orange County SC | 1-2 | San Diego Loyal | Irvine, California |
| 7:00 PM | Villanueva 18' Iloski 59' Richards 59' Partida 60' Doghman 80' McNulty 86' Powers 86' Casiple 89' Osundina 90+6' |
Report | Moshobane 15' Corona 19' (pen.) 49' Moon 59'  90+5' Riley 81' |
Stadium: Championship Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,616 Referee: Elijio Arreguin |
| May 13 10 | San Diego Loyal SC | 2–3 | Rio Grande Valley FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Perez 35' Adams 61'Corona 90+3' (pen.) |
Report | Ricketts 19' Coronado 26'François 31'Ruiz 39'Davila 90+5' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,671 Referee: Brandon Stevis |
| May 20 11 | Miami FC | 2–3 | San Diego Loyal SC | Miami, Florida |
| 4:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Riccardo Silva Stadium Attendance: 1,538 Referee: Melvin Rivas |
| May 27 12 | Oakland Roots SC | 2–0 | San Diego Loyal SC | Hayward, California |
| 7:00 PM | Rodriguez 7' 20' Hackshaw 35' Klimenta 64' Peláez 90+5' |
Report | Stadium: Pioneer Stadium Attendance: 3,584 Referee: Calin Radosav |
June
| June 3 13 | San Antonio FC | 3–3 | San Diego Loyal SC | San Antonio, Texas |
| 7:00 PM | Oluwaseyi 3', 12' 20' Zouhir 5', 39' Taintor 16', 70' Abu 85' Hayes 90+2' |
Report | Moon 22' 90+6' Stoneman 45+1' Damus 75', 90+5' Conway 79' |
Stadium: Toyota Field Attendance: 7,043 Referee: Thomas Snyder |
| Note: 225th USL league match | ||||
| June 9 14 | San Diego Loyal SC | 1-1 | Sacramento Republic FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Damus 69' (pen.) Guido 79' Adams 90+4' |
Report | Viader 29' López 39' Donovan 67' Keko 90+2' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,082 Referee: Corbyn May |
| June 14 15 | San Diego Loyal SC | 2–2 | San Antonio FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Guido 10' Miller 54' Riley 66' Pérez 73' Moshobane 74' |
Report | Taintor 45' Adeniran 47' (pen.) Manley 67' Batista 83' Marcina 88' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,217 Referee: Ricardo Fierro |
| June 24 16 | Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC | 2–1 | San Diego Loyal SC | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| 4:00 PM | Showunmi 68' Griffin 75' Osumanu 90+1' |
Report | Riley 13' Perez 42' Martin 64' Adams 90' |
Stadium: Highmark Stadium Attendance: 6,107 Referee: Nabil Bensalah |
July
| July 1 17 | Indy Eleven | 2–2 | San Diego Loyal SC | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| 3:55 PM | Dambrot 7' King 14' Diz Pe 57' Rissi  58' Quinn 66' 82' (pen.) Lindley 90+12' |
Report | Adams 32' Perez 39' Conway 54' Damus 74' Martin 89' |
Stadium: Michael A. Carroll Stadium Attendance: 9,082 Referee: Matthew Corrigan |
| July 8 18 | Hartford Athletic | 0-2 | San Diego Loyal | Hartford, Connecticut |
| 4:00 PM |
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Report |
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Stadium: Trinity Health Stadium Attendance: 5500 Referee: Alexis Da Silva |
| July 14 19 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | 0-5 | San Diego Loyal | Colorado Springs, Colorado |
| 6:00 PM | Williams 15' Beckford 20' Mahoney 21' Echevarria 88' Wheeler 90+1' |
Report | Perez 1' Bodily 9', 30' Stoneman 18' Martin 40' Conway 41' Moshobane 45+3' Riley 67' Collier 70' Corona 79' |
Stadium: Weidner Field Attendance: 8,023 Referee: Eric Tattersall |
| July 30 20 | San Diego Loyal | 2-0 | Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC | San Diego, California |
| 3:00 PM | Corona 41' Riley 45' Moshobane 67' Guido 90' Damus 90+2' |
Report | Musa 16' Agren 89' Echevarria 90+5' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,057 Referee: Elijio Arreguin |
August
| August 5 21 | San Diego Loyal | 1-3 | Orange County SC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Conway 8' Martin 35' Stoneman 50' Damus 59' |
Report | Casiple 45+1' Scott 49' Amang 52', 78', 53' Iloski 60' Shutler 85' Osundina 90+5' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,217 Referee: Malik Badawi |
| August 9 22 | San Diego Loyal | 2–1 | Loudoun United FC | San Diego, CA |
| 7:00 PM | Chilaka 7' Stoneman 83' Bodily 86' Conway 90' |
Report | Landry 20' Garay 28' Turner 40' ElMedkhar 56' Fauroux 86' Rocha 85' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 3,214 Referee: Brad Jensen |
| Aug 12 23 | San Diego Loyal SC | 0-1 | Memphis 901 FC | San Diego, CA |
| 6:00 PM | Corona  7 Conway 17' Martin 61' Adams 90+2' |
Report | da Costa 23' Molloy 44' Smith 84' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,524 Referee: Sergii Demianchuk |
| Aug 19 24 | San Diego Loyal SC | 2-2 | Memphis 901 FC | San Diego, California |
| 6:30 PM | Perez 4' Guido 27' Moshobane 55' Stoneman 90+2' Kasanze 90+8' |
Report | Colonna 9' Rivas 41' Swartz 53' Ryden 88' Moreno 90+1' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,982 Referee: Abdou Ndiaye |
| August 26 25 | Rio Grande Valley FC | 2–3 | San Diego Loyal SC | Edinburg, Texas |
| 5:00 PM | Nodarse 38' Ricketts 49'Pinzón 73' (pen.) |
Report | Adams 16' Damus 32'Moshobane 34', 77'Guzmán 55'Corona 84'Conway 90+4' |
Stadium: H-E-B Park Attendance: 3,006 Referee: Natalie Simon |
September
| September 3 26 | San Diego Loyal SC | 3–0 | Birmingham Legion | San Diego |
| 3:00 p.m. | Report | Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 4,224 Referee: Joshua Encarnación |
| September 9 27 | Charleston Battery | 2-0 | San Diego Loyal SC | Mount Pleasant, South Carolina |
| 4:30 PM | Trager 45+1', 47' Ycaza 45+3' Dodson 70' |
Report | Stoneman 66' Damus 71' Guzmán 76' |
Stadium: Patriots Point Soccer Complex Attendance: 3,691 Referee: Gerald Flores |
| September 16 28 | Louisville City FC | 1-0 | San Diego Loyal SC | Louisville, Kentucky |
| 4:30 PM | Harris 5' Charpie 22' Gibson 73' Serrano 75' Perez 87' |
Report | Conway 78' |
Stadium: Lynn Family Stadium Attendance: 11,121 Referee: Nabil Bensalah |
| September 20 29 | Monterey Bay FC | 2–3 | San Diego Loyal SC | Seaside, California |
| 7:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Cardinale Stadium Attendance: 3,427 Referee: Melvin Rivas |
| September 30 30 | San Diego Loyal SC | 1–1 | Las Vegas Lights FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Perez 27' Guido 62' Guzmán 89' |
Report | Rios 16' Jiménez 39' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,107 Referee: Deshun Beard |
| September 30 31 | San Diego Loyal SC | 4–1 | Monterey Bay FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,671 Referee: Benjamin Meyer |
October
| October 4 32 | El Paso Locomotive FC | 0–0 | San Diego Loyal SC | El Paso, Texas |
| 7:00 PM | Report | Stadium: Southwest University Park Attendance: 6,792 Referee: Gerald Flores |
| October 7 33 | San Diego Loyal SC | 4–2 | Oakland Roots SC | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM | Corona 17' Damus 19', 25' 90+2' Adrien Perez 28' 44' Guido 84' |
Report | Tamacas 13' Donasiyano 46' Klimenta 82' |
Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,671 Referee: Matthew Thompson |
| October 14 34 | Las Vegas Lights FC | 0-2 | San Diego Loyal SC | Las Vegas, Nevada |
| 7:00 PM | Jiménez 45+2' Mitrano 85' Zali 90+4' |
Report | Riley 45' Moshobane 56' Perez 85' |
Stadium: Cashman Field Referee: Alex Billeter |
USL Cup Playoffs
| October 22, 2023 Quarterfinals | San Diego Loyal SC | 3–4 (a.e.t.) | Phoenix Rising FC | San Diego, California |
| 7:30 pm PDT | Report | Stadium: Torero Stadium Attendance: 5,671 Referee: Elvis Osmanovic |
U.S. Open Cup
| April 5 Second Round | San Diego Loyal SC (USLC)  | 2–0 | Albion San Diego (NISA) | San Diego, California |
| 7:00 PM PDT | Report | Stadium: SDSU Sports Deck Attendance: 1,200 Referee: Ricardo Fierro |
| April 26 Third Round | Seattle Sounders FC (MLS)  | 5–4 | San Diego Loyal SC (USLC) | Tukwila, Washington |
| 7:00 PM PDT |
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Report | Stadium: Starfire Sports Attendance: 3,728 Referee: Cristian Campo Hernández |