KANSAS CITY, Kan. — We are days away from the start of the MLS season and Sporting Kansas City is preparing to travel Atlanta as they look to return to the top of the league.
SKC were eliminated from the playoffs in an upset to Real Salt Lake and finished the regular season losing 4 of their last 5.
In 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, MLS wanted to cut down on travel, leading to a schedule that only featured three inter-conference matchups, compared to the regular eight.
- Sporting KC 2 – New York Red Bulls 1 – April 17, 2021
- Sporting KC 1 – Orlando City 1 – April 23, 2021
- Sporting KC 2 – Chicago Fire 0 – September 11, 2021
This season, the schedule will return to the more balanced format allowing for some huge matchups for manager Peter Vermes and his squad as they look to get past recent playoff short comings.
Sporting will feature in 10 nationally televised games including the first two matches of the season.
March 5 – vs Houston Dynamo FC – Home Opener
After a trip to Mercedes-Benz Stadium to take on Atlanta United FC, Sporting KC will play in front of the Blue Hell at Children’s Mercy Park for the first time in 2022.
High energy and expectations for the club will fill the stadium as they look for a strong start to the season.
The possible home debuts for any of the new offseason acquisitions are on the table as Vermes looks for his best available lineup.
In the past, the Houston Dynamo have been considered a rival of SKC, but a giant overhaul of coaching staff and players leaves a question mark for what club visit CMP on March 5.
Plenty of familiar faces will return as opposition to the sidelines as head coach Paolo Nagamura and assistant coach Jimmy Nielsen were hired by the Dynamo in the offseason.
Regardless of the season opener result on the road, Sporting KC will look to start the season 1-0 at home.
March 26 – vs Real Salt Lake – Revenge
Sporting KC are proud of the home field advantage provided by Children’s Mercy Park and the SKC faithful.
But Real Salt Lake walked in twice in 2021 and defeated the home team as underdogs, including in the MLS Cup Western Conference semifinals.
Sporting can’t lose three-in-a-row at home to Salt Lake.
Salt Lake had a Cinderella run in the playoffs before being eliminated in the MLS Cup Western Conference finals to the Portland Timbers.
As of late, the Salt Lake club has had Vermes’ men’s number and establishing a win would be pivotal in forgetting the past short-comings.
May 7 – at New York City FC – Take on the Champs
For the first time ever, Sporting KC will travel to Citi Field Stadium to take on reigning champions New York City FC.
Taking on the champions will be a way to gauge the progress of the team as they enter mid-season form and begin to make roster rotations for the US Open Cup.
NYCFC’s offense took off toward the end of last season and they never looked back as they went on to defeat Atlanta United, No. 1 seed New England Revolution, the Philadelphia Union and the Portland Timbers in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
Sporting KC’s defense will have their hands full with MLS Best XI forward Valentín Castellanos, who scored 19 goals last season.
To be the best, you must beat the best, and as defending champs, NYCFC is the team to beat.
June 12 – vs New England Revolution – Supporters’ Shield winners
For a majority of the 2021 season, the New England Revolution were regarded as the top team in MLS and they showed it on the field.
New England broke the single-season points record on their way to winning the Supporters’ Shield, given to the team with the best record in the regular season.
The departure of Canadian attacker Tajon Buchanan was quickly remedied by the arrival of former United States men’s national team forward Jozy Altidore, who joins a roster that boasts Adam Buksa and Gustavo Bou, all along 2021 Landon Donovan MVP Award winner Carles Gil.
The Revolution’s early exit in the playoffs will be enough motivation to stay atop the elite of the MLS and Sporting KC will look to take their Supporters’ Shield title.
SKC boasts a pair of MVP candidates up front with Johnny Russell and Daniel Salloi who felt snubbed from national recognition throughout the season.
They, and the rest of the squad, can put doubters to rest with an impressive showing against New England on national television.
July 13 – at Minnesota United – Rivalry Week
July 17 – at Real Salt Lake – Rivalry Week
Sporting KC has the honor of playing twice during rivalry week with one broadcast on national television and the other on MLS LIVE on ESPN+.
First, it’s the “Nicest Rivalry” in MLS when Sporting KC travel north to Minnesota.
The teams played three times in 2021 splitting the series evenly 1-1-1.
In three games, 12 yellow cards and 1 red card were handed out, with 6 coming in a 0-0 draw on August 21.
Plenty of talk came after that match, including one of the many times Vermes criticized refereeing.
On short rest, the club will then travel to Rio Tinto Stadium for another crack at Real Salt Lake. Sweeping the season series would put SKC back in the driver’s seat in the rivalry.
Look for fireworks in both matchups.
October 2 – vs Seattle Sounders – Final Home Game
Sporting will close out their home slate of games against the team they battled throughout 2021 for the No. 1 seed, the Seattle Sounders.
None of the two ended up with the No. 1 spot as the Colorado Rapids swooped in to take it at the very end, but Seattle and Kansas City played three high energy matchups in 2021.
Plenty of controversy came from these matchups including a retroactive red card sanctioned to Sporting goalkeeper Tim Melia for wrestling Cristian Roldan down to the ground. The referee gave a yellow and the game carried on.
Both teams sit in the same position. One of the top teams in MLS in 2021; MVP caliber players; goal-scoring ability; stout defense; early playoff exits.
Sporting will play the final game of the regular season on the road, but the final game at home will likely be a sell out in front of a hungry crowd, especially if playoff seeding is on the line.
