Santos Laguna beat Philadelphia Union 2:0 in the Group Stage of the Cup of the League at Subaru Park on 13 August 2026. The visitors took control early and never looked back, moving into a stronger position in their group.
And here's the thing — by then the damage was already done. R. Sordo opened the scoring in the 48th minute, just after the break, and E. Bullaude doubled the lead five minutes later. That was enough to settle the evening, with Philadelphia unable to find a way back into the game.
San Luis made their changes carefully. E. Aguirre came on in the 46th minute, and J. Bueno and S. Korzeniowski both entered in the 59th. M. Cuevas and F. Villalba followed in the 65th, while G. Martinez was brought on for more cover in defence. The hosts responded with A. Anello and K. Picon in the 76th minute, then A. Anello again in the 77th — a double change that didn't shift the momentum.
Discipline was tight throughout, though both sides picked up bookings. Salvador Mariscal and Kevin Picon went into the referee's notebook in consecutive minutes around the half-hour mark. Finn Sundstrom and Franco Pardo each received yellow cards in the 84th minute, and Japhet Sery Larsen was booked on the final whistle.
To be fair, the statistics tell an interesting story. Philadelphia had 51 per cent possession and 122 attacks, but their shots accuracy sat at 33 per cent — four shots on target from twelve attempts. Santos Laguna managed only 61 attacks with 49 per cent possession, yet their shots accuracy was 50 per cent, with three shots on target from six attempts. Two big chances for each side, but the visitors took theirs.
The result means Santos Laguna take a comfortable lead from this fixture. Philadelphia lose ground in their group, and the clean-sheet run for the hosts came to an end after two previous matches without a goal against them.