The MLS season is back! On Saturday night, the Philadelphia Union will travel down I-95 to the Nation’s capital for Matchday 1 of the 2026 MLS season against René Weiler and DC United.
Coming off a 5-0 win in Trinidad and Tobago against Defence Force in the CONCACAF Champions Cup on Wednesday night, DOOP are looking to keep their strong start going in league play against a new-look DC United side led by club-record signing Louis Munteanu, veteran goalkeeper Sean Johnson, and former Union striker Tai Baribo.
Baribo, who upon his arrival in 2023 got off to a slow start under then-Head Coach Jim Curtin, departed Philadelphia this offseason with 35 goals in 67 games across all competitions for the Union under his belt. As fate would have it, Baribo’s first competitive match and first chance at getting on the scoresheet with his new team will come against his former club.
The Union loses a player who led their squad in goals in league play last season, notching 16 goals in 29 games and leaving a big hole in offensive production for Bradley Carnell and his coaching staff.
Union received $4,000,000 guaranteed in the trade of Baribo to DC, and has brought in attacking pieces Stas Korzeniowski from MLS Next Pro, a self-proclaimed “left-winger” in Agustín Anello, and club record-signing forward, Ezekiel Alladoh, during the 2025 off-season.
Bradley Carnell knows that off the field, some of his guys are still friends with Tai Baribo. But on Saturday, he needs his team to respect what Baribo’s already proven he’s capable of doing - scoring goals.
“[Tai] is a player we respect very much, and he’s always a danger - everyone knows exactly where Tai Baribo’s good. In the box, he’s lethal, he puts a lot of work rate and effort into his game against the ball, but I think there’s a lot of new pieces that makes DC an interesting opponent for us.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
The likes of Tai Baribo, Sean Johnson, and Sean Nealis might make DC a more interesting opponent by Bradley Carnell’s standards, but this fixture has been anything but for United fans over the years. “Agonizing” might be a more fitting word, really, as the Black and Red have just one win against the Union in their previous 16 meetings (12W-3D-1L) dating back to 2019.
Under Bradley Carnell, Union completed the double over DC last season, outscoring the Black and Red by a total of 9-0 between those two matches.
All-time, the Union have an overall record of 25W-7D-11L against DC, and have outscored them by a total of 96GF-50GA across those games.
“Very professional mindset, that’s what’s required. We know we’ve had a really grueling pre-season with a bunch of games and a bunch of travel, and knowing we’re going to have the schedule congestion in the next 14 games - but that’s what it’s all about. You move onto the next game.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
Bradley Carnell met with the media on Thursday to give an update before heading down to DC and offered some insight into Union’s injury situation for Matchday 1.
Frankie Westfield, who started at Left Back and registered an assist against Defence Force on Wednesday, didn’t leave Trinidad and Tobago without a few bumps and bruises - but Carnell thinks he should be OK.
“Frankie got whacked around a little bit on that field, we were active down that side with Frankie, I’m glad he got that assist for Ezekiel. He got a bit banged up, but I think he should be good.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
There are a few guys, however, that seem to be a bit more in question for Saturday’s contest down in the Capital city, though none feel likely to miss considerable time.
“Jovan [ Lukic] is struggling with a rib contusion and we’re still waiting for the extent of that, he’s pretty uncomfortable. Agustín Anello, there’s mild muscular things going on, as well as Ben Bender and Eddy Davis. There’s a couple of guys, but I feel that they’re all pretty much day-to-day.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
Cavan Sullivan, who just turned 16 last September, really impressed Bradley Carnell with his cameo against Defence Force on Wednesday and looks like he’ll play a bigger role this season. 25 minutes played off the bench, 11/14 (79%) accurate passes, 26 touches, 3 tackles, 4 recoveries, 6/6 (100%) ground duels won, 1 penalty drawn,1 red card drawn, and 1 assist - his first goal contribution as a member of the Philadelphia Union.
What impresses Carnell about Cavan isn’t just his positive play on the field, but his ever-improving mentality around the game as well.
“If you take out even the goal contribution, I just thought his overall activity complemented the team and what we were trying to do at that moment, and that’s where he really stood out. I’ve seen a lot more maturity from Cavan over the last couple of weeks, and he’s worked his way into being a contributor…I thought that was his best performance over the last 12 months, I would say.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
Coming off both a Supporters’ Shield title and an earlier-than-expected exit from the MLS Cup Playoffs in year 1, Bradley Carnell is looking to take the newly improved roster at his disposal and build a solid foundation for the club moving forward. To us (the media), and to you (the fans), it might feel like that all starts Saturday with Matchday 1 down in DC. But if you ask Bradley Carnell, much of that work has long been in motion, and there’s already something recognizable about this group that he hopes can move this team forward to reach new heights.
“There’s a connectedness in the group despite the new moving pieces. It’s always fluid, we’re bringing new people in and integrating, and the one thing for sure is that bringing in good people is a core and a mainstay of our philosophy. That’s just a big, big piece, because to do what we do, it’s not the easiest. To get the buy-in from everybody, it takes a bunch [of work], not just training environments but team builders off the field.” - Union Head Coach, Bradley Carnell
When: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21ST @ 7:30 PM
Where: AUDI FIELD, WASHINGTON, DC
How to Watch: APPLE TV
DC United vs Philadelphia Union Betting Odds
Philadelphia Union (Away): +120
DC United (Home): +195
Draw: +250
| Philadelphia Union | DC United | |
| 2025 Record | 20W-6D-8L (1st in MLS) | 5W-11D-18L (Last in MLS) |
| 2025 Goals Scored | 56 (8th in MLS) | 30 (Last in MLS) |
| 2025 Goals Conceded | 35 (Best in MLS) | 66 (2nd worst in MLS |
| 2025 Goal Leader (still on active roster) | Bruno Damiani - 7 | Gabriel Pirani - 7 |
| 2025 Assist Leaders (still on active roster) | Quinn Sullivan - 9 | Gabriel Pirani - 4 |
| 2025 Home/Away Record | Away Record: 9W-2D-7L | Home Record: 2W-7D-8L |
