After a season-ending loss to Inter Miami in the Major League Soccer playoffs, FC Cincinnati had a lot of positives to look back on.
Cincinnati finished 24-13-8 for the season, including the Concacaf Champions Cup and the Leagues Cup. The offense relied on new players Kevin Denkey and Evander, who was named to the MLS Best XI and was an MVP finalist. The defense was one of the best in MLS all season, allowing 40 goals in 34 regular-season games with 11 clean sheets.
Here are the top 10 moments of the season.
10. Luciano Acosta leaves, he and Brandon Vazquez return to TQL Stadium
The month of May had two homecoming games for players who led Cincinnati to the 2023 Supporters’ Shield trophy as Cincinnati hosted two of the three Texas sides in MLS.
Brandon Vazquez, who left after the 2023 season and joined Austin this season, brought Austin to TQL Stadium May 10. He scored a goal on a penalty kick, but Cincinnati won 2-1 on a late goal by Dado Valenzuela.
Acosta’s return was more acrimonious after Cincinnati traded him to FC Dallas in February for up to $6 million in a cash-for-player trade. Cincinnati replaced him with Evander soon after.
Acosta, the 2023 Landon Donovan MLS Most Valuable Player, departed FC Cincinnati as the club’s all-time leader in goals (54) and assists (72). He also donned the captain’s armband 133 times for the club.
Dallas came here May 28 and the game finished in a 3-3 draw. Sebastian Ibeagha’s equalizer in the second minute of stoppage time negated a potential game-winner by Dado Valenzuela in the 87th minute. Fans booed Acosta during the night.
9. FC Cincinnati shut down Lionel Messi in the regular season
Everyone knows how FC Cincinnati’s season ended, with Lionel Messi in top form leading Inter Miami’s transition attack as the Herons beat Cincinnati 4-0 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Messi’s previous trip to TQL Stadium was a great night for Cincinnati and their fans July 16, when Cincy won 3-0. Cincinnati handed Miami only its third shutout in MLS league play for the season. Messi, who eventually won Most Valuable Player for the second straight season, had scored two goals in five-straight contests, a league record.
Evander made a statement in his own MVP campaign with two goals.
8. FC Cincinnati was road warrior all season
FC Cincinnati was the best MLS team on the road this season. They were 11-4-2 on the road in the regular season, including a 3-0 mark out west against Portland, Salt Lake and LA Galaxy. They have 29 road wins the last three seasons, the most in MLS.
FC Cincinnati is 9-2-2 on the road against the Western Conference in Pat Noonan’s tenure. While they had their struggles at home, highlighted by three straight 1-0 home losses late in the season, their road success is a big reason why they almost won the Supporters’ Shield this year.
“They understand the challenges of playing on the road, whether it’s in conference or out of conference,” head coach Pat Noonan said. “From a sports performance perspective, a nutrition perspective, all of the travel and all of the things that go into a West Coast trip, our guys do a really good job of preparing our players with the right information. To have the right diet, the right sleep, to get the recovery and just make that adjustment in the best way possible. So I think we’ve learned from previous road trips how to best handle that approach.”
7. Kei Kamara highlighted major signings during the season
In May, Cincinnati signed 40-year old Kei Kamara, who has the second-most goals in MLS history. Kamara didn’t score in 20 games with the club, but was often credited with helping the team be more organized on offense. He was released after the season.
Kamara, a Sierra Leone native, played for his league record 12th MLS team. He is second in MLS history with 147 career goals and entered the season with the fourth-most matches in MLS history. While he didn’t dent the scoreboard, his signing, in addition to key players GM Chris Albright brought in during August, showed the club’s aggressiveness in going after titles.
6. Roman Celentano gave Cincinnati a key early win with some Music City Magic
Cincinnati goalkeeper Roman Celentano earned the MLS Save of the Year after a difficult double save in a 2-1 win at Nashville March 29.
Early in the second half, Celentano stopped two shots from right in front of goal from Alex Muyl and Sam Surridge. Celentano had six saves on the night and most of them were challenging. Right before the double save, he stopped a penalty kick from one of the league’s best players, Hany Mukhtar.
“Roman’s been very consistent with keeping us in games when we need him to,” Noonan said. “That five-minute stretch kept us in the game in a way where we could still have a chance. It’s not to say we couldn’t (have a chance), we’d be down a goal, but I think in the energy in that moment that it brought the group (together) and maybe a little bit of a wakeup.”
5. The emergence of Dado Valenzuela
Gerardo “Dado” Valenzuela, a 21-year old forward, had two game-winning goals this season and five goals for the year.
He scored the only goal in a win at D.C. United April 12, and the winner in a 2-1 home win over Austin May 10. He scored in the 87th minute to give Cincy a 3-2 lead against Dallas May 28, but Dallas scored in stoppage time to get a draw.
Dado also scored in the home win over Miami and a 4-2 loss at Atlanta. Before Brenner rejoined the team in August, Valenzuela was the third-leading scorer on the team to Evander and Denkey, and according to reports is drawing interest from other MLS teams this winter.
4. Cincy players honor Aaron Boupendza with win at Chicago
FC Cincinnati and their fans received a shock April 16, when former star forward Aaron Boupendza died after falling from the 11th floor of a building in China. Boupendza was a key player in the club’s 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield campaign. He was 28.
Three days later, Cincinnati won 3-2 at Chicago Fire FC at Soldier Field.
The starting 11 held Boupendza’s jersey with his number 9 up front for their standard pregame photo. The players also wore black armbands to honor Boupendza, and the stadium announcer held a moment of silence during pregame.
Kévin Denkey, who coincidentally was wearing the same number 9, scored a goal that night to give Cincy a 2-1 lead. In celebration, he lifted up his jersey to reveal a T-Shirt with Boupendza’s name and jersey number on it.
3. Yuya Kubo’s last goal after six seasons with Cincinnati
Yuya Kubo, a fan favorite, departed the club after the season when his contract was not renewed. He said goodbye to Cincinnati fans with a long social media post.
“To the fans, teammates, staff, and the entire community: thank you for the love, support, and kindness you’ve shown us from the very first day. Your energy pushed me through every high and low, and your support meant more than you’ll ever know. I’m grateful for every memory, every cheer, and every person who made these six years so special. Cincinnati will always have a special place in my heart.”
Kubo was set back by injury all season and played sparingly after June 25. He scored one goal during the season, a key late insurance goal in a 2-0 home win over Toronto March 8. He was always a versatile player, helping the team on both offense and defense.
2. Local fan favorite Nick Hagglund made a double comeback
After a devastating ankle injury last year and eight months of rehab, Cincinnati native Nick Hagglund made his season debut March 22 at home against Atlanta and recorded his 120th career start for the Orange and Blue, and 176th all-time MLS start.
He was knocked out of action for two months, when on May 25, also against Atlanta, he fractured ribs after a collision. He came back July 16 against Miami. Hagglund won the MLS Comeback Player of the Year award. On March 22, he was happy just to be playing.
“Amazing,” Hagglund said. “It was great to be at my first one, to be at home with all the fans. After our little huddle, I go turn and I face the fans, it was just a cool moment, just kind of a goosebump moment, The last time I was on this pitch, I was being stretchered off. I thought that could have been one of my last games ever. To be back on the pitch, just to be there, was exciting.”
Hagglund scored a goal on Decision Day against Montreal. Hagglund, the Cincinnati native and the only player to have spent all seven MLS seasons with the Orange and Blue, later won the MLS Comeback Player of the Year award.
Hagglund made 17 MLS appearances for FC Cincinnati this season, anchoring the backline and appearing in four clean sheet performances. During the 2025 season, Cincinnati produced a 10-4-3 record when Hagglund played, which included a five-game winning streak from March 29 to April 26 where Hagglund started each of those victories.
1. Cincy knocked out its archrival in the MLS playoffs
While having the season end against eventual MLS Cup champion Miami was a harmful blow, FC Cincinnati and their fans got to enjoy vanquishing in-state archrival Columbus Crew in the first round of the playoffs.
Brenner scored twice in a 2-1 FC Cincinnati win against the Columbus Crew, claiming the decisive third game of FCC’s MLS Cup Eastern Conference first-round series at TQL Stadium. Cincy came back late in the second half from a 1-0 deficit after losing Game 2 in Columbus, 4-0.
“It’s a little wild,” Noonan said. “He’s matured and when he left, that was something that needed to improve in his game, in his life. I think that experience for him was important for us to see what we’re seeing right now, and it’s his job to not get complacent, to not get comfortable and to continue to push himself, and it’s our job to continue to demand this level because he’s been pretty consistent since he’s returned.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: The top 10 moments from FC Cincinnati’s 2025 season
Reporting by James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
