"This Week in Sporting," presented by The Smile Generation, is a weekly series that highlights the biggest storylines and news updates from Sporting Kansas City.
1. Defeat in LA
Sporting Kansas City (11-5-7, 40 points) suffered a 4-0 loss to Los Angeles FC (7-9-6, 27 points) on Friday at Banc of California Stadium, conceding three second half goals after a 58th minute red card left Sporting a man down for the second straight road match.
Manager Peter Vermes saw his team suffer only its second league loss of the summer, a span that includes 13 regular season games, and it came with midfielder Gadi Kinda and forward Daniel Salloi away on international duty. Newly signed midfielder Jose Mauri started in his Sporting KC debut, playing 68 minutes in his first action since arriving from Argentina.
2. Chicago on Saturday
Two points out of first place in the Western Conference, Sporting (11-5-7, 40 points) will return home Saturday to host Chicago Fire FC (6-11-5, 23 points) in a cross-conference clash at Children's Mercy Park. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT and tickets for the match are available at SeatGeek.com , including Coca-Cola Family Four Packs consisting of four general admission tickets in the South Stand, four Coca-Cola products and four Domino's pizzas. Fans can also catch the action live Bally Sports Kansas City Plus, Bally Sports Midwest Plus, Sports Radio 810 WHB and La Grande 1340 AM.
3. Salloi with Hungary
Sporting Kansas City forward Daniel Salloi earned his second cap for Hungary on Sunday, coming off the bench in the 67th minute of a 1-0 road loss to Albania in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying. The result drops Hungary, seeking their first World Cup appearance since 1986, to fourth place in UEFA Group I with five World Cup qualifiers remaining on the road to Qatar. The top team in Group I will secure an automatic berth in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, while the second place side will advance to a playoff round of qualifying next March.
Salloi and Hungary will have an opportunity to respond quickly when they host Andorra at 1:45 p.m. CT on Tuesday at Puskas Arena in the Hungarian capital of Budapest. It is the same site where Salloi made his international debut in a 4-0 loss to England on Thursday. Fans can catch Wednesday's qualifier live on ESPN Plus.
4. Kinda with Israel
Sporting Kansas City midfielder Gadi Kinda will be with the Israel Men's National Team for its final World Cup qualifier of the September FIFA window on Tuesday when they visit Group F leaders Denmark at 1:45 p.m. CT at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen. The contest will stream live on ESPN Plus.
Kinda, who scored once in two friendly appearances for Israel earlier this summer, has been an unused substitute in Israel's convincing wins over the Faroe Islands and Austria earlier this week. The team occupies second place in Group F, five points behind Denmark and two ahead of third-place Scotland, with five qualifying matches still to play between now and mid-November.
5. Sign Up for the Victory Lap
Sporting Kansas City fans and families of all ages are welcome to participate in the third annual Victory Lap 5K Run & Walk presented by Compass Minerals on Saturday, Oct. 2, at Children’s Mercy Park.
All funds raised from the event will go directly to The Victory Project, the philanthropic arm of Sporting Kansas City that helps children through all of life’s challenges.
Registration for the Victory Lap 5K Run & Walk is now open and includes a race T-shirt and commemorative medal. Event check-in will begin at 8 a.m. CT.
Victory Lap participants will start and finish their course inside Children's Mercy Park, the world-class home of Sporting Kansas City, while also venturing through the club's training facility at Compass Minerals National Performance Center.
6. SKC II Cruises
Sporting Kansas City II (4-13-7, 19 points) delivered a rampant performance to dispatch OKC Energy FC (7-8-8, 29 points) by a 3-0 scoreline on Saturday afternoon at Children's Mercy Park. Ozzie Cisneros opened the scoring in the first half before Rojay Smith and Enoch Mushagalusa made the points safe in the second period, with goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh posting the shutout.
