Sporting Kansas City II, in preparation for the inaugural MLS NEXT Pro season, will host the 2021 USL League One champion Union Omaha in a preseason friendly at Swope Soccer Village this Sunday. The match is set for 2 p.m. CT, is open to the public and is free entry.
After playing in the USL Championship since the club’s creation in 2016, SKC II is gearing up for the exciting prospects of MLS NEXT Pro. The league completes MLS’s pathway to the pros as it is now the second stop in the academy pipeline between MLS NEXT and MLS.
SKC II began its preseason with a trip to Indianapolis in late February. The team faced USL Championship side Indy Eleven and MLS NEXT Pro side Chicago Fire FC II before returning to Swope Park for preseason training.
Last Saturday, March 5, SKC II traveled south for a preseason match against FC Tulsa. The match looked like it would end in a scoreless draw after both teams played 89 minutes without finding the back of the net. That all changed when Sporting KC loanee and goalkeeper Kendall McIntosh jumpstarted an attack with an outlet pass to Julian Vazquez. The forward sliced and diced a handful of defenders before finding Mataeo Bunbury in the box who slotted the ball past the keeper for a 90th-minute winner.
Now Sporting KC II has its eyes set on the penultimate preseason match against Union Omaha. Sunday marks the first match for SKC II in Kansas City this preseason.
First-year head coach Benny Feilhaber and assistant coach Ike Opara are busy rounding out the roster as the MLS NEXT Pro season opener is on the horizon. The two former Sporting KC players and 2013 MLS Cup Champions will continue to assemble a roster of Sporting KC Academy products and players under MLS NEXT Pro contracts complemented by Sporting KC loanees.
The preseason match against Union Omaha on Sunday will be fans’ first opportunity to catch a glimpse of Sporting KC II this season, but not the last. Tickets are on sale at SeatGeek.com for all Sporting KC II matches including the home opener against Houston Dynamo 2 on Sunday, April 10.
