CARSON — The Galaxy held a championship banner unveiling ceremony and paraded the sixth MLS Cup through an excited fan zone, marking the start of the 2025 season and the race for a second consecutive title.

However, asMajor League SoccerAs has often been shown, each season brings its own unique challenges, and the Galaxy found this out this past Sunday.

After going through last season undefeated at Dignity Health Sports Park, the Galaxy, in front of 25,224 spectators, suffered a 2-0 home loss in their season-opening game against newly-promoted San Diego FC.

The defeat marked the Galaxy’s first home loss since the final game of the 2023 season on Oct. 21.

The turning point came in the 52nd minute when a mistimed pass from new goalkeeper Novak Micovic, combined with an inaccurate touch from defender Emiro Garces, created a chaotic situation that allowed San Diego to score their first goal in history through Anders Dreyer.

Micovic responded with two crucial saves soon after, keeping the score at 1-0 and giving the Galaxy’s attack a chance to gradually revive.

Unfortunately, the offensive surge only came late in the game, with the presence of Miguel Berry, Ruben Ramos, and Elijah Wynder catalyzing the Galaxy’s efforts.

But as the Galaxy searched for an equalizer, San Diego struck again in the final minutes of stoppage time, capping off a counterattack that saw Dreyer score his second of the evening.

With San Diego FC joining, California now has a fourth team alongside the Galaxy, LAFC and San Jose Earthquakes, opening up the possibility of new rivalries across the state, a point that Commissioner Don Garber also highlighted before the game.

“Rivalries are what make MLS so exciting,” Garber said. “One of the reasons we wanted a team in San Diego was to create exciting rivalries like El Tráfico between the Galaxy and LAFC. We used to joke that the rivalry was named after something people didn’t like, but now it’s one of the most anticipated events in MLS, drawing 70-80,000 fans at the Rose Bowl.”

It will be interesting to see how these four clubs interact with each other. The best part is that the fans and the teams develop genuine rivalries, rather than relying on the league’s marketing strategy.”