Featured image courtesy of D.C. United and Hannah Wagner.

D.C. United returned to regular MLS season play with a 4-3 loss to FC Dallas in front of a home crowd of 17,766 at Buzzard Point. The Black-and-Red entered the final stretch of the MLS regular season 13th in the Eastern Conference, but the painful loss to Dallas dropped D.C. to 15th.

Wasting no time, D.C. United got to work right at the whistle. Christian Benteke knocked home a header in the 2′, stunning Dallas’ Maarten Paes to put the Black-and-Red in an early lead.

Dallas surprisingly swapped out leading goalscorer Petar Musa for Logan Farrington right before the match. Their other top scorer, Jesús Ferreira, began the game in the 18. If the change shook Dallas’ plans, it wasn’t apparent. Nkosi Tafari found an answer to Benteke’s early goal in the 9′.

Paul Arriola had to net one of his own against his former team, tipping in a shot from the center of the box. Asier Illarramendi and Tsiki Ntsabeleng were on the assist, supporting their captain.

The Black-and-Red worked to counter Dallas’ lead throughout the rest of the first half. While they were able to engage and move play into Dallas’ defensive half, D.C. kept getting tripped up in the box and denied by Paes’ solid performance.

Finally, newcomer David Schnegg found an opening to fire a shot past Paes, scoring D.C.’s second of the match and his first MLS goal.

Ntsabeleng fired back in short order, capitalizing on a ball from Lletget to bring Dallas’ tally to four in the 44′. Ntsabeleng took a left-footed shot, tipping the ball in behind Bono for an undeniable goal.

As if there wasn’t enough excitement with six goals scored in the first half, referee Sergii Boiko booked Boris Enow Takang with his second yellow, ejecting him from the match in the 45′ + 2′ and forcing D.C. United to play on with 10 men.

Jared Stroud snapped back for D.C. in the 48′, closing in on Dallas’ lead. Stroud took advantage of Matai Akinmboni’s timely assist to lob a right-footed shot past Paes and score D.C. United’s third goal in the match.

While D.C. United put in a solid second-half effort against Dallas; their momentum was stymied by breaks in play for bookings and substitutions. Ultimately, D.C.’s tenacity wouldn’t be enough to overcome the visitors. Boiko’s final whistle deflated the last bit of hope hovering in the air. The Black-and-Red had played well but came away empty-handed.

The Black-and-Red have developed incredible resiliency over the 2024 campaign—even when they are behind. While Troy Lesesne praised the squad’s grit, he said, “I expect that no matter what the circumstances are, this is the type of culture that we’re trying to ingrain, but we need results out of it.”

D.C. United will hit the road to face Toronto FC on August 31st at BMO Field in Toronto.

Notes from the Pitch

• United Night Out. D.C. United and supporters celebrated Pride with the 15th annual United Night Out. Jim Ensor, a pillar of the Black-and-Red supporter community, actively leads the organizing of the event every year to ensure all know they are welcome!
• Familiar Faces. Paul Arriola and Ruan have joined FC Dallas after spending time in Black-and-Red. Luis Zamudio, Lucas Bartlett, and Dominique Badji can mark their time down at FC Dallas on their resumes.

Watch the highlights from D.C. United vs. FC Dallas

Box Score

MLS Regular Season – Week 29

D.C. United: 3 Benteke 2′, Schnegg 42′, Stroud 48′

FC Dallas: 4 Tafari 9′, Lletget 21′, Arriola 40′, Ntsabeleng 44′

Lineups

D.C. United: Alex Bono, Lucas Bartlett, David Schnegg, Matai Akinmboni (Pedro Santos 75′), Boris Enow Takang, Jared Stroud, Ted Ku-DiPietro (Gabriel Pirani 62′), Mateusz Klich (Matti Peltola (46′), Cristian Dajome (Aaron Herrera 46′), Christian Bentee, Dominique Badji (Martín Rodríguez 46′)

FC Dallas: Maarten Paes, Marco Farfan, Nkosi Tafari, Sebastien Ibeagha, Ruan, Paul Arriola, Asier Illarramendi (Patrickson Delgado 89′), Manuel Cafumana, Sebastian Lletget, Katlego Ntsabeleng (Jesús Ferreira 62′), Logan Farrington (Sam Junqua 70′)

Misconduct Summary

D.C. United: Klich 25′, Enow (34′ and 45’+2), Herrera 66′, Rodríguez 80′, Benteke 90’+1′

FC Dallas: Farfan 46′, Arriola 54′, Illarramendi 83′