San Diego FC wins the first Baja Cup, taking down Club Tijuana 4-2

SAN DIEGO -- San Diego FC claimed the first edition of the Baja Cup in a six-goal thriller victory over their cross-border neighbors, Club Tijuana, 4-2 at Snapdragon Stadium on Tuesday night.  

The annual match was announced as part of a five-year partnership, marking the first recurring match between a Liga MX and an MLS club. 

SDFC weren’t new to Mexican competition in their inaugural season, with their match against Xolos being their fifth game against a Liga MX side. 

All hosted by SDFC, they finished those first four meetings with an even 2-2 record. The first of which was a friendly victory back in June against Club America.

SDFC followed that exhibition match with a 1-2 record in Phase One of the Leagues Cup 2025, having lost to Tigres UANL and C.F. Pachuca, finishing their run in the cross-league competition with a win against Mazatlán FC.

The Tuesday night friendly match gave Mikey Varas a chance to utilize his full squad, fielding a more youthful and rotational starting XI, while also protecting his regular selections with their final four MLS regular-season games and MLS playoffs coming up. 

The first goal of the 2025 Baja Cup belonged to the visiting Xolos, with winger Vitinho finishing a Tijuana fastbreak with a midfield goal in the 6-minute, as he caught SDFC goalkeeper Pablo Sisniege out of position for the bouncing empty net finish for the quick 1-0 lead. 

SDFC winger Alex Mighten got the match back level on the scoreboard in the 15-minute after a fantastic dribbling turn and finish at the top of the penalty box, as his shot was tucked into the far right bottom corner of the goal for the 1-1 score. 

Memory-making moment in the 40-minute of the match, with the starting goalkeeper for the Xolos, Jesús Corona, being subbed off and replaced by his 15-year-old son José Miguel Corona. 

Xolos retook the lead for the second time in the game, coming right after the halftime break, with forward Christian Leyva’s low-driven strike in the 51-minute into the bottom left corner as the Xolos led 2-1. 

San Diego FC answered right back with their second game-tying goal, this time with midfielder David Vazquez getting the 76-minute goal from a nicely caught sliding volley shot into the roof of the net for the 2-2 equalizer.

Second half subbed on young star defender from SDFC, Manu Duah, gave his squad their first lead of the night in the 80-minute. Meeting a David Vazquez-centered corner kick with a towering header into the left side of the net for the 3-2 lead.

SDFC 17-year-old guest player Lamine Sadio put the icing on the cake in the 88-minute, being slipped in a pass behind the Xolos defensive line and into the penalty area as he did the rest with the tapping finish past the goalkeeper for the 4-2 final score and Baja Cup win at Snapdragon Stadium.

David Vazquez claimed the man of the match against Xolos, helping SDFC on their comeback victory with a goal and an assist.  

At the post-match press conference, SDFC head coach Mikey Varas spoke on team identity, building depth, and the club’s ties with Right to Dream after their win against Xolos. 

“We know we're going to go on the road, and then this game provided an additional opportunity to grow our squad, to make our squad bigger, and then also work towards that goal of making home a fortress.”

“No matter who's on the field, the names change, but San Diego FC doesn't change. And you see them playing really, with a lot of initiative, a lot of courage.”

“Then, guest players are awesome. I think one of the most positive outcomes of this is a collaboration between the greater family that we are at Right to Dream, because it's not just San Diego FC that we represent; we represent all of Right to Dream, which is Right to Dream Ghana, Egypt, Denmark, and San Diego."

"And so, you see [the guest players] coming from Denmark, and from the IA [International Academy]. And it's really nice to be part of something much bigger.”

Following their 4-2 Baja Cup victory on Tuesday night, SDFC concludes 2025 with a winning 3-2 record against Liga MX opponents. 

After consecutive home matches, SDFC is back on the road heading to Georgia for its Saturday MLS showdown against the Eastern Conference Atlanta United FC at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sept. 20, set for a 1:30 p.m. start time.