Austin FC 2026 Season Preview

In partnership with

Hooligan Soccer

·4. Februar 2026

Austin FC 2026 Season Preview

This article was written after recording The Designated Pundits‘ Austin FC preview for the 2026 MLS Season with special guest Hernan from “We Are Austin TV.” You can find that video on Spotify below.

2025 Recap

Austin FC finished with a 13-8-13 record, which was good enough for 6th in the Western Conference. On the plus side, they reached the final of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, which they also got to host. Sadly, they lost that game to Philadelphia Union, slamming the door on what was their only realistic chance at a trophy.

OneFootball Videos

While Austin had only 37 regular season goals (last in the league) they had an impressive defense that carried them.

Austin FC was good at identifying the offensive problem early. Even before the 2025 season, Austin FC signed Brandon Vazquez in a move they thought would provide many of those missing goals. He started off exceptionally slowly, scoring just five goals in the first half of the season. A torn ACL sidelined Vazquez, and the rest of the season proved Austin inept at scoring.

Transactions

Austin will lose some MLS veterans this season. Julio Cascante, Stefan Cleveland, Jader Obrian, and Diego Rubio are leaving, as is Osman Bukari (pictured below, in white). Bukari was sold to Polish side Widzew Łódź for a huge transfer fee:, up to $6.5M. This also freed up a Designated Player slot.

That money was spent on wingers Jayden Nelson and Facundo Torres (right), the latter of which was an MLS superstar with Orlando just a year ago. They also brought in Joseph Rosales from Minnesota who will compete right away for the left back position.

Depth Chart

Austin FC will likely employ a 4-3-3 with one defending midfielder and two more box-to-box types. However, Owen Wolff is still expected to toy with moving into attacking roles, and was Austin’s leading goal contributor with 7 goals and 7 assists in 2025.

Centerbacks now include Svatok, Hines-Ike, Jon Bell, and Djordjevic. They might not be an all-star squad, but they produced good defense last year as a unit.

The strength of Austin will be the wings, with Myrto Uzuni having another year to acclimate to MLS. On the other side, Facundo Torres already has 37 goals and 14 assists in three MLS seasons. Up top, Brandon Vazquez should be returning early from injury.

Questions

Which player, outside our projected starting 11, has the best chance to win a job? Nicolas Dubersarsky. There’s going to be space for him in the midfield as a sub, and he has had a great preseason so far. With Ilie Sanchez another year older, the midfield might need more rotation than usual.
What are some realistic expectations for 2026? Make the playoffs. It might seem lame, but with all the changes they want to be competitive.
What are some storylines to follow throughout the 2026 season? Meteja Djordjevic. The players on defense aren’t above positional competition.
What styles does this team match up well against? This is hard because all three attackers haven’t played together yet. They traditionally prefer possession, and absorbing pressure.
What styles does this team match up poorly against? They struggle defending the individual brilliance of players like Son and Bouanga.
What player improves the most in 2026? Nick Dubersarsky. Austin fans can’t hype him up enough.
Which player regresses in 2026? Brad Stuver. Can he keep up the same level and play the hero again? He can regress and still play great soccer.

Hear more, and follow along as I preview all 30 MLS teams before kickoff of the 2026 season!

YouTube- youtube.com/@thedesignatedpundits

Audio Links- linktr.ee/thedesignatedpundits