Sporting San Miguelito, LA Galaxy kick off Champions Cup series | OneFootball

MIAMI – The 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup continues with Sporting San Miguelito hosting LA Galaxy in the first leg of their Round One series on Thursday at Estadio Universitario in Penonomé, Panama.

Sporting San Miguelito will make its second appearance in the tournament, returning for the first time since the 2013/14 edition. The Panamanian club qualified by winning its Play-In series in the 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup. Players like Jordan Girón and Martín Ruíz, the two scorers for San Miguelito in the Play-In, will be two names to follow as key pieces for the Panamanian side.

LA Galaxy returns to the Champions Cup for a 12th participation after winning the Third Place Match in the 2025 Leagues Cup. Joseph Paintsil led the way for the California side in 2025 with 10 goals and will be one of the players to follow along the likes of famed German footballer Marco Reus, who registered 14 goals creations during the previous MLS campaign. 

A Look Back at Their Champions Cup Campaigns 

For Sporting San Miguelito, this will be its first-ever matchup against an MLS club, while LA Galaxy will face a team from Panama for the first time in the competition.

LA Galaxy holds an all-time record of W-14 D-5 L-4 against Central American opponents in the tournament.

This will be LA Galaxy’s fifth two-legged series against Central American clubs. The U.S. side has advanced three times and was eliminated once, by Deportivo Saprissa in the Quarterfinals of the 2005-06 edition. The first leg was played on February 23, 2006, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson (USA), ending in a 0-0 draw. In the second leg, played on March 8, 2006, at Estadio Ricardo Saprissa in San José (CRC), Deportivo Saprissa produced a comeback to win 3-2, with goals by Walter “El Paté” Centeno, Alonso “El Mariachi” Solís, and Reynaldo Parks, while Josh Gardner and Landon Donovan scored for the visiting side.

For Sporting San Miguelito, this will be its second series against a North American club in tournament history. Its only previous appearance came against Club América in Group 4 of the 2013-14 edition. The first match was played on August 7, 2013, at Estadio Rommel Fernández in Panama City (PAN), where Sporting San Miguelito fell 1-0 following a goal by Christian “El Hobbit” Bermúdez. In the return match, played on September 17, 2013, at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City (MEX), Club América earned a 3-0 victory with a brace by Raúl Jiménez and a goal by Andrés “El Rifle” Andrade.