HARRISON, N.J. (Aug. 1, 2026) – Orlando City SC (6-9-2, 20 points) fell 3-2 to Red Bull New York (6-7-4, 22 points) in the club’s visit to Sports Illustrated Stadium on Saturday night.
The Lions nearly opened the scoring early after Eduard Atuesta struck the crossbar in the 13th minute, but the Red Bulls responded by taking a two-goal lead via goals from Mijahir Jiménez and Emil Forsberg in the 23rd and 43rd minutes, respectively. Antoine Griezmann, in his third MLS match with Orlando, nearly pulled one back in first-half stoppage time, striking a direct free kick from the corner of the box just inches wide from the far post.
Halftime substitute Tyrese Spicer cut the deficit in half after a Griezmann corner kick to the near post was headed across goal by Griffin Dorsey to Braian Ojeda, who in turn headed it back in for Spicer to finish off the play and make it 2-1 just seven minutes after the restart.
Jiménez doubled his tally on the night at the hour mark with a composed finish inside the box on a diagonal ball from Cade Cowell.
Orlando City responded just three minutes later as Robin Jansonn pinged a long ball to Spicer in the box and the winger played a low ball across the goal that an on-rushing Dorsey finished at the far post. Despite several chances in the final minutes of the match, the visitors were unable to complete the rally and rescue any points from the match.
The Lions’ attention now turns to Leagues Cup 2026, as they return to Central Florida to take on Liga MX’s C.F. Monterrey in a Phase One matchup at Inter.co Stadium this Wednesday, Aug. 5. (7:30 p.m. ET | Apple TV)
Scoring Summary:
23’ Mijahir Jiménez (Gustav Berggren, Emil Forsberg) – RBNY 1, ORL 043’ Emil Forsberg (Cade Cowell, Justin Che) – RBNY 2, ORL 052’ Tyrese Spicer (Braian Ojeda, Griffin Dorsey) – RBNY 2, ORL 160’ Mijahir Jiménez (Cade Cowell, Dylan Nealis) – RBNY 3, ORL 163’ Griffin Dorsey (Tyrese Spicer, Robin Jansson) – RBNY 3, ORL 2
Interim Head Coach MartÃn Perelman:
"Of course, we are sad because we couldn't get the points. It was a very difficult game for us and a difficult scenario to come into. We didn't perform as we wanted, especially in the first half, and then it was about pushing forward. When we were pushing, we conceded the third goal, and then everything became tough. It wasn't our best night. Red Bull New York did a good job, and they deserved the win. Now it's over, and we need to think about the next one."
Defender Griffin Dorsey:
“I think we did not start fast enough. It was a clear message from the coaching staff all week. This is a very aggressive team. They like to start hot and I think, starting with myself, going down the line of players, I think we all think we could have been cleaner and sharper to start the game."
Match Notes
- Tyrese Spicer scored his fifth goal across all competitions in 2026, second-most on the team, and his seventh all-time for the Lions.
- Spicer also added his third assist of the season and his fifth all-time across all competitions.
- Paraguay international Braian Ojeda provided his sixth assist of the season across all competitions, tying forward Justin Ellis for second-most this year on the Lions.
- Defender Griffin Dorsey picked up the secondary helper on Spicer’s finish, his second assist across all competitions as a Lion.
- Dorsey also scored his fifth goal across all competitions as a Lion, just trailing MartÃn Ojeda (11) for the team lead in 2026.
- Captain Robin Jansson added the secondary assist on Dorsey’s strike, marking his third of the year and eighth all-time across all competitions.
- Interim head coach MartÃn Perelman made two changes to his starting lineup from the club’s previous match against Nashville SC, inserting Eduard Atuesta and Adrián MarÃn into the starting XI.
- Defender Nolan Miller (knee) and midfielders Joran Gerbet (knee) and MartÃn Ojeda (thigh) missed the match due to injury, while defender Clovis Archange and midfielder Colin Guske were away on international duty.
