Philadelphia Union were 3-0 down after only 16 minutes against Sporting Kansas City on September 19, 2026. The score remained unchanged at halftime. Then, during nine extraordinary second-half minutes at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Philadelphia scored four unanswered goals and won 4-3.
The comeback did more than rescue a point. It extended Philadelphia’s unbeaten run to 11 Major League Soccer matches, tied the club record, and produced a fifth consecutive victory.
Three goals before the game had settled
Sporting struck in the sixth minute when André Luiz scored from outside the penalty area. He added another four minutes later, and Wyatt Meyer headed in a corner in the 16th minute. According to Sporting Kansas City’s official match report, Meyer’s goal was his first for the club.
The halftime score suggested that Philadelphia’s long unbeaten sequence was about to end. The Union had allowed three goals from Sporting’s first-half burst and still had nothing on the scoreboard after more than an hour.
Three goals in five minutes
Bruno Damiani finally opened Philadelphia’s account in the 64th minute. Sixteen-year-old Cavan Sullivan made it 3-2 only two minutes later, then Milan Iloski equalized in the 68th. A three-goal deficit had disappeared in four minutes of match time.
The Associated Press report confirms that Damiani, Sullivan and Iloski scored during the same five-minute span. Sullivan’s contribution continued an exceptional run: Field Level Media recorded it as his sixth goal in six matches.
The fourth goal completed the reversal
Philadelphia did not stop after drawing level. In the 73rd minute, pressure following a set piece ended with Sporting defender Zorhan Bassong diverting the ball into his own net. The entire scoring run—from Damiani’s first reply to the winning own goal—had occupied nine minutes.
The Union’s official recap lists the same sequence: goals in the 64th, 66th and 68th minutes, followed by the winner in the 73rd. The opposing club’s account independently describes four goals in nine minutes.
Philadelphia finished the night with 36 points and an 11-match unbeaten streak. The result was especially striking because the game contained two completely different scoring explosions: Sporting needed 16 minutes to build a 3-0 lead, while Philadelphia needed only nine minutes to replace it with a 4-3 advantage.
Football comebacks are often measured by the final score. This one is best understood by the clock: three goals down at halftime, still scoreless after 63 minutes, and leading before the 74th had begun.
Sources and further reading
- Philadelphia Union: Match recap
- Sporting Kansas City: Match recap and statistics
- Associated Press: Union rally from three goals down
- Field Level Media: Four goals in nine minutes
