Kristoffer Velde scores for Portland; Portland hosts Club Tijuana Thursday
PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Timbers lost 3-1 to Club América Sunday evening in their second match of Leagues Cup 2026.
Kristoffer Velde scored the lone goal for Portland.
Velde’s Contribution
Kristoffer Velde scored his first Leagues Cup goal tonight, equalizing for Portland in the 19th minute. It marked a fifth straight match across all competitions with a goal contribution for the Norwegian (1G, 4A). Overall, Velde has registered 12 goal contributions this year (5G, 7A).
Leagues Cup 2026 Campaign
Tonight marked the Timbers’ second match of their Leagues Cup 2026 campaign. With the result, Portland is 6-4-1 all-time in Leagues Cup and 4-3-1 against Liga MX clubs in the tournament. Next up, the Timbers will host Liga MX’s Club Tijuana at Providence Park on Thursday, August 13, to close out Phase One play. The top four MLS teams and top four Liga MX sides advance to the quarterfinals. The champion, runners-up and third-place finishers qualify for the Concacaf Champions Cup and have an opportunity to earn a spot in the FIFA Club World Cup.
Goal-Scoring Plays
AMÉ – Brian Rodríguez, 6th minute: Brian Rodríguez struck a right-footed free kick from 30-yards out into the top left corner of goal.
POR – Kristoffer Velde, 19th minute: Kristoffer Velde intercepted the opposing goalkeeper's pass in the final third and dribbled into the box. After cutting the ball back and losing two defenders outside the six, Velde slotted a low left-footed shot beneath the diving keeper into the open goal.
AMÉ – Isaías Violante, 63rd minute: After a rebound off the post, Isaías Violante fired a first-time finish into the back of the net.
AMÉ – Óscar Perea, 88th minute: Óscar Perea finished off a one-on-one chance at the near post with a right footed shot.
Jack Cassidy: "I thought there was a lot of fight [and] endeavor"
Notes
- The Timbers are 1-1-0 in Leagues Cup 2026.
- The result ended Portland’s five-match unbeaten run across all competitions (4-0-1).
- The Timbers are 6-4-1 all-time in Leagues Cup play and 4-3-1 against Mexican opposition in the tournament.
- Kristoffer Velde scored his first Leagues Cup goal.
- Velde has now registered a goal contribution in five straight matches across all competitions (1G, 4A).
- It marked Velde’s 12th goal contribution across all competitions this year (5G, 7A).
- Newcomer Vincent Janssen made his club debut for Portland coming on as a substitute.
Next Game
The Timbers will host their third and final Leagues Cup 2026 Phase One match against Liga MX’s Club Tijuana at Providence Park Thursday, August 13. Kickoff for the match is scheduled for 7:30pm PT with a national broadcast on FS1 and UniMás in addition to Apple TV in English and Spanish and local radio broadcasts on 105.1 FM/1080 AM The Fan (English) and La GranD 93.5 FM/1150AM (Spanish).
Portland Timbers (1-1-0, 3pts) vs. Club América (2-0-0, 6pts)
August 9, 2026 – Providence Park (Portland, Ore.)
Goals by Half |
1 |
2 |
F |
Portland Timbers |
1 |
0 |
1 |
Club América |
1 |
2 |
3 |
Scoring Summary:
AMÉ: Rodríguez, 6
POR: Velde, 19
AMÉ: Violante, 63
AMÉ: Perea, 88
Misconduct Summary:
AMÉ: Juárez (caution), 30
POR: Chara (caution), 39
POR: Fory (caution), 59
POR: Bye (caution), 67
AMÉ: Espinoza (caution), 70
AMÉ: Vázquez (caution), 77
AMÉ: Cervantes (caution), 79
POR: Velde (caution), 90
Lineups:
POR: GK Muse, D Bye, D Surman, D K. Miller, D Fory, M Chara ©, M Bassett, M Da Costa, F Lassiter (Antony, 66), F Velde, F Kelsy (Janssen, 80)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Sulte, D Jura, D McGraw, M E. Miller, M Caicedo, M Ortiz, M Fernandez, F Guerra
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Bassett, 4); SHOTS ON GOAL: 4 (Velde, 2); FOULS: 14 (Chara ,5); OFFSIDES: 3; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 3
AMÉ: GK Cota, D Espinoza (Borja,75), D Reyes (Sánchez, 75), D Juárez, D Vázquez, D Álvarez, M Violante, M Veiga (Ícaro, 82), M Cervantes, M Rodríguez © (Perea, 82), F Cárdenas (Martín, 78)
Substitutes Not Used: GK Tapia, D Lara, D Cáceres, M Gutiérrez, F Arriaga, F Salas
TOTAL SHOTS: 15 (Rodríguez, 6); SHOTS ON GOAL: 6 (Rodríguez, Veiga, 2); FOULS: 23 (Juárez ,4); OFFSIDES: 1; CORNER KICKS: 5; SAVES: 3
Referee: Adonai Escobedo González
Assistant: Michel Ricardo Espinoza Ávalos, Leonardo Javier Castillo Rodríguez
Fourth Official: Walter López Castellanos
VAR: Guillermo Pacheco Larios
Attendance: 20,897
All statistics contained in this box score are unofficial.
!["I thought there was a lot of fight [and] endeavor" | Jack Cassidy discusses match with Club América](https://images.mlssoccer.com/image/private/t_editorial_landscape_8_desktop_mobile/f_auto/mls-por/q9tz1v51rhgyxt8neib1)
