Under the lights at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, MLS opening day didn’t feel like a regular-season curtain-raiser so much as a traveling circus rolling into town — 75,673 people, a superstar opponent, and all the hype money can buy. And then LAFC treated Inter Miami like the headliner who forgot the lyrics.
This was billed as the “clash of titans,” complete with Lionel Messi on the guest list, but the Black & Gold turned it into a statement: LAFC 3, Inter Miami 0 — a clean, cold win over the reigning MLS Cup champions in front of a record crowd.
LAFC’s new era under head coach Marc Dos Santos started with a little swagger and a lot of steel. After the match, Dos Santos basically admitted the scary part: they won big and still weren’t close to finished. Translation: this can get worse for everybody else.
Miami did their usual “we’ll have the ball and you’ll admire it” thing, clocking 68% possession, but the night belonged to the team that actually used the moments that mattered. For all the pretty passing, Miami created only one big chance, their new DP striker Germán Berterame barely made a dent, and Messi didn’t put a single shot on target.
And that’s the whole story right there: possession is a vibe; goals are a verdict.
LAFC struck first in the 38th minute, with Son Heung-Min — yes, that Son — playing the kind of pass that makes defenders feel like they’re chasing a ghost. David Martínez finished it, and the Coliseum went from “curious” to “feral” in about two seconds.
From there, LAFC did the thing great teams do: they didn’t just protect the lead — they made it feel inevitable. Dos Santos talked about how the group learned to “suffer” together, which is coach-speak for we can take punches without panicking. That edge mattered even more because LAFC weren’t exactly coming in fresh: earlier in the week they’d traveled for a Concacaf Champions Cup match and still rolled Real España 6–1.
Then came the moment that turned a big win into a public performance.
In the 73rd minute, Denis Bouanga did Denis Bouanga things: the ball came through, the space opened up, and he floated a cheeky finish over Dayne St. Clair — last year’s MLS Goalkeeper of the Year — before tapping it into an empty net like he had all night to think about it. The crowd hit that specific level of noise that sounds less like cheering and more like the building itself trying to levitate.
Bouanga wasn’t done. In stoppage time, he slid the final knife with an assist to Nathan Ordaz, making it 3–0 and making sure the highlights would look even more ruthless than the match already felt. Two goal contributions to start the season, because Bouanga apparently decided 2026 should open with a reminder: he’s not here for subtlety.
What made this night pop wasn’t just the scoreline — it was the symbolism. Miami arrived wearing the crown from last season’s playoff run, the kind where you rack up goals and headlines and start to believe the league will bend around you. LAFC didn’t just beat them; they muted the whole show.
And in a league that loves star power, this was the fun twist: the biggest name on the billboard wasn’t the one who delivered the performance. LAFC’s stars — Bouanga, Son, and a midfield anchored by Stephen Eustáquio in his MLS debut — made the “clash of titans” feel like a passing of the torch moment, or at least a warning shot: if you’re coming to LA for the spotlight, you might leave with the bruises.
If you want, paste your original draft (even rough) and I’ll keep this same vibe but match your voice even harder — more LA swagger, more snark, more “I was there.”
