The San Jose Earthquakes opened the 2026 MLS season with a convincing 3-0 home win over Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night at PayPal Park, riding a surprise two-goal performance from center back Daniel Munie and a sharp first-half finish from Preston Judd. San Jose did it in front of 16,367 fans, banking three points and an early clean sheet to start the year.
The result also came with a familiar Bruce Arena note: the win marked Arena’s 274th MLS regular-season victory, extending his league record.
San Jose’s opener was built on pressure and repeated dead-ball moments, and the breakthrough arrived exactly that way. In the 42nd minute, Judd rose to meet a corner and forced a save off Sporting goalkeeper John Pulskamp. The rebound fell to Munie, who reacted first for a simple finish that made it 1-0.
What stood out wasn’t just the goal — it was how often San Jose kept KC pinned deep. The Quakes finished the night with 15 corner kicks and 18 total shots, forcing Sporting to defend wave after wave in their own box.
Sporting barely had time to reset before San Jose doubled the lead. In the first minute of first-half stoppage time (45+1’), the Quakes hit in transition: Niko Tsakiris found Jamar Ricketts on the left, and Ricketts’ low cross was met by a sliding Judd to make it 2-0 at the break.
Any second-half Sporting push was basically cut off at the knees. In the 54th minute, Reid Roberts kept a loose ball alive near the corner flag and worked it back into the box. Beau Leroux provided the service, and Munie popped up again — this time with a glancing header for his second of the night and San Jose’s third.
Munie’s brace (and his presence on both goals) flipped the script on what you expect from an opener. He entered the match with two career league goals; Saturday he doubled that total in one night.
The other headline was how little Sporting created. San Jose’s back line and goalkeeper Daniel faced only one shot on goal, and the Quakes finished with a clean sheet to start 2026.
The underlying numbers matched the eye test. San Jose generated an xG of 3.9 to Sporting’s 0.5, a gap that usually only shows up when one side lives in the attacking third for long stretches.
After the match, Arena highlighted the Quakes’ athleticism and pace in the back, calling out Roberts and Munie in particular while noting the performance “wasn’t perfect” but should build confidence.
One storyline that didn’t change: Timo Werner still hasn’t made his MLS debut. Sporting’s pregame coverage noted Werner was awaiting his P1 visa, and Arena had indicated he was unlikely for the opener because of visa issues.
That makes Saturday’s win even more notable for San Jose’s early-season outlook: they scored three, created a pile of chances, and looked structurally solid — before even adding their marquee forward into the mix.
San Jose stays home and continues the opening homestand on Saturday, Feb. 28 vs. Atlanta United, a match the club is pairing with Grateful Dead Night and the debut of the new “Dead Kit.”
For one night, though, the Earthquakes didn’t need a headline attacker to feel like a headline team. They needed organization, set-piece bite, and a defender with perfect timing — and Munie delivered all of it.
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