FC Cincinnati 2 fell to visiting Crown Legacy FC, 2-1, Sunday afternoon at Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium on the final matchday of the 2026 MLS NEXT Pro season.
The Orange and Blue concluded the season at 5-20-3 (20 points). The win secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference for Crown Legacy who finish the regular season at 15-5-8 (58 points).
Nathan Gray opened the scoring in the 57th minute for FC Cincinnati 2 to net his third goal of the season. Ademar Chávez connected with Stefan Chirila down the left side who cut back to find Gray to slot home the match’s opening goal.
Crown Legacy would bounce back, with Hugo Mbongue bringing the match level in the 72nd minute and Nathan Richmond sending the visitors ahead in the 79th minute.
FC Cincinnati 2 conclude their 2026 MLS NEXT Pro campaign and will resume when the 2026 MLS NEXT Pro season begins in February 2027.
FC CINCINNATI 2 GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati 2 vs Crown Legacy FC
Date: September 20, 2026
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season
Venue: Scudamore Field at NKU Soccer Stadium | Highland Heights, Kentucky
Kickoff: 2:03 p.m. ET
Weather: 87 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-FT
CIN: 0-1-1
CLFC: 0-2-2
CIN – Nathan Gray (S. Chirila) 57’
CLFC – Hugo Mbongue (Smalls) 72’, Nathan Richmond (Thomas) 79’
LINEUPS
CIN: Fabian Mrozek, Ayoub Lajhar, Félix Samson, Sami Lachekar, Dom Lester (Abdoulaye Ndoye 68’), Ademar Chávez, Camden Sphire, Leo Orejarena (Yair Ramos 84’), Nathan Gray (Jack Mize 77’), Stefan Chirila (C), Mathias Vazquez
Substitutes not used: Ben Saunders, Gio Marioni, Oli Beabout, Chance Malilo
Head Coach: Sammy Castellanos
CLFC: Jaheim Wickham, Willian Sangoquiza-Paredes (C), Wyatt Holt, Andrew Johnson, Jack Neeley (Mikah Thomas 60’), Baye Coulibaly, Daniel Longo, Andrej Subotic (Adrian Mendoza 60’), Magic Smalls (Ty Barnett 80’), Nathan Richmond (Brian Romero 80’)
Substitutes not used: Jonathan Paul Philpot, Jamie Smith, Michael Ayovi, Sebastian Ventura, Daniel Brown
Head Coach: Kevin Sawcheck
STATS SUMMARY: CIN/CLT
Shots: 10/14
Shots on Goal: 3/2
Saves: 0/2
Corner Kicks: 2/7
Fouls: 10/16
Offside: 2/1
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CLT: Andrew Johnson (Yellow Card) 65’
CLT: Mikah Thomas (Yellow Card) 90’+1
CLT: Daniel Longo (Yellow Card) 90’+3
OFFICIALS
Referee: John Tamayo
Ast. Referees: Brendan Sweetman, Ben Cuyler
Fourth Official: Grace Barrett
