It's the MLS Cup Playoffs, FC Cincinnati.

CINCINNATI, OH - HALLOWEEN, October 31, 2026.

FC Cincinnati clinched a playoff berth on Halloween, recording their first 1-0 win of the MLS regular season.

Unlike Charlie Brown, who got a rock while Trick-or-Treating, FC Cincinnati left TQL Stadium on Halloween with a treat of three points and a clean sheet on Saturday.

The festivities at TQL Stadium saw the beloved Peanuts characters Snoopy and Linus (my personal favorite) deliver the match balls and Letitia Wright, Shuri, aka the Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, pulled the sword in front of the Bailey.

The 1-0 win was almost an identity for FC Cincinnati in 2025. Seven 1-0 scoreline wins, 16 total wins by a single goal differential. FC Cincinnati won 16 of 21 (76.2%) matches won by a single goal margin in the 2025 season. In 2026, FC Cincinnati have recorded just 6 wins by a single goal differential, and have won 6 of 10 (60%) matches where the match was decided by a one goal margin.

After an early red card to Obinna Nwobodo in the reverse fixture of Saturday's match in Chester, PA back in September saw FC Cincinnati concede 5 goals in a 5-0 loss, FC Cincinnati managed to record their fourth clean sheet of the MLS season in an playoff clinching 1-0 win at home.

1st Half: Philadelphia dominated the chances despite the possession being fairly evenly split. After the match, Pat Noonan mentioned how his team struggled against Philadelphia's defensive compact shape. That was exasperated by the omission of Evander from the starting lineup due to illness. The midfield really struggled, which was concerning since in theory, Cincinnati had the man advantage in the midfield with three central midfielders in their 3-5-2 to Philadelphia's two in their 4-4-2 shape.

The right wing back role was manned by Kenji Mboma Dem who'd scored a sensational goal in Miami in the midweek matchup. With Pavel Bucha as the right sided central midfielder and Mboma Dem, an inverted, left footed, right wingback on the same side of the pitch, it really neutralized the space for both players. Mboma Dem didn't have the half space to cut into on his dominant foot and with Mboma Dem not fully stretching the width of the pitch, it left Bucha without a lot of space to work.

Down the left, Bryan Ramírez started at leftback for Cincinnati but the struggles to build down that channel came mostly from Samuel Gidi's play as the left sided central midfielder. Gidi in the first half had 2 unsuccessful touches and lost possession 8 times on just 19 total touches, hampering Cincinnati's ability to generate many chances.

Philadelphia recorded 10 shots in the first half to Cincinnati's 2, and Roman Celentano recorded five saves to keep the match scoreless at halftime.

The second half saw the introduction of Evander for Gidi and roughly 20 minutes later, Echenique for Mboma Dem. Ender Echenique helped give Cincinnati more verticality and width down the right with a naturally right footed and incredibly pacey wingback, and Evander helped Cincinnati have more "composure and quality", as Noonan put it, with a better progressive carrier of the ball. That eventually leads to the lone goal of the match.

Play starts with Ender Echenique driving the right side of the pitch into the box. Echenique takes a heavy touch inside the box, but the ball falls to Bucha who passes to Nwobodo, who lays the ball of the Evander. Evander shoots, shot is saved, and the rebound is tapped in by another second half substitute, Ayoub Jabbari.

Echenique's penetration into the box opens up the chance for Cincinnati, Evander's shot from the top of the box forces a tough save from Andre Blake, and a smart far post run off the shot is rewarded for Jabbari.

FC Cincinnati defended the box well in the second half, not conceding a shot on target after taking the lead in the 70th minute.

The win on Saturday makes it five straight years in the MLS Cup Playoffs for FC Cincinnati, who sit 7th in the East before Decision Day on Saturday, November 7th.

Lineups

FC Cincinnati (3-5-2): 18 Roman Celentano; 24 Kyle Smith, 4 Nick Hagglund (C), 15 Teenage Hadebe (2 Alvas Powell 80'); 17 Kenji Mboma Dem (66 Ender Echenique 64'), 20 Pavel Bucha, 5 Obinna Nwobodo, 11 Sami Gidi (10 Evander 46'), 29 Bryan Ramírez; 9 Kévin Denkey (27 Brian Anunga 88'), 16 Tom Barlow (99 Ayoub Jabbari 64')

Head Coach: Pat Noonan

Unused Substitutes: 13 Louro, 22 Dado Valenzuela, 70 José Martínez, 88 Andrei Chirila

Philadelphia Union (4-4-2): 18 Andre Blake (C); 39 Francis Westfield, 44 Neil Pierre, 26 Nathan Harriel, 27 Kai Wagner; 33 Quinn Sullivan, 19 Indiana Vassilev (28 Agustin Anello 74'), 4 Jovan Lukić (51 Malik Jakupovic 90'), 16 Ben Bender 8 Jesus Bueno 60'); 23 Ezekiel Alladoh (6 Cavan Sullivan 60'), 9 Bruno Damiani

Head Coach: Ryan Richter

Unused Substitutes: 76 Andrew Rick, 2 Geiner Martínez, 14 Jeremy Rafanello, 66 Finn Sundstrom, 68 Jordan Griffin

Scoring Summary

70' FC Cincinnati - Ayoub Jabbari

Disciplinary Summary

N/A

Stats (CIN/PHI)

Possession (%): 51/49

xG: 1.02/1.08

1st Half xG: 0.09/0.78

2nd Half xG: 0.93/0.30

Shots: 7/15

Shots on Target: 2/6

Corner Kicks: 3/12

Saves: 6/1