Austin FC gets its biggest test of Leagues Cup 2026 on Thursday night, when it hosts Club América in its third and final Phase One match with a quarterfinal berth within reach. The match starts at 7:30 p.m. CT at Q2 Stadium, and a win would put Austin FC in position to move on.
The matchup arrives after Austin FC beat Club Puebla 3-0 on Sunday behind a hat trick from Myrto Uzuni, who scored all three goals in the first half and struck twice before the eighth minute. It was enough to make him the second player in Austin FC history to record a hat trick and lift him into second place on the club’s all-time goalscoring list.
That result also kept Austin FC perfect in the tournament at 2-0-0. The club has not conceded a goal in Leagues Cup 2026, and Brad Stuver now has a chance to earn a third consecutive shutout victory in Leagues Cup play. Austin FC is one of six MLS teams with a perfect record, but only four spots remain in the quarterfinals, which is why Thursday carries more weight than a routine final group game.
Club América brings its own form into Austin. It has beaten San Diego FC and Portland Timbers, including a 3-1 win on Sunday that was broken open by Isaías Violante in the 64th minute and sealed by a late goal from Óscar Perea. Club América sits at the top of the Liga MX Leagues Cup standings with six points, and a victory at Q2 Stadium would guarantee it advances to the knockout stages for the first time since 2024.
What keeps Austin FC’s path from being simple is the math around the standings. A victory would put the club in strong shape for the quarterfinals, but the exact clinching scenarios still depend on results elsewhere. In other words, Austin FC can do the hard part on Thursday and still have to wait on other matches to know whether the job is fully done.
That is the pressure of a final Phase One night: Austin FC can control its own performance, but not the whole bracket. If Uzuni keeps scoring and Stuver keeps the net clean, Austin FC will have earned a clear shot at the knockout round; what it cannot yet control is whether that shot becomes official the moment the final whistle sounds.
