Match Preview - Colorado Rapids
Game Info
Kickoff: 8:40pm CT
Watch: Apple TV
Location: Dick’s Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City, CO
All-Time H2H Record
Austin FC has a 4W-2D-5L all-time record against Colorado Rapids.
These two teams split the season series in 2025, with both road teams earning three points away from home. Austin FC’s victory came in the form of a 2-0 result behind an early goal from Mikkel Desler and a second half own goal by Rafael Navarro.
Of course, when it comes to Austin FC’s exploits at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, there will always be good memories. This is the stadium where the club earned their first ever win, along with Diego Fagundez scoring the first goal in franchise history, forever memorializing DenVERDE in ATX lore.
Colorado Rapids Recent Form
The Rapids are one of the original ten MLS franchises and have gone through many changes since the 90’s. While Colorado’s logo is currently burgundy and sky blue, the team originally sported a green and white color scheme. They also played their first decade at Mile High Stadium, the home of the Denver Broncos, before moving to their current home at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City ahead of the 2007 season.
For a club has been around for three decades, they really haven’t had a ton to celebrate. The Rapids did win the 2010 MLS Cup, but they have only won seven of the 21 Rocky Mountain Cups, the annual rivalry between Colorado and Real Salt Lake. Outside of those accolades (and certainly not trying to downplay an MLS Cup victory, even if the league was just 16 teams back in 2010), the Rapids also have a 3rd place finish at the 2024 Leagues Cup.
Things looked like they were improving for Colorado in 2024. The team had hired Chris Armas as the club’s new head coach prior to that season, then clinched an MLS Cup Playoff spot and earned a CONCACAF Champion’s Cup berth from their third place finish in Leagues Cup.
But in 2025, the Rapids took a step back. After a slow first half of the year they sold Djordje Mihailovic, who was their consensus best player, to Toronto FC in the summer window. They also moved on from former MLS Superdraft pick Moise Bombito, transferring the young Canadian centerback to Ligue 1 side Nice. Colorado limped into the end of the regular season and as they missed the playoffs for the third time in four seasons, Armas’ contract was not renewed.
As you may have heard us discuss in more depth on Wednesday’s Episode 321, the Rapids hired former Tottenham assistant coach Matt Wells as their new head coach prior to this season. They also acquired some key players like midfielder Paxten Aaronson (who came over at the end of last summer’s transfer window), centerback Lucas Herrington and winger Dante Sealy, among others.
Despite the significant changes, Colorado is still trying to find the right formula for success in 2026. They sit just two points above Austin FC in the Western Conference table and have been one of the worst teams in MLS since winning four of their first six games in the spring. Similar to ATX, they did grab a win from their pair of games last week, earning a late victory against San Diego FC before losing to surging St. Louis City SC on the weekend thanks to an early red card from centerback Rob Holding.
Saturday’s match pits two desperate teams against one another in the thin air of the Rocky Mountains. Neither team is eliminated from playoff contention considering we are just entering the actual second half of the 34-game schedule this weekend. But three points would go a long way for both clubs in their quest for a postseason appearance in 2026.
Austin FC Recent Form
On Wednesday’s Episode 321, we pleaded for some visible tactical changes from interim head coach Davy Arnaud after Saturday’s embarrassing 3-0 loss to in-state rivals Houston Dynamo.
After watching what Arnaud had to say in his Thursday morning media availability at St. David’s Performance Center, it doesn’t sound like we’re going to get what we asked for. When pressed on what changed between the midweek win against Seattle and Saturday’s debacle he responded, “execution and the final action”.
If that’s all it takes to get this current version of Austin FC a win this Saturday, I’m all for it. But count me as skeptical. I’m still waiting for someone who I consider to be knowledgeable about this sport to tell me they think having inverted wingers and fullbacks right on top of each other in the offensive half is a good idea. Maybe that’s not what the players are being told to do, but if that’s the case, I’d love to hear it from Davy.
Even though my esteemed co-host stated he was withholding getting too excited about Austin’s future outlook after the win over Seattle due to the result potentially being “fool’s gold,” I know for a fact he didn’t expect a letdown like the one that unfolded in H-Town.
The fan base appears to be in lockstep. Any encouragement felt after Wednesday’s win was fleeting. Now the doom has set in once again.
There was a brief reprieve for some sickos on Friday morning, as the club announced that they’ve signed Jorge Alastuey to a first team contract. It’s a move that many have been asking for over the past few months and with an additional international slot opening up on Thursday as the loan of Nico Dubersarsky was made official, one that the team decided it was time for.
With a trio of Leagues Cup dates looming over the next two weeks, Saturday’s match is the final chance to earn points in the MLS table until FC Dallas comes to Q2 Stadium for another Copa Tejas clash on August 16th.
Considering the Liga MX fan bases travel quite well for these matches, I’m of the opinion that a win in Colorado on Saturday is paramount to ensuring that Austin’s home stadium isn’t overrun by opposing fans three times in eight days.
Injury Report
ATX:
Mikkel Desler (Out - Achilles)
Jon Bell (Out - Pubis)
COL:
Zack Steffen (Out - Shoulder)
Ted Ku-Dipietro (Out - Shoulder)
Jackson Travis (Out - Ankle)
Billo Diop (Out - Knee)
Rob Holding (Out - Red Card Suspension)
Kimani Stewart-Baynes (Out - Lower Leg)
Colorado Rapids Players to Watch
Paxten Aaronson - Originally a Philadelphia Union homegrown, Aaronson spent two seasons in the German Bundesliga and another two years in the Eredivisie in the Netherlands before coming back stateside last summer to join the Rapids. The 22-year-old midfielder has been one of the bright spots for a struggling Colorado club this season, providing four goals and five assists across his 17 appearances. As one of the two designated players on this roster, Aaronson isn’t just the present of this Rapids team, but he also represents their future as the only player on the roster with a guaranteed contract through 2030.
Rafael Navarro - This time last year the feeling was Navarro might be on his way out of MLS as his loan from Botafogo in Brazil was expiring. After some back and forth, the Rapids decided to extend the 26-year-old striker through the end of 2027. It’s paid off, as Navarro is on pace to lead Colorado in goals scored for the third straight season, amassing eight goals and four assists across his 17 starts in 2026. He’s also been a thorn in the side of Austin FC, scoring three goals across the most recent four meetings between these two clubs.
Austin FC Keys to the Game
Details, Details, Details: Judging by Coach Arnaud’s comments both postgame following the Houston loss and on Thursday in preparation for this game, we’re going to see more of the same from a tactical perspective from the Verde and Black. If that’s the case, fine. As much as I don’t like it, the fact is that ATX won one of their two games playing this way last week. It wasn’t the complete disaster overall that it felt like when we flipped off the TV on Saturday night. But to get the train back on the tracks, the player personnel must be more detail oriented, no matter the game state. Don’t take my word for it though. Arnaud said himself in his postgame comments that “a couple of details that we didn't get right” were to blame for the 20 minutes of horror that saw ATX concede three identical goals to their in-state rivals. Austin’s interim coach highlighted spacing, patience and positioning as the details that stuck out to him, even before watching the film back. If the team can clean up those details, there’s no reason they shouldn’t be able to replicate a performance more akin to the victory over Seattle rather than the letdown against Houston.
Predictions
ZG- 2-1 Austin FC
E- 2-1 Austin FC
