FC Dallas returns home to face in-state rivals Austin FC this Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at Toyota Stadium.
Here's everything you need to know before the match.
HOW TO WATCH
The match will be streamed in both English and Spanish on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.
HOW TO LISTEN
You can listen to all the action on the FC Dallas app and YouTube channel with broadcasters Ryan Figert, Steve Davis and Garrett Melcer. Pregame coverage begins at 7 p.m. CT.
MATCH OVERVIEW
Head-to-Head Records
- FCD record: 7-11-10 (31 points, 12th in West)
- ATX record: 11-9-8 (41 points, 6th in West)
- FCD vs. ATX all-time: 7-2-2 (20 goals scored, 14 goals conceded)
- FCD vs. ATX home: 5-0-1 (11 goals scored, 4 goals conceded)
Story Lines
The Playoff Picture: With six games remaining in the regular season, FC Dallas has some work to do in terms of the playoff picture. The club currently sits in 12th place in the West on 31 points, four points behind San Jose Earthquakes in ninth place - the final spot for the play-in game (a single-elimination game between the eighth and ninth placed teams for a spot in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs). The play-in game is Dallas' only realistic shot of advancing to the postseason as the team is eight points behind Portland Timbers in seventh place, the final automatic playoff spot. To reach the play-in game, FCD would need to leapfrog Real Salt Lake (31 points), Houston Dynamo FC (33 points) and either San Jose or Colorado Rapids (36 points). FC Dallas has played one game fewer than three of those teams but has played one more than RSL, meaning the club will need to maintain its four-game unbeaten run and start collecting wins as soon as possible. Crucially, FCD plays the Colorado Rapids later this month in what will be a six-pointer in terms of playoff positions. But to make that game count as such, Dallas will first need to take care of business at home against Austin FC this Saturday.
Next Man Up: Dallas will be without its first and second-choice goalkeepers for Saturday's match. Typical starter Maarten Paes has missed the last four games with a hamstring injury while go-to backup Michael Collodi is suspended having received a red card last time out in St. Louis. Their absences mean Jacob Jackson, who only signed with the club a month and a half ago, is in line to get his first start in Dallas colors. Jackson made waves in his first substitute appearance last match, making 12 saves (which tied a club record from 1998) in just 70 minutes on the field having replaced Collodi between the sticks. The 25-year-old rightly received numerous plaudits, included MLS's Player of the Matchday, for his heroic cameo that earned Dallas a point on the road in difficult circumstances. Jackson will try to carry that momentum into Saturday's rivalry match against an Austin FC side that has scored at least two goals in each of its previous three games.
ATX: Austin FC arrives in Frisco in great form. The club is on a two-game win streak and has lost just once in its last eight games, a surge that has propelled the Verde & Black into sixth place in the West. Much of Austin's improvement is down to the blistering form of young midfielder Owen Wolff who has registered five goals and two assists in their last seven games. Saturday's game will also be the first return to Toyota Stadium for former FCD boss Nico Estévez, who took charge of Austin ahead of the 2025 season. Estévez led Dallas for two-and-a-half seasons and accumulated a 28-29-29 overall MLS record before parting ways midway through the 2024 campaign.
