That’s when the ball arrived at Adama Diomande’s feet The Norwegian forward cut inside Two defenders were still moving the other direction Diomande tapped the ball once Then he squared up and drilled a right-footed shot from just inside the penalty area Sporting KC’s goalkeeper could only flail his body The ball was already past him on the way to the back of the net Diomande’s 94th-minute goal secured a 2 1 win to kick off LAFC’s season And for the second-year club the winning was only just getting started ONWARD WE GO LAFC went on to win again the next weekend Then after a 2 2 draw on the road with New York City Football Club FC Los Angeles won its next four games By June 1 the team was 11 1 4 and building a huge lead in the Western Conference Few were surprised about LAFC’s hot start Its 2018 season was one of the best ever by an MLS expansion team The team had a proven leader in Bob Bradley one of the league’s most respected coaches Carlos Vela meanwhile led a lethal offense In his first MLS season in 2018 he scored 14 goals with 13 assists It soon became clear that the 2019 LAFC team wasn’t just good though It had the potential to be historically good 6
Head coach Bob Bradley proved to be the right man for the job in Los Angeles On August 21 LAFC beat the San Jose Earthquakes 4 0 at home That gave the team a record of 19 3 4 good for 61 points The next-best team in the Western Conference was 19 back Even the Eastern Conference leader trailed Los Angeles 7
LAFC players celebrate after clinching the MLS Supporters Shield in just the club’s second season by 16 points The Supporters Shield given to the best team in the MLS regular season was almost a certainty for LAFC and the season still had two months to go One huge reason for that success was Vela In his second MLS season the crafty forward became a force His two goals against San Jose were his 25th and 26th of the season No MLS player had more Vela was hardly the only LAFC player thriving though Fellow forward Rossi was a dangerous attacking threat in his own right Midfielders Mark-Anthony Kaye and Eduard Atuesta and defender Walker Zimmerman were enjoying 8
breakout seasons as well At their best the Black and Gold simply dismantled opponents They would methodically break down opposing defenses And when the other team got the ball LAFC would swarm to quickly win it back A little more than a month later on September 25 LAFC clinched the Supporters Shield with a 3 1 win over the Houston Dynamo However by then the team was sputtering a bit The victory over Houston was the team’s first in six games Amidst that stretch was a 2 0 loss to Minnesota United LAFC’s first home defeat of 2019 Then Los Angeles followed up the Houston win with a 1 1 draw at Minnesota Just a few weeks earlier LAFC appeared certain to break the MLS single-season record of 71 points But going into the final game of the season it had 69 Only a win against the Colorado Rapids would do DECISION DAY The afternoon sun shone down on Banc of California Stadium THE NORTH END From the start LAFC fans have been known for creating one of the most exciting atmospheres in MLS The loudest fans sit in the North End of the team’s home stadium They are part of the 3252 which organizes hardcore fans and supporters groups They’re not the only ones passionate about LAFC though Before COVID-19 disrupted the 2020 season the team had sold out every home game 9
