Kickers Battle Back From Deficit, but fall 3-2 at New York Cosmos

RICHMOND, Va. – The Richmond Kickers battled back from a 2-0 first half deficit but could not collect a point, falling 3-2 to New York Cosmos on Sunday at. Two unanswered goals from Zahir Vazquez and Sean Vinberg gave Richmond life before a late penalty gave New York the advantage.

The Kickers controlled much of the second half action, holding a 10-7 advantage in shots over the final 45 minutes of play. The goals from Vazquez and Vinberg marked the second of the 2026 season for each player, while Yann Fillion and Ali Sasankhah recorded their first and second assists of the season.

New York was led by Philip Spengler who scored a brace in the match.

Breaking Down The Action 

• New York Cosmos opened the scoring as Philip Spengler placed a ball into the bottom left corner in the 15th minute to make 1-0 for the host side.
• Richmond midfielder Owen O’Malley was given a yellow card in the 18th minute.
• Lamin Jawneh added to the Cosmos advantage in the 21st minute, scoring off a pass from Christian Koffi to make the score 2-0.
• Tyler Freeman entered the match for Owen O’Malley in the 27th minute.
• Forward Zahir Vazquez corralled a deep ball from Yann Fillion and flicked it over the Cosmos goalkeeper’s head to break onto the scoresheet, 2-1.
• Kickers Defender Sam Layton received a yellow card in the 41st minute.
• The halftime whistle sounded with the score 2-1 in favor of the cosmos.
• Matt Bolduc jockeyed with the ball at the top of the box and put a shot on goal in the 54th minute.
• Richmond goalkeeper Yann Fillion came out of his net sliding to disrupt a Cosmos attack in the 57th minute of action.
• Jawneh and Michael Chilaka were each awarded yellow cards for the Cosmos in the 60th and 62nd minute respectively.
• Sean Vinberg received a yellow card caution in the 62nd minute of action.
• Vinberg scored the equalizer for Richmond in the 66th minute, sending home a volley off of a corner to make the score 2-2. 
• Richmond forward Lucca Dourado replaced Zahir Vazquez in the 66th minute of play.
• Landon Johnson, Hayden Anderson and Austin Amer came into the match for Tarik Pannholzer, Matt Bolduc and Nils Seufert in the 82nd minute. 
• Austin Amer nearly gave Richmond the advantage off a direct free kick in the 86th minute.
• Harold Hanson was given a yellow card in the 89th minute of play.
• Philip Spengler converted a New York Cosmos penalty in the 95th minute to make the score 3-2 in favor of the home side.
• The match ended in the 99 minute with the score 3-2 for the Cosmos.

Series History  

• The Richmond Kickers now hold a 1-1-0 record against New York Cosmos all-time.
• The two clubs last faced each other on Aug. 5 2026, with Richmond claiming a 2-0 victory at City Stadium
• The match on Aug. 5 marked the first between the two clubs all-time.

Up Next 

• Richmond returns to City Stadium to host One Knoxville SC on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 6:00 p.m. EST. Get your tickets for RVA Craft Beer Festival today at richmondkickers.com/tickets and follow all of the action live at @richmondkickers on Instagram, Facebook and X (Twitter).