MEDIA RELEASE:
Oct. 31, 2026
MATCH RECAP: Earthquakes 2, Real Salt Lake 1
Quakes win home regular-season finale, rise to third in West behind Ousseni Bouda goal and assist; San Jose to face Minnesota United FC on road to close regular season before Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Earthquakes defeated Real Salt Lake 2-1 on Saturday afternoon at PayPal Park in their final regular-season home game to rise to third in the Western Conference with just one match left to play before the Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs.
In the first minute of the game, RSL defender Dominik Marczuk fouled Jamar Ricketts at the left edge of the 18-yard-box near the goal line. One minute later, Ousseni Bouda buried the ensuing free kick from close range for the near post past goalkeeper Rafael Cabral to make it 1-0. The Quakes doubled their advantage in minute 17 when Niko Tsakiris charged down the left wing and left flicked a cross in the box for Preston Judd, who deflected it to a streaking Jamar Ricketts near the same spot on the edge where Bouda scored. Ricketts crossed it back into the box for a slidiing Benji Kikanović who poked it into the back of the net to make it 2-0.
Real Salt Lake pulled one back in minute 23 when Sam Junqua sent in a cross from the left wing and Juanma Sanabria headed it past Quakes goalkeeper Earl Edwards Jr. for the far post to make it 2-1. After intermission, both sides had their opportunities in front of net, but the final score held and the Quakes made their ascent to third place by afternoon’s end—noteworthy because the top-four finishers in each conference will enjoy home-field advantage in Round One of the Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs. San Jose has now captured 52 points—surpassing the team’s highest total since 2013 (51).
The full “Quakes Replay” of tonight’s match is scheduled to air this weekend on KTVU Plus on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 8 p.m. PT. For highlights, analysis and features, fans can also watch the new half-hour magazine show “Quakes Exclusive,” which will next air on Friday, Nov. 13, on KTVU Plus at 8 p.m. PT and on KTVU FOX 2 on 8:30 p.m. PT.
The Black and Blue play their last regular-season game before the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs on the road against Minnesota United FC on Saturday, Nov. 7. Kickoff from Allianz Field is slated for 4 p.m. PT with the match to be broadcast on Apple TV (English/Spanish), as well as via local radio on KSFO 810 AM (English) and La Kaliente 1370 AM (Spanish).
GAME NOTES
ON THE TABLE: With this afternoon’s result, the Quakes rose to third in the Western Conference (14-9-10, 52 points; 56 GF, 48 GA, +8 GD), while RSL moved to 10th (12-15-6, 42 points; 51 GF, 51 GA, 0 GD). A win today clinched no lower than sixth for San Jose. A win combined with an LAFC draw/loss would clinch no lower than fifth. The t op-four regular-season finishers in each conference will get home-field advantage in the Round One Best-of-3 Series starting the week of Nov. 20.
RECENT SERIES: Aside from a 1-0 hiccup in 2024 at PayPal Park, San Jose has now earned points in four of their last five meetings at home against RSL dating back to 2022 (3-1-1), including a 4-0 shutout of the Claret-and-Cobalt in the 2025 season opener—Bruce Arena’s very first league game in charge of the Black and Blue. Current Quakes Jamar Ricketts, Ousseni Bouda and Vítor Costa all netted that night.
THE BRUCE BUMP: Head Coach Bruce Arena has now guided an astounding fifth MLS club to the playoffs in his second season (D.C. United, Red Bull NY LA Galaxy, New England Revolution) after clinching a postseason berth with San Jose on Oct. 17. He has also guided the Quakes to 52 points—surpassing the team’s highest total since 2013 (51).
BUY DOMESTIC: The Quakes started 10 American players tonight. No team in MLS has averaged more of them in the starting 11 more across all competitions in 2026 than Bruce Arena’s Earthquakes (7.34/game). Arena also started seven former college players tonight; no team in MLS has more of them on the roster (19).
BOUDA ROCKING: Forward Ousseni Bouda’s second-minute goal was his career-high seventh in league this season and 12th of his career. His 17th-minute assist on Benji Kikanović’s goal was his fifth of the league season and sixth of his career. For his efforts, Bouda was named Northern California Honda Dealers Man of the Match.
BENJI’S BACK: Defender Benji Kikanović, playing in his first game since Sept. 26 against Portland, scored his first goal of the league season and 15th of his career in minute 17.
JUDDGE RULES: Preston Judd’s 17th-minute secondary assist was his fourth of the league season and fourth of his career. With 16 goals, forward Judd is one away from tying Jeremy Ebobisse for the third-highest Quakes single-season mark. Only three Quakes have scored 16 in a season: Judd, Ebobisse and MLS all-time leading scorer Chris Wondolowski (four times including the single-season record of 27 in 2012, his Landon Donovan MVP season). Judd is also currently third among all American scorers behind Milan Iloski (19) and Brian White (17).
BRUCE ALMIGHTY: Bruce Arena won his 287th regular-season match to extend his MLS record. The late great Sigi Schmid is second with 240.
REUNITED: Quakes Head Coach Bruce Arena gave RSL Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni his U.S. Men’s National Team debut as player in 2001. Mastroeni played for Arena on two World Cup teams (2002, 2006) and the LA Galaxy (2013).
IN GOOD HANDS: San Jose is now 10-0-0 when taking a two-goal lead and 10-0-2 when taking a lead into halftime. When preventing the opponent from scoring three goals or more, San Jose is now 14-2-9.
PICK YOUR POISON: Eleven different Quakes have two or more goals in MLS play (Jack Jasinski, Preston Judd, Beau Leroux, Eduard Löwen (three for St. Louis, one for San Jose), Niko Tsakiris, Ousseni Bouda, Daniel Munie, Reid Roberts, Dave Romney, Jack Skahan and Timo Werner) while 12 different Quakes have 2+ assists (Bouda, Leroux, Nick Fernandez, Judd, Löwen, Paul Marie, Munie, Jamar Ricketts, Skahan, Tsakiris, Ronaldo Vieira and Werner).
HALLOWEEN HISTORY: Today marked the first time in the MLS era that the Earthquakes played a game on Oct. 31. The Halloween Takeover Monster Match festivities included chocolate candy bars for the first 2,000 kids through the gates, a Halloween maze/obstacle course, trick-or-treating at various booths and concession stands, and a costume contest.
GLOVE STORY: Bay Area basketball icon Gary Payton attended his first-ever soccer game today at PayPal Park and fired the ceremonial pregame siren today. One of the greatest hoopers of all time out of Oakland’s Skyline High School, among Payton’s parade of accolades are Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee (2013), NBA 75th Anniversary Team (2021), NBA champion (2006), two-time Olympic gold medalist (1996, 2000), NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award winner (1996), nine-time All-NBA performer (1994-2002), nine-time NBA All-Star (1994-98, 2000-03) and nine-time All-Defensive First Team player (1994-2002).
San Jose Earthquakes 2 – 1 Real Salt Lake
Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026 — PayPal Park; San Jose, California
Weather: 62°F Mostly Sunny
NorCal Honda Dealers Man of the Match: Ousseni Bouda
*all stats unofficial
Match Officials:
Referee: Lorenzo Hernandez
AR1: Brooke Mayo
AR2: Stephen McGonagle
4th Official: Rodrigo Albuquerque
VAR: Daniel Radford
AVAR: Claudiu Badea
Scoring Summary:
SJ (1-0) – Ousseni Bouda (unassisted) 2’
SJ (2-0) – Benji Kikanovic (Ousseni Bouda, Preston Judd) 17’
RSL (2-1) – Juan Sanabria (Sam Junqua, Saba Lobjanidze) 23’
Misconduct Summary:
SJ – Dave Romney (caution) 46’
SJ – Reid Roberts (caution) 60’
SJ – Niko Tsakiris (caution) 60’
RSL – Phillip Quinton (caution) 63’
SJ – Alexandros Katranis (caution) 90+7’
SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES: Earl Edwards Jr. (GK); Benji Kikanovic (Jack Jasinski HT), Dave Romney (C), Daniel Munie, Reid Roberts, Jamar Ricketts; Ian Harkes (Ronaldo Vieira 60’), Nick Fernandez (Eduard Löwen 61’), Niko Tsakiris (Beau Leroux 60’); Ousseni Bouda, Preston Judd (Luka Jovanović 81’).
Substitutes not used: Angus Gunn (GK), Vitor Costa, Max Floriani, Jack Skahan.
POSS.: 49.6%; SHOTS: 14; SOG: 8; CORNERS: 5; OFFSIDES: 5; SAVES: 4; FOULS: 13; xG: 1.5
REAL SALT LAKE: Rafael Cabral (GK); Dominik Marczuk (Zach Booth HT) (Alexandros Katranis 70’), Justen Glad (Lukas Engel 61’), Philip Quinton, Luc de Fougerolles, Sam Junqua (Aiden Hezarkhani HT); Juan Sanabria, Stijn Spierings (Ariath Piol 71’), Noel Caliskan, Saba Lobjanidze; Sergi Solans.
Substitutes not used: Mason Stajduhar (GK); Colin Gusek, Kobi Henry, Alexandros Katranis, DeAndre Yedlin.
POSS.: 50.4%; SHOTS: 16; SOG: 5; CORNERS: 5; OFFSIDES: 3; SAVES: 3; FOULS: 13; xG: 1.9
EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH BRUCE ARENA
On overall thoughts of the win:
“First of all, playing at altitude is always difficult, and that was certainly a factor. But give Salt Lake credit; they played really well today. They needed a result given their position in the standings, and they put a lot of pressure on us. We were fortunate to get those two early goals, but we had to battle throughout the game. I give our opponent a lot of credit. Playing at home helps, but if you look at the statistics, it was a pretty even game. This wasn’t one of our better performances, and we played better at home in our last game. Ultimately, I’m pleased with the three points.”
On the challenge of staying consistent despite a packed schedule late in the season:
“It’s difficult. We made seven changes to our starting lineup today, and you can argue whether that’s good or bad, but all teams are tired right now. The league schedule is crazy. We take time off for the World Cup and other things, and then we’re cramming three games into this time of year when so much is at stake. It’s really challenging for the players, and you can see that teams are a little beat up. If you look at the results across the league this past week, there have been surprising outcomes across the board, and I think fatigue has played a role in that.”
On Ousseni Bouda’s goal and assist:
“I thought he was going to cross the ball in front of the goal, but I heard one of my coaches say he was going to shoot. It was great to see him score. Good to get Bouda back on the scoreboard. I think his last goal was against LAFC, and this was his seventh of the year. Hopefully, that gives him some confidence heading into Minnesota, where we hope to play well.”
On preparing for Minnesota next week and then the two-week gap before playoffs:
“I think we’re going to give the players two days off and then gradually build toward the end of the week. We want to carry some momentum into Minnesota and play well, although I know that will be challenging. Who knows what the weather will be like there this time of year? We could be playing in a snowstorm. It’s another tough game, and we’ve played a lot of road games in October, which has been challenging. It’ll be good to have a couple of days off to refresh mentally and physically and hopefully put us in a good position to play well against Minnesota.”
EARTHQUAKES FORWARD OUSSENI BOUDA
On overall reflections of the win:
“I think this victory came at the right time. We have one more game to go, and these three points put us in a good position to keep fighting for a higher spot in the standings and give ourselves the best chance to play as many home games as possible.”
On Jamar Ricketts’ efforts defensively making an impact on the match:
“He’s a dog, and I like that about him. That’s my brother, man. It’s great to have teammates like him. You never have to question his effort. He’s always going to go out there and leave everything on the field, and that inspires everyone. No matter where I am on the field, I see that effort, and it motivates me. He’s someone who works hard and deserves everything he gets.”
On the team’s focus heading into the final regular-season game and playoffs:
“I think we have to stay in the moment and take it one game at a time. We’ve tried to do that all season, and there have been a lot of ups and downs. But to be in this position at this time of year is great. We have to stay focused, go to Minnesota, give them a fight and try to get another three points to position ourselves as high as possible in the standings. Right now, we just have to stay in the moment and build some momentum that we can carry into the playoffs. That’s the goal.”
On the fans’ support throughout the season:
“We appreciate the support all season long. It hasn’t been perfect, but I’ve been here for a couple of years now, and this is the best team I’ve been a part of. We appreciate all the support, and we give everything we have to try to give our fans as many home games as possible in the playoffs. Let’s enjoy this together. Thank you for the support, and hopefully, we’ll see you here many more times.”
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