The 2024 Austin FC II season was the club's second season in

MLS Next Pro MLS Next Pro (MLSNP) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer (MLS). It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and now comprises 27 reserve sides of MLS clu ...

, the third tier of soccer in the United States. They played in the league's Western Conference. They are the defending MLS Next Pro Cup Champions, after they beat Columbus Crew II 3–1 in the Cup final.

Background

Austin FC Austin FC is an American professional soccer club based in Austin, Texas. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 2018, the club began play in the 2021 season. Their home stadium is Q ...

started playing in the

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United ...

Western Conference in

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

. In August 2022 it was announced that they would launch a MLS Next Pro team for the 2023 season. On December 13, Austin FC announced that Brett Uttley will be the first coach for Austin FC II. Austin FC II first season was the 2023 season, where they finished the season 2nd in the Western Conference and went on to win the 2023 MLS Next Pro Cup.

Season

Preseason

After Austin FC announced that they had signed Micah Burton to a contract as a homegrown player, Austin FC II announced the first moves of the season signing goalkeeper Marcus Alstrup as a free agent and winger Christopher Garcia on loan from

El Paso Locomotive El Paso Locomotive FC is an American professional soccer team based in El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2018, the team made its debut in the USL Championship in 2019. History First season In February 2018, the United Soccer League announced that El P ...

. On January 19, Austin FC II announced the signing of Ervin Torres, a product of the Austin FC Academy. Torres also has four appearances with the U.S. Men's Youth National Under-16 Team. On January 31, Austin FC II announced two more free agent signings. Bringing in Anthony García a 20-year-old winger who spent last season with the Santos Laguna Under-23 squad and Aaron Cervantes a U.S. youth international who spent last season with

LA Galaxy II Ventura County FC is an American professional soccer team based in the Greater Los Angeles area town of Thousand Oaks in Ventura County, California, United States that plays in MLS Next Pro, the third tier of the United States soccer league sy ...

. On February 20, 2024, Austin FC II announced the signing of both winger Bryant "Jimmy" Farkarlun and defender Antonio Gomez. Farkarlun was signed to a three-year contract with an option for two additional years, and Gomez signed a two-year contract with an option for two additional years. On February 27, Austin FC II announced the re-signing of Ugandan midfielder Bobosi Byaruhanga on loan from Czech side MFK Vyškov and the acquisition of Spanish defender Rubén Bonachera from Polish side Wisła Kraków II. On March 1, 2024, U.S. Soccer announced changes to the

2024 U.S. Open Cup The 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 109th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, the knockout domestic cup competition of American soccer. Houston Dynamo FC were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the round of 32 by Detroit City FC. L ...

. These changes allowed

affiliated

teams to participate in the Open Cup. Austin FC II was given a spot in the first round of the 2024 U.S. Open Cup. On March 8, Austin FC II announced they had transferred their 2023 leading scorer, Valentin Noël to the

Las Vegas Lights Las Vegas Lights FC is an American professional soccer team based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that plays in the USL Championship. The team made its debut in 2018 and plays its home games at Cashman Field. The team employs neon imagery in its crest a ...

for an undisclosed amount. On March 14, prior to the first game of the season, Austin FC II announced roster moves to prepare for the season. Both Micah Burton and CJ Fodrey were signed on loan from Austin FC and six players signed amateur agreements with the team, including defender Drake Fournier, defender Mason Miller, forward Joah Reyna, goalkeeper Spencer Sanderson, winger Luka Spadafora, and defender Gavin Wolff.

March/April

Austin FC II started the season with a 1–3 loss to

Tacoma Defiance The Tacoma Defiance, formerly Seattle Sounders FC 2, are an American professional soccer team based in the Puget Sound region in Tukwila, Washington, United States. The team competes in MLS Next Pro, a league in the third tier of the United Sta ...

, with the lone goal coming from Bryan Arelleno 83 minutes into the match. In their first road game of the season, Austin FC II picked up their first win, beating Houston Dynamo 2 1–0 on a goal in the 80th minute by CJ Fodrey. On April 20, Austin travelled to

The Town FC The Town FC is an American professional soccer team that is located in Moraga, California. It is the reserve team of San Jose Earthquakes and participates in MLS Next Pro. History On December 6, 2021, the San Jose Earthquakes were named as on ...

, earning a draw in a 0–0 game, but dropping a point in the shootout, losing 2–4. Austin FC II closed out the month of April, with a 2–2 against Ventura County FC, and again failed to earn the second point falling 4–5 in the shootout.

U.S. Open Cup

In their first ever U.S. Open Cup, Austin FC II fell in a penalty kick shootout to the amateur side Foro SC. After finishing 120 minutes in a 2–2 draw off goals by Salvatore Mazzaferro and

Sébastien Pineau Sebastien Gerard Pineau Flores (born 20 January 2003) is a professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Recreativo de Huelva, Recreativo Huelva. Born in Chile, he is a youth internation ...

, Austin fell 3–4 in the penalty shootout.

May/June

To start the month of May Austin FC II traveled to Denver, CO to take on

Colorado Rapids 2 Colorado Rapids 2 is a professional soccer club based in Denver, Colorado area that competes in the MLS Next Pro league, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of, Major League Soccer clu ...

, earning a 2–1 win on goals from Bobosi Byaruhanga and Ervin Torres. On May 12, Austin FC II fell 2–1 to St. Louis City 2 on a goal during stoppage time. Austin FC II hosted

Sporting Kansas City II Sporting Kansas City II is a MLS Next Pro club affiliated with Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer. For the 2022 season they will play their home games at Rock Chalk Park at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, as well as Swope ...

on May 17, earning two paints after a 2–2 draw, but winning the shootout 5–4. On 24 May 2024, Austin fell to LAFC 2 2–1 on an extra time goal. Austin's lone goal was scored by Jimmy Farkarlun, his second of the season. The day after the first team suffered their worse loss of the season, FCito followed suit with their worse loss of the season, falling 4–0 to the

Real Monarchs Real Monarchs is a professional soccer club playing in the MLS Next Pro, a third division league of American soccer. The team is an affiliate of the Major League Soccer (MLS) club Real Salt Lake. Real Monarchs are based in the Real Salt Lake ...

. Continuing to struggle on the road, Austin FC II earned a 1–1 draw against

and lost the shootout 5–3. After the international break, Austin FC II captured two points against

Portland Timbers 2 Portland Timbers 2 is an American professional soccer team based in Portland, Oregon. The team, often referred to as "T2", serves as the reserve squad for the Portland Timbers of Major League Soccer (MLS). The team was a member of the USL Champ ...

drawing 0–0 during regulation, but winning the shootout 5–4. Austin FC II earned another draw against

North Texas SC North Texas Soccer Club is a professional soccer club that competes in MLS Next Pro, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer club FC Dallas. North Texas SC currently ...

in their highest scoring game of the yar, but dropped a point in the shootout. Austin FC II closed out June by earning another draw against Sporting KC II, dropping a point in the shootout falling 5–3.

July/August

Austin FC II started the month of July, by earning a 2–0 win against

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake (RSL) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Fou ...

on goals from CJ Fodrey and Alonso Ramírez. Playing on th road in

Shell Energy Stadium Shell Energy Stadium is an American multi-purpose stadium located in Houston, Texas, that is home to Houston Dynamo FC, a Major League Soccer club and the Houston Dash of the National Women's Soccer League and was the first soccer specific s ...

, Austin FC II dropped three points losing 2–0. After going out to a two-goal led on goals by Jimmy Farkarlun and Bobosi Byaruhanga, Austin let Minnesota come back and draw the game 2–2 in the 90th minute, but only were able to earn one point after falling 2–3 in the shootout. On July 27, 2024, Austin FC II played in the MLS Next Pro invitation against

Cancún F.C. Cancún Fútbol Club is a Mexican professional Association football, football club based in Cancún, Quintana Roo. It plays in Liga de Expansión MX, the second level division of Mexican football league system, Mexican football. The club was fou ...

the 2023–24 Liga de Expansión MX Champions. Austin earne a 2–1 win against the Mexican 2nd division champions on goals from Micah Burton and Alonso Ramirez. After their first international match, Austin FC II earned two points, against one of the top teams in the Western Division, North Texas SC, winning the shootout 5–4. In their next match, Micah Burton's brace helped Austin FC II earn one point in a draw with Portland Timbers 2, though they dropped a point in the shootout 8–7. To close out the MLS mid-season transfer portal, Austin FC II signed Irish forward Peter Grogan from

Bray Wanderers Bray Wanderers Football Club are an Irish association football club playing in the League of Ireland First Division. The club in its present form was founded in 1942 in Bray, and was known until 2010 as ''Bray Wanderers A.F.C.'' It was elect ...

. Austin FC II continued their mid-season success, earning three points against Sporting Kansas City II on goals from CJ Fodrey and Ervin Torres. Austin FC II closed out the month of August with another win, beating Minnesota United FC 2 by a score of 2–1 on goals by CJ Fodrey and Salvatore Mazzaferro. Austin head into the month of September one place out of the MLSNP playoffs.

September/October

Austin started the last month of their season with an away trip to St. Louis City FC 2. Austin had a strong performance, taking the lead twice in the game, but fell 3–2 after giving away two penalties. The following week Austin went to Minnesota, but fell a goal short, losing 2–3. Anthony Garcia scored his first goal of the season and Diego Abarca netting his second of the season. Austin returned home ot face their in state rivals Houston, earning a 3–1 victory to bring them one place out of a playoff position. Micah Burton netted a brace and Alonso Ramirez scored he third on a penalty. Facing North Texas SC with playoff hopes on the line, Austin fell 2–1 at Choctaw Stadium after Bobosi Byaruhanga tied the game in the 83rd minute. Austin gave Vancouver a hard fought match, earning two points, winning the shootout 5–4 after the game concluded 1–1. Austin's season concluded on the last day of the regular season when the fell to The Town FC is 3–4.

Management team

Roster

''.''

Transfers

In

Loan In

Out

Loan out

Non-competitive fixtures

Preseason

Mid-season

Competitive fixtures

MLS Next Pro Regular Season

Standings

= Western Conference

=Overall

Matches

U.S. Open Cup

Statistics

Appearances and goals

''Numbers after plus–sign (+) denote appearances as a substitute.''

Top scorers

, 6 , 1 , 0 , 7 , - , 3 , MF , 32 , align="left", Micah Burton , 6 , 0 , 0 , 6 , - , rowspan=2, 4 , FW , 10 , align="left", Jimmy Farkarlun , 4 , 0 , 0 , rowspan=2, 4 , - , MF , 30 , align="left", Ervin Torres , 4 , 0 , 0 , - , rowspan=2, 6 , MF , 6 , align="left", Alonso Ramírez , 3 , 0 , 0 , rowspan=2, 3 , - , MF , 18 , align="left", Bobosi Byaruhanga , 3 , 0 , 0 , - , rowspan=2, 8 , DF , 5 , align="left", Salvatore Mazzaferro , 1 , 1 , 0 , rowspan=2, 2 , - , MF , 77 , align="left", Diego Abarca , 2 , 0 , 0 , - , rowspan=5, 10 , DF , 2 , align="left", Cheick Touré , 1 , 0 , 0 , rowspan=5, 1 , - , DF , 3 , align="left", Antonio Gomez , 1 , 0 , 0 , - , MF , 7 , align="left", Anthony Garcia , 1 , 0 , 0 , - , MF , 8 , align="left", Steeve Louis Jean , 1 , 0 , 0 , - , MF , 17 , align="left", Bryan Arellano , 1 , 0 , 0 , - !colspan="4", Total ! 44 ! 2 ! 0 ! 46

Top assists

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, 1 , 0 , 0 , - , DF , 14 , align="left", Nico Van Rijn , 1 , 0 , 0 , - , MF , 17 , align="left", Bryan Arellano , 1 , 0 , 0 , - , MF , 77 , align="left", Diego Abarca , 1 , 0 , 0 , - !colspan="4", Total !34 !1 !0 !35

Disciplinary record

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" , - , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" rowspan="2" !width=15, , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" rowspan="2" !width=15, , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" rowspan="2" !width=120, Player , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" colspan="3", MLSNP , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" colspan="3", U.S. Open Cup , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" colspan="3", MLSNP Playoffs , style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" colspan="3", Total , - !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#ff8888;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#ff8888;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#ff8888;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#fe9;, !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" width=34; background:#ff8888;, , - , 1 , GK , align="left", Marcus Alstrup , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 2 , DF , align="left", Cheick Touré , 4, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 4, , 0, , 0 , - , 3 , DF , align="left", Rubén Bonachera , 3, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 3, , 1, , 0 , - , 4 , DF , align="left", Antonio Gomez , 4, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 4, , 0, , 0 , - , 5 , DF , align="left", Salvatore Mazzaferro , 4, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 4, , 1, , 0 , - , 6 , MF , align="left", Alonso Ramírez , 11, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 12, , 0, , 0 , - , 7 , MF , align="left", Anthony Garcia , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 8 , MF , align="left", Steeve Louis Jean , 5, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 5, , 0, , 0 , - , 9 , FW , align="left",

, 5, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 5, , 1, , 0 , - , 10 , FW , align="left", Jimmy Farkarlun , 2, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 2, , 0, , 0 , - , 11 , FW , align="left", Christopher Garcia , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 14 , DF , align="left", Nico Van Rijn , 3, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 3, , 0, , 0 , - , 17 , MF , align="left", Bryan Arellano , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0 , - , 18 , MF , align="left", Bobosi Byaruhanga , 3, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 3, , 1, , 0 , - , 19 , MF , align="left", CJ Fodrey , 3, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 4, , 0, , 0 , - , 20 , GK , align="left", Aaron Cervantes , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 25 , DF , align="left", Anthony De Anda , 8, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 8, , 0, , 1 , - , 30 , MF , align="left", Ervin Torres , 2, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 2, , 0, , 0 , - , 31 , GK , align="left", Spencer Sanderson , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 32 , MF , align="left", Micah Burton , 2, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 2, , 0, , 0 , - , 33 , DF , align="left", Gavin Wolff , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 34 , DF , align="left", Drake Fornier , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 35 , DF , align="left", Mason Miller , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 36 , MF , align="left", Luka Spadafore , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0 , - , 37 , FW , align="left", Joah Reyna , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - , 77 , MF , align="left", Diego Abarca , 1, , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 1, , 0 , - , , FW , align="left", Jonathan Santillan , 1, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 1, , 0, , 0 , - , , FW , align="left", Peter Grogan , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0 , - !colspan="3", Total, , 63, , 5, , 1, , 2, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 0, , 65, , 5, , 1

Clean sheets

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Awards and honors

MLS Goal of the Week

{, class=wikitable , - !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" , Week !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" , Player !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" , Opponent !style="background-color:#00AE42; color:#000000" , Ref , - , align=center , 3 , CJ Fodrey , Houston Dynamo 2 , style="text-align: center;", , - , align=center , 25 , Diego Abarca , St. Louis City 2 , style="text-align: center;",

References

{{2024 in American men's soccer

Austin FC II Austin FC II is an American professional soccer team that is located in Austin, Texas. It is the reserve team of Austin FC and participates in MLS Next Pro. History On August 4, 2022, Austin FC was named as one of seven MLS clubs that would f ...