Chester — On Saturday evening, the Philadelphia Union had an opportunity to do something special in front of a packed house on a beautiful fall night — win their second-ever MLS Supporters’ Shield — as the club hosted NYCFC. Through an emotional roller coaster of 90 minutes of soccer at Subaru Park, Philadelphia did what they had done all season: grind out wins, riding a Mikael Uhre goal en route to a 1-0 victory and hoisting their second Supporters’ Shield.
“The boys dug deep,” said Carnell. “It just shows what they are made of. I think this was a microcosm of what the whole season was, where we had to dig deep and suffer in certain moments. And, yeah, stick together.”
Bradley Carnell elected to ride the hot hand from last weekend up top. Mikael Uhre and Indiana Vassilev, both listed as questionable heading into the match, were in the starting eleven when lineups were announced. The rest of the starting group remained identical to what Philadelphia rolled out in D.C. last Saturday. Cavan Sullivan and Tai Baribo both returned after missing the last match; however, in a surprise move, Baribo started on the bench with Bruno Damiani getting the start alongside Uhre up top.
“We’ve had a sequence and a rotation of strikers and we’ve kind of gone with a hot hand at times,” Bradley answered when asked about the decision to start Uhre over Baribo. “And then we’ve kind of just given faith, and Tai Baribo has rewarded us so much early on in the season. And then, yeah, listen, Mikael has always been there. He’s always been ready.”
The Union caught a very lucky break early as NYCFC broke through the back line and Andre Blake nearly conceded an early goal when Alonso Martínez shot the ball over the net. The Union countered shortly after when Milan Iloski found space above the 18 and ripped a shot on goal that Matt Freese dove to his right to save. Early on, the former Union homegrown made two wonderful saves to keep the visitors in the match.
Damiani nearly had a chance with a back heel flick on goal, but the ball went right to Freese. After Danley Jean Jacques picked up a yellow card, Andre Blake made an amazing save on Hannes Wolf, spelling danger for the home side early on as NYCFC proved several times in the first 30 minutes that it could break through the Union’s back line.
Olwethu Makhanya almost cost Philadelphia another goal as he turned the ball over in the defensive third, leading to another shot from Wolf, who fired over the crossbar — bailing out the Union for the second time that evening.
Philadelphia struck first in the 41st minute thanks to Mikael Uhre, who scored his second goal in as many matches off an assist from Jovan Lukic. For Uhre, it was his sixth goal of the MLS season for the Danish forward.
“Obviously, it was huge to to score the goal,” said Uhre on his performance. “The guys fought hard at home, and then obviously to lift the shield. That was an amazing feeling.”
The Union thought they had a potential penalty kick moments later; however, head referee Jon Freeman checked the play and ruled it not a penalty, closing out the first half of action.
Philadelphia kept pressing early in the second half, trying to double the lead and nearly did so when Iloski beat Freese to the ball and crossed it into the box, but Damiani couldn’t get a foot on it, and it was cleared out for a corner that the Union could not convert.
Tai Baribo came in for Mikael Uhre in the 60th minute as Carnell went to his bench with Philadelphia continuing to grind and search for a second goal. Damiani came off for Jesus Bueno as Carnell switched things up formation wise, moving Danley Jean Jacques higher up the field.
The Union thought they had a second goal off a header from Jakob Glesnes that was tapped in by Baribo, but it was ruled offside, keeping the scoreline the same.
Oliver Mbaizo and Alejandro Bedoya came in for Indiana Vassilev and Milan Iloski as Philadelphia shifted formations once again.
NYCFC thought it had tied the match when Maximo Carrizo broke in on goal to beat Blake, drawing the match level at one. However, for once this season, Philadelphia caught a break in what could have been a heartbreaking moment for both players and fans.
The visitors had one last chance in the dying minutes with a corner kick to try to equalize, but as he has done so often in his career, Andre Blake stood tall, snatching the ball out of a crowded box to seal the match and secure Philadelphia’s second Supporters’ Shield in club history with a 1-0 victory over NYCFC in the final home match of the 2025 MLS regular season at Subaru Park.
For Blake, it was his ninth clean sheet of the season in 20 appearances, as the Union now have clean sheets in four of their last five MLS contests.
“We’ve been proactive in being connected”, said Carnell of the recent performances. “And we’ve defended from the front. Just think about the work Bruno has put in throughout the season. Just think about Tai Baribo, the work he’s put in. Indy, Quinn, anyone who’s played in that position, look at Chu Chu [Jesús Bueno] tonight—he was a monster out there. So, you know, everyone, whenever called upon, has done something to affect, change and cause, and that’s been the most rewarding for them.”
It was not lost on the players that there was extra meaning in this match. Not only were they playing with a little more motivation for teammates like Quinn Sullivan who had a season-ending knee injury, but for goalkeeper Holden Trent, who passed away last year. The team has had a locker in his honor in their locker room, and his jersey was prominently displayed during the Shield presentation and celebrations on the field.
In addition to the Shield, Philadelphia secured a 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup berth and its first 20-win season in franchise history. Coach Bradley Carnell became just the third coach in MLS history to lead multiple clubs to at least 55 points in his debut season.
With their second Shield victory, Philadelphia became the seventh team in MLS history to win multiple Supporters’ Shields and only the second expansion club to do so, joining LAFC as the other.
“I think this was destiny, you know,” said Blake. “With results going our way and just the way everything played out again, the way we work hard in training. We’re not a team with a lot of superstars, but we believe in what we do, and it’s just hard work paying off. You know, there’s no better feeling.”
After the match, the players and staff celebrated their victory in the locker room. While the atmosphere was filled with laughter, singing, and pure joy, the players also knew that there was still work to be done — the season isn’t over yet.
The main theme: getting back to the MLS Cup Final and finally lifting the trophy.
“This is a culmination of all the hard work,” said Alejandro Bedoya. “The commitment, dedication that we put in is fantastic. It’s a great feeling. But, you know, I’ve had this feeling before, I really want to win the MLS Cup. So we’re gonna celebrate. Feels great, but I want that freaking cup.”
So while everyone celebrates, the club remains focused on the work ahead.
Philadelphia will now have time to rest and regroup before their final match in Charlotte, NC, on Decision Day, Oct. 18, for those not departing for national team duty for World Cup qualifiers or camps.
But for now, everyone can celebrate the fact that the Philadelphia Union are the 2025 Supporters’ Shield winners.
Main Article Photo Courtesy of the Philadelphia Union
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