In the third minute of the match on Wednesday evening, a match that kicked off after 9 p.m. local time, FC Cincinnati’s Obinna Nwobodo put a hard challenge on an O&M FC defender as he looked to keep possession for the FCC attack. A hard challenge, not a bookable one, but a foul all the same.
The ref blew his whistle, a fair call and one that Nwobodo did not protest, but it was not the sound of the players on the field or the shouting of the benches that drowned out the stadium; it was the horns.
FC Cincinnati opened its 2026 season with a modest but thorough victory in the opening leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup, defeating Dominican Republic side O&M FC at Estadio Cibao in Santiago De Los Caballeros by a score of 4-0. The two-leg aggregate series means FCC will now take that lead into the second game of the round at TQL Stadium next Wednesday as they look to advance.
The passion and fandom that comes with the Concacaf Champions Cup was on full display Wednesday night as the local attendance, which was estimated to be around 500 people pregame, made themselves sound more like 5,000 with the combination of cheering, chanting and horns that pierced the Dominican night and televisions back in Cincinnati all the same.
FC Cincinnati dominated possession and controlled the tempo of play for nearly all of the match, but every time the local squad made a clearance, a save, a dangerous pass or was fouled by an FCC attacker, the night sky was filled with sound and fury as the horns and percussion rang out.
“It's unique. You have to understand how to approach games where the crowd isn't what we've experienced in other matches,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said of the atmosphere in Estadio Cibao.
The Estadio Cibao wasn't packed, but the spirit of the game was there. It was a perfect night for soccer, with a cool breeze and the trees that surround the stadium — including one very large tree directly over the top of one goal — swaying gently. The fans who brought the noise to the night did so from start to finish, no matter the score or outcome for their team. But at the end of the night, when the final whistle replaced the incessant buzz, the horns stopped, and the local fans departed. On their way out though, every person who wore FC Cincinnati colors and crests was met by one of those locals, who said to them, “Good game, get home safe,” and/or “I hope you enjoyed your time here!”
“It's always good to play in different conditions, whether the pitch, the weather, the atmosphere, it's always experiences,” Obinna Nwobodo added after the match as well. Nwobodo had two assists on the night and played all 90 minutes. “No matter where we play, no matter the atmosphere, we know for sure we're not gonna get the same as we get in TQL Stadium. So, going outside we know that we are going to expect something different.”
FCC opened the scoring in the 12th minute when Tom Barlow, making his club debut, scored, cleaning up a rebound off a blocked shot to secure his first goal on his debut. The second goal came from Kévin Denkey, who rocketed a ball off his right boot on frame and (quite literally) through the O&M FC keeper to make things 2-0 in the 33rd minute.
That’s where things stayed for a little while. FC Cincinnati never conceded a dangerous moment, and the game stayed at the feet of The Orange and Blue. A penalty kick was earned and taken by Ayoub Jabbari, but the O&M FC keeper made up for his flub by diving to save the attempt.
Jabbari, though, frustrated by his miss, put his head down and made good on the missed opportunity. In the 86th minute, Jabbari scored his first goal of the season (and first goal for FC Cincinnati) to give FC Cincinnati a 3-0 lead. Then, in the 92nd minute, he secured his brace and the 4-0 victory by bringing down a beautiful pass from Gerardo “Dado” Valenzuela and blasting in a goal to close out the night with a celebration.
The Moroccan striker was named man of the match for his brace, and his head coach praised his mentality for continuing to push through after missing a few opportunities early, prior to his goals, and not allowing those falters to take him out of the game mentally.
“You could see after the first couple missed opportunities, and then a couple moments where he was struggling to control the ball, that he was frustrated with himself, which is, it's natural, and it's important that in those moments you figure out how to move on,” Noonan said of Jabbari postgame. “I think it was nice for him to get the two goals, because his first thought after the game was, 'I should have had five.' And, you know, it's probably accurate, but it's important to know how to – especially for a striker – move on when you don't capitalize on an opportunity.
“I think for him to walk off the field with a couple goals benefits him and the team.”
FC Cincinnati got the decisive win while also managing the team's minutes ahead of a busy week. FC Cincinnati is poised to play 10 matches over the next five or so weeks, so being able to limit the minutes of key players like Kévin Denkey and Evander (who played 60 minutes each), Miles Robinson and Bryan Ramirez (45 minutes) is significant for how they can approach the next few weeks.
“Pleased with the start, (we) position ourselves well to go back home and advance in the competition. But scoring four goals and keeping a clean sheet is something that I'm certainly pleased about,” Noonan said after the match from the Concacaf Champions Cup press conference. “So plenty of positives to take from the night.”
Another positive from the night was the ability to give several FC Cincinnati players their debuts and get them involved with match action early in the season. Ramirez, Barlow and Cincinnati native Kyle Smith all made debuts for the club Wednesday night, but so did one Andrei Chirila.
Chirila, 18, is the younger brother of forward Stefan Chirila, and made his FC Cincinnati first team debut in this match by starting at center back. A graduate of the FC Cincinnati Academy – like his brother – Andrei is currently signed to FC Cincinnati 2 in MLS NEXT Pro. Due to his performance in preseason this year with FCC, Head Coach Pat Noonan said the younger Chirila earned his opportunity and impressed in it.
“He's been very consistent with his play, I think you see tonight, his ability to play forward. He'd find some really good passes that can help us break pressure,” Noonan said postgame of Andrei Chirila. “He's got something about him, and so he was out on the field because he's been performing strong through preseason.”
The young center back played all 90 minutes of this match and helped the FCC defense keep a clean sheet to open the season.
The victory, in the end, also gave FCC a significant scoreline to build on and confidence to grow with as they begin the MLS season this weekend.
“It’s all about setting the tone, making sure that every game you treat it the same way. Every game is as important as the next,” Nwobodo said postgame. “So winning this game, you can see we played with everything. We didn't try to lay back to prepare. We take each game one at a time. I believe that winning this game is going to prepare us to play at home. This is the confidence we need to go to the next game against Atlanta.”
FC Cincinnati now return home for the start of the MLS season. They have a quick turnaround, but come home winners and build off a strong preseason and opening match of the season. Carrying this success into the regular season will be key, and it appears the mentality that led to this success is clear to all players.
“It's good, we know we started very well, but like I said, we're trying to set the standard. We are not taking anyone lightly,” Nwobodo said to close the night at Estadio Cibao. “There's no small team. There's no big team. Every game we get is the same. So we're trying to take each game at a time and make sure we are ready for the next.”