D.C. United’s legacy in Major League Soccer began 30 years ago — two years after the 1994 World Cup. The Black and Red grew into one of the league’s darlings, becoming its first dynasty after winning three of the first four MLS Cups and ushering a passionate fan base into American sports culture.
Fast-forward to 2026: as the United States prepares to welcome the world once again for another World Cup, D.C. United is rebuilding its identity and seeking stability.
As a new MLS season kicks off this weekend, club leadership calls on its loyal supporters to be patient as it navigates its way forward.
“In the end, we have to play a good game on the field, and of course, not everything will go smoothly,” head coach René Weiler said Friday. “But we will definitely give it our best.”
Changes after dismal 2026
Since 2020, D.C. has hired four head coaches in five years. Weiler came to D.C. midway through the 2025 season after the club parted ways with then-manager Troy Lesesne. Despite his arrival, United finished the year in last place, only mustering five wins and surrendering 66 goals.
Erkut Sogut, United’s new managing director of soccer operations, said change was needed after finding an environment “which didn’t have a goal or vision.”
“I want to have a team on the pitch where the fans are proud and happy to come and cheer for us and say, ‘This is our team. We love our team. We come every week for this team,’” Sogut told WTOP.
United started the offseason by letting go of 10 players, including striker Christian Benteke, who was the team’s biggest scoring threat. In three years in D.C., he scored 47 goals in 93 matches, and he won the 2024 Golden Boot award after scoring a league-high 23 goals.
In his place, D.C. signed two strikers: acquiring Israeli Tai Baribo in a $4 million cash-for-player trade with the Philadelphia Union, and signing Romanian international Louis Munteanu for a club-record $7 million. Both players will take up designated player spots, a status given to high-value players whose wages do not count entirely against a team’s salary cap.
While the attention-grabbing moves were on offense, United also made changes to its defense. They signed four players with vast amounts of experience, including MLS veterans Sean Johnson and Sean Nealis, Keisuke Kurokawa of Japan, and Silvan Hefti from Hamburger SV in the German Bundesliga.
United homegrown player and Fredericksburg, Virginia, native Jackson Hopkins told WTOP that, as players reunited for the preseason, nobody mentioned the 2025 season.
“It’s like a clean slate where we’re not even thinking about that,” Hopkins told WTOP. “Half the squad wasn’t even a part of that. So there’s no reason to talk about it, and all focus is on the season that we have ahead of us.”
On-the-field expectations
United will look to continue to build on its pressing style of play and create turnovers in midfield to generate attacks. With its new additions, D.C. will look to have a stronger defense as well that doesn’t surrender too many goals this year.
Under Weiler’s system, Hopkins, along with Gabriel Pirani, Caden Clark, João Peglow and Aaron Herrera, will look to provide additional attacking options for United, easing the pressure on its two new signings.
“There’s so many people that can create chances on the team, and it doesn’t just fall on one person. It’s on all of us,” Hopkins said. “I think that’s a good thing, because we can attack teams from all over the field.”
United may not be done improving the roster. Sogut told WTOP he plans to assess the roster with the coaching staff to determine if additional moves, including signing a third designated player, are needed before the MLS primary transfer window closes on March 26. If a third designated player were added to United, Sogut said it would be another attacking option.
“Like in any other deal we have done, we are very careful,” Sogut told WTOP. “We just don’t want to fill (a designated player spot) just because we fill it. And we are all aligned on that, coaches, recruitment, front office, the ownership.”
Off the field, United attracted some attention for its desire to expand its home stadium, Audi Field, and a proposed project to establish roots in Baltimore, Maryland.
However, on the field, United has failed to reach the playoffs for the last six seasons.
To make it to the postseason this year, United will have to be better at home. In 2025, D.C. won only two of 17 regular-season home matches. Hopkins said Weiler is preaching to the players to make Audi Field a fortress once again to make their playoff goal a reality.
“We want to be better,” Hopkins said. “Everyone’s excited to get back, and then adding the new players, like Tai and Louis and all of them, is just another piece to build around.”
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
