Real Salt Lake Dominate in 4-0 Home Win to Keep 2026 Leagues Cup Hopes Alive

SANDY, Utah (Sat., Aug. 8, 2026) – Real Salt Lake (8-6-3, 27 points, 5th West / 9th Shield MLS) earned its third clean sheet of 2026, soaring past Liga MX side Atlante FC (1-1-1, 4 points, 10th Liga MX) in a dominant 4-0 win to snap a five-game winless run and earn its fourth Leagues Cup point of 2026 in front of a home crowd of 19,510 fans. 

Spanish striker Sergi Solans continued his impressive rookie season, netting his 10th goal across all competitions (MLS, Friendlies, Leagues Cup), while Diego Luna notched two assists. The rookie’s 17th-minute score coincided with three second-half goals by Utah native Zach Booth, his first MLS goal at home, Danish DF Lukas Engel who recorded his second score in the squad's last five matches, and MF Pablo Ruiz capped off the evening with his second goal in as many Leagues Cup matches.

RSL Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni made six personnel changes to the starting XI from Tuesday’s 1-1 draw against Tigres UANL. The attacking trio of Designated Player Morgan Guilavogui, playmaker Luna and 2026 Golden Boot leader Solans reunited tonight, along with Greek DF Alex Katranis who made his first start since RSL’s trio of mid-April matches, replacing Uruguayan World Cup standout Juan Manuel Sanabria, snapping a streak of 10 consecutive starts.

Veteran DF DeAndre Yedlin returned to the backline for his 12th start in 14 matches, along with MF Noel Caliskan, who returned to the starting lineup for the 40th match in RSL’s last 43 contests. Rounding out the changes to the XI was Utah native Zach Booth, who replaced fellow 19-year-old Academy man Zavier Gozo.

Real Salt Lake started the warm Saturday evening matchup as a well-oiled machine, the midfield working cohesively with the attack, stringing together passes to work the ball up the field. After maintaining a high level of possession, Booth brought the ball into the box in the 10th minute, sending a strong right-footed shot into the outside netting of the goal to give the home side its first tangible opportunity. 

In the 17th minute, Luna received the ball and immediately used his speed to dribble past his defender, bringing the ball near the goal line and forcing the Atlante ‘keeper out of position. The midfielder then unselfishly sent the ball central for Solans, who buried a one-touch shot into the back of the net. Just 11 minutes later, RSL Iron Man Rafael Cabral punched the ball clear of the goal following a corner kick, keeping the home side up 1-0. 

While the visitors seemingly found the equalizer in the 37th minute, the score was overturned by an obvious VAR decision. Just five minutes later, Cabral showcased his presence between the posts, making a key save to keep the lead. After thwarting multiple chances by Atlante in the six minutes of stoppage time, the home side entered the locker room with a 1-0 lead. 

The Claret-and-Cobalt continued its momentum as the second half began, as just five minutes in, Booth received a pass from Luna and showcased his speed, outpacing multiple defenders to get into the middle of the box before sending a powerful left-footed shot into the back of the net for his first MLS goal at home and second of the season. The assist by Luna also earned him his 5th assist across all competitions in 2026.

After Luna was fouled just past midfield in the 54th minute, the midfielder sent a perfectly-weighted kick towards the back post for Guilavogui, whose impressive one-touch pass found RSL DF Lukas Engel for the squad's third goal of the evening. The score by the Danish defender marks his second in the last five games, after going scoreless through the first 49 matches of his career.

As the high-intensity second half continued, RSL maintained control of the match and continuously pressed forward for another goal. After subbing into the match in the 66th minute, Ruiz netted a goal in his second straight game with a beautiful left-footed shot, sent just past the ‘keepers reach and into the bottom-left corner. With the final score of 4-0, the Claret-and-Cobalt earned a much-needed three points in its second Phase One match and secured its first four-goal win since June, 2024.

With the result tonight, the Claret-and-Coblat now have five points thus far in the cross-border tournament. Real Salt Lake now heads into its Phase One finale, welcoming FC Juárez this Tuesday, August 11, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. MT. 

RSL returns to MLS Regular Season play next Saturday, August 15 for its fourth consecutive home match, facing Minnesota United. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. MT.

GOAL SCORING SUMMARY: 

RSL 4 : 0 AFC

RSL: Sergi Solans (Diego Luna) 17’: After receiving a pass in the box, Luna brought the ball towards the goal line, after drawing out the goalkeeper he shoveled the ball central for Solans who sent his shot into the middle of the goal. 

RSL: Zach Booth (Diego Luna) 50’: Once again Luna found himself in the attacking third with the ball. He took a touch before sending it out wide to Booth who showcased his speed, dribbling past multiple defenders into the middle of the box before sending a bullet of a shot into the back of the net. 

RSL: Lukas Engel (Morgan Guilavogui) 54’: After earning a free kick, Luna sent the ball towards the back post for Guilavogui who then sent a one-touch pass through the middle for Engel whose one-touch shot gave the home side a 3-0 lead. 

RSL: Pablo Ruiz (Unassisted) 90’: Entering the match of the bench, Ruiz received the ball just outside the box, taking a few touches past his defender before sending a left-footed shot low and with power into the bottom corner of the goal. 

NOTES FROM RSL 4 : 0 AFC

• The 17th-minute goal by Solans marks his 10th across all competitions in a strong rookie campaign. 

• The goal by Booth tonight marked the first home goal for the Utah native and second of year (5/23 at MIN).

• Engel has now scored two goals in five matches after going scoreless in his first 49 MLS appearances. 

• Tonight marked the first three-goal performance for RSL since May 13 v HOU

• The two assists by RSL star Diego Luna marked his first double-assist game since San Diego home win on April 18.

• With the goal tonight, Ruiz has scored in both Leagues Cup matches after not scoring in three years. 

• The clean sheet tonight is RSL’s first since 5/13 against Houston, and the Club’s third of the year (also May 2 v Portland)

• Real Salt Lake is now 7-6-6 all-time against Liga MX on Utah soil. 

• RSl is 19W-10L-8T all-time in international contests at home. 

• With the 3-0 win RSL has snapped its five-game winless streak. 

• RSL’s record when scoring first is now 55-11-21 (W-L-T) in the 204-game Mastroeni era. 

• Tonight’s win is RSL’s first four-goal win since June 2024.

LINEUPS:

Real Salt Lake (3-4-2-1): Rafael Cabral ©; DeAndre Yedlin, Juan Jose Arias, Lukas Engel; Zach Booth (Philip Quinton, 66’), Noel Caliskan, Stijn Spierings (Pablo Ruiz, 66’), Alex Katranis (Juan Manuel Sanabria, 87’); Morgan Guilavogui (Lineker Rodrigues, 82’), Diego Luna; Sergi Solans (Saba Lobjanidze, 66’)

Subs not used: Mason Stajduhar, Max Kerkvliet, Kobi Henry, Victor Olatunji, Sam Junqua, Aiden Hezarkhani, Omar Marquez

Head Coach: Pablo Mastroeni

Atlsnte FC (5-3-2): Oscar Jiménez Fabela ©; Walter Portales, Diogo Bagüí, Eduardo Tercero (Rubén Coubert 63’), Aarón Quirós, Edgar Saúl Jiménez Sánchez; Eugenio Pizzuto (Javier Ibarra, 75’), Martín Fernández (Leonardo Mejía, 57’), Luis Calzadilla, Jhojan Julio, Jairón Charcopa (José González, 57’)

Subs not used: Gustavo Sánchez, Nico Carrera, Christian Bermúdez, Gilberto Adame, Roberto Barragán, Armando Escobar, Walter Clar

Head Coach: Miguel Herrera 

Stats Summary: RSL / AFC

Shots: 14 / 10

Shots on Goal: 8 / 4

Saves: 4 / 4

Corner Kicks: 1 / 6

Fouls: 10 / 16

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY:

AFC: Eugenio Pizzuto (Yellow Card - 36’) 

RSL: Diego Luna (Yellow Card - 79’)

AFC: Edgar Saúl Jiménez Sánchez (Yellow Card - 79’) 

RSL: Alex Katranis (Yellow Card - 85’)