The details are all squared away for the 2026 preseason for New York City FC as the club today announced their full preparatory schedule ahead of the new Major League Soccer season.
The specifics of the Coachella Valley Invitational games have been known since mid-December, but with New York City FC players now set to report to the club's training facility in Orangeburg, New York, this weekend, we've learned the exact progression they'll make towards playing their 2026 season opener on the road against Justin Haak and his new LA Galaxy teammates.
It's a three-legged preseason tour this year, with the club first jetting from chilly and wintry Rockland County down to warm and sunny Florida, where the first preseason friendly of the year is scheduled for Saturday, January 24, against USL Championship side Tampa Bay Rowdies and their former NYCFC II striker, MD Myers.
From Florida to Texas for NYCFC as they head to Austin to take on Brad Stuver and Austin FC on Sunday, February 1, at Q2 Stadium. Both the friendlies against the Rowdies and Austin FC are listed by NYCFC as being held "behind closed doors," so don't expect there to be livestreams or tons of information available about what happens in either match beyond some lineup and goalscorer updates provided by the teams.
Then it's on to the California desert for the Coachella Valley Invitational, which will include a first match vs LAFC on Sunday, February 8, at 3 pm ET, then the first-ever installment of The David Lee Derby vs Sporting Kansas City on Wednesday, February 11, at 4:30 pm ET, with the Coachella slate closing on Valentine's Day, Saturday, February 14, with a match vs San Jose Earthquakes at 4 pm ET.
Hudson River Blue Staff
Last year, the Coachella matches were all streamed online and some even aired on WWOR Channel 9 on linear television. Details on watching any of the NYCFC preseason action from home have yet to be confirmed, but expect there to be some streams to get your fix before the season starts on February 22 in Carson, California.
The complete version of the preseason schedule is now available, though we're still waiting to see what version of the New York City FC roster makes the trip through the American south and west to get ready for next season.
A few new additions to the First Team squad – Homegrowns Cooper Flax and Kamran Acito, NYCFC II goalkeeper Mac Learned – have already been confirmed, though we have to wait and see who is or isn't on the club's official traveling preseason roster, which NYCFC says they'll share "prior to departure." How many of the club's four recent MLS SuperDraft picks will be with the team this preseason, and will there be any surprise players either on trial or called into camp from the NYCFC Academy?
Club legend and 2025 stalwart in the midfield, Maxi Moralez, also remains unsigned, with no other major rumored incoming signings percolating here still in the early days of Todd Dunivant's NYCFC Sporting Director tenure. Worry not, though, since the all-important MLS Primary Transfer Window won't close until later this spring, so there's time even beyond the preseason for changes to get made to the 2026 New York City FC squad.
Hudson River Blue Staff
