Real Salt Lake Notch First Regulation Win Of 2025 Leagues Cup Vs Querétaro
Aug 6, 2025, 10:35 PM | Updated: 10:37 pm
SANDY, Utah- Real Salt Lake wrapped up phase one of the 2025 Leagues Cup, a competition between MLS and Liga MX, at America First Field against Querétaro.
While Real Salt Lake needed a lot of help alongside a big win in order to advance to the knockout stage of the Leagues Cup, there were other exciting factors that came with Wednesday’s match.
New addition Rwan Cruz, who joined the club on loan from Botafogo in the top-flight Brazilian league, was eligible and expected to make his debut for the club.
Didn’t have to wait long to see Cruz in action pic.twitter.com/1I47hdkBnh
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 7, 2025
First Half
For a match that featured a bottom-of-the-table Querétaro and a Real Salt Lake that needed a handful of goals to have a chance of advancing in the Leagues Cup, the start was notably slow. Through the first half hour, the pace was sluggish and there seemed to be little urgency.
Despite the sparse action to start, Querétaro did have several chances on the breakaway in the first 15 minutes, but were unable to get dangerously close on any of them.
The first excitement for Real Salt Lake came in the 14th minute with good ball movement at the top of the box, but nobody was able to get a shot off. Then again in the 25th minute, Dominik Marczuk put a good cross through the box, but the Querétaro stuck a right arm out at the last second before the ball could find anyone in Claret and Cobalt near the back post.
As the teams traded possession, nothing solidified until Braian Ojeda came through with a moment of greatness to give the home side the lead.
It was the 31st minute, and Real Salt Lake had another spell of possession in their attacking half.
A cross-field pass came from far side to near, finding Sam Junqua near the end line. Sam pulled it down, and instead of crossing the ball into the box, he dumped it backward to Braian Ojeda who received the pass in the top corner of the 18-yard box.
Braian wasted no time squaring his body and sending a bending ball toward the far corner of the net. There was not much pace, but the placement was elite, sailing the keeper and falling right into the top bin.
The goal was Ojeda’s fourth in his last four matches, continuing his scorching hot scoring pace.
couldn’t have been more precise than that 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/DvfQg6meFU
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 7, 2025
Second Half
The second half started with some visible frustration from Querétaro, who committed multiple poor fouls in the midfield.
Substitutions for Real Salt Lake began early in the second half, with Diogo Gonçalves coming on for Willy Agada in the 56th minute.
While RSL was certainly playing more conservatively, they still found scoring chances throughout the rest of the game.
In the 63rd minute, Bode Hidalgo sent a pretty through ball on the way to goal, but the Querétaro came off his line and was just able to get to the pass in time.
In the 65th minute, a highly anticipated moment came to fruition as Brazilian Forward Rwan Cruz subbed on for Diego Luna, making his club debut.
As the game entered the last half hour, Querétaro put on a spell of possession in their attacking third that resulted in a scoring chance and back-to-back corner kicks.
In the 66th minute, Querétaro gave Real Salt Lake a bit of a scare when Jhojan Julio was able to line up a shot from inside the box, but Rafael Cabral continued his strong form between the posts, pushing the attempt away from goal.
Real Salt Lake’s last scoring chance of the night came in the 88th minute when Hidalgo once again threaded the needle with an aerial pass that Zavier Gozo was able to head to the feet of Ari Piol, who sent the difficult attempt just wide of the far post.
In the end, the Claret and Cobalt were able to put together their first regulation win of the 2025 Leagues Cup, likely finishing their run in the tournament on a high note, but are now able to carry momentum back into MLS play against the New York Red Bulls on Saturday.
Wrapped up Leagues Cup with a W pic.twitter.com/6NoWUFsZhi
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) August 7, 2025
How To Watch Real Salt Lake
All Major League Soccer games are broadcast on Apple TV with MLS Season Pass.
All Real Salt Lake English-language radio coverage for the 2024 season and beyond will be carried on various KSL radio signals. KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM) and KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) are both stations under the Bonneville International umbrella.
For more Real Salt Lake coverage and analysis, subscribe to The RSL Show and follow them on Instagram.
You can find KSL Sports coverage of Real Salt Lake here.
