Shrewd Moves Have Austin FC Looking More Formidable in 2026

When Austin FC sporting director Rodolfo Borrell named Nico Estévez as the club’s second-ever head coach before the 2025 season, he also laid in front of the Verde and Black a singular goal for the season: return to the MLS Cup Playoffs – a place ATXFC had only been once in four seasons under Estévez’s predecessor, Josh Wolff.

Credit to Estévez and his players (and Borrell himself) – the club achieved that goal with a sixth-place finish in the Western Conference standings. 

But the club’s performance last year still left quite a lot to be desired. Austin FC scored the fewest goals in the West (37) and suffered a sobering first-round playoff exit to LAFC following a 4-1 beatdown at Q2 Stadium to end the season.

Point being, 2025 provided a foundation upon which to build, but there remains plenty of ground to make up. Borrell, Estévez, and Co. hope that some key roster moves made – and not made – over this winter’s offseason can help do just that.

Since Austin FC’s inaugural season, the club has struggled to get the kind of production from its designated players that MLS teams typically require to compete for trophies. Save for Sebastián Driussi’s near-MVP 2022 season, the top of Austin’s salary pyramid has resembled a revolving door of mediocrity. Once again, that group has gotten a shake-up.

Happy trails to dynamic – though inconsistent – winger Osman Bukari, whom the club offloaded to Polish top-flight side Widzew Łódź, reportedly recouping most of the $7 million transfer fee for which Austin originally signed Bukari in 2024.

Reinvesting that sum (plus an extra couple million, per reports), Borrell was able to fill Austin’s vacated DP slot by acquiring former Orlando City star Facundo Torres from Palmeiras in Brazil. The 25-year-old Uruguayan winger totaled 47 goals and 25 assists in 123 games over three seasons with Orlando from 2022 to 2024.

The hope for Austin is not only that Torres will replicate that individual production wearing Verde, but also that he will elevate the play of the club’s other two DP’s in attack, Myrto Uzuni and Brandon Vázquez. Austin FC scored the fewest goals in the Western Conference in 2025 in large part to a disjointed attack, so finding synergy within that group will be essential.

Austin also got younger and more athletic on the left side of the pitch, trading $1.25 million to the Vancouver Whitecaps for 23-year-old Canadian international winger Jayden Nelson, then exchanging another $1.5 million with Minnesota United for 25-year-old Honduran left back Joseph Rosales.

In addition, the club signed free agent 28-year-old center back Jon Bell, most recently of the Seattle Sounders, for veteran defensive depth after parting ways with inaugural roster member Julio Cascante. 

Finally, the club used a contract buyout on Jáder Obrian to preserve salary cap space.

Going into the offseason, I was curious whether Borrell would field offers on one or both of Austin FC’s impressive young midfield talents, Owen Wolff and Dani Pereira – not because those players aren’t effective in their roles with the club, but because MLS teams can reap huge salary cap benefits from the requisite transfer fees. Ultimately, both Wolff and Pereira remained in Austin, and both signed contract extensions to boot. Speaking of Wolff, the 21-year-old underwent offseason surgery to address a sports hernia and may miss the club’s Feb. 21 season opener against Minnesota (potentially featuring the latest superstar MLS newcomer, James Rodríguez).

All in all, Austin FC certainly got better this offseason, at least on paper. The roster is deeper, younger, and more talented than last year, though several of Austin’s rivals can say the same about theirs. A repeat trip to the playoffs is certainly no sure thing. But if things do go according to plan, Austin FC should at least represent a tougher out this time around.

For more Austin FC news and analysis, visit The Austin Chronicle’s Austin FC hub. Sign up for The Verde Report newsletter to get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox, and follow The Verde Report columnist Eric Goodman on X: @goodman.

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