Hex rises in Orlando City vs Pumas UNAM Leagues Cup match | OneFootball

Orlando City SC players beat the late-match hex lately. But it’s still there. It appeared in their Leagues Cup match against Pumas UNAM.

The Leagues Cup opener between Orlando City SC and Pumas UNAM ended with a 1-1 draw after a penalty kick shootout. It wasn’t a return of the late-match hex. That’s been there every game. But it was a return of the Lions falling victim to it.

Orlando was fine during the first half. In the fifth minute, defender Rodrigo Schlegel caught a Martin Ojeda corner kick and banked it for the 1-0 lead. It was their earliest score in Leagues Cup play. Ojeda’s assist was his 14th of the season and tied him with former Lion Facundo Torres with 27 goal contributions in a single season.

But late in the second half, the hex returned.

Pumas midfielder Coco Carrasquilla got through the defense and popped a shot into the far corner. Piero Quispe, a fellow midfielder on the Liga MX club, got the assist. That leveled the match through stoppage time.

Jul 30, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; Pumas UNAM midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla (28) dribbles the ball against Orlando City midfielder Martin Ojeda (10) during the second half at Inter&Co Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Orlando City Head Coach Oscar Pareja said the team controlled space until about the 68th minute. Then they fell back on the pitch and tried to live on long balls. That’s a tactic the coach described as a prison from which they never escaped.

It gets into the Lions’ heads that, if they are winning – or at least close – then the match has ended with 15 minutes left. Opposing players who paid attention to their scouting reports will be waiting for that spot in the game. They will have drilled on it.

Opponents will try to pour it on and take over control of the pitch right then.

Other opponents know that same moment. It’s time for Orlando City SC to get ready for the same moment, coming forward with power. Get ready.