As Saturday night's match wore on and frustration grew over San Diego FC's inability to produce a winning goal for a stadium-record crowd of 34,506, a homophobic chant that has plagued big soccer matches throughout the Concacaf region -- and Mexico national team games in particular -- began to surface during St. Louis City goal kicks.
The Snapdragon stadium public address announcer began reading advisories to the crowd that have been all-too-familiar to longtime followers of the game in the region. Fortunately, referee Lukasz Szpala was able to blow the final whistle before he was forced into suspending play as the PA announcer had threatened.
Still, it was a moment that could've left fans of MLS' newest expansion team saddened by the tarnishing of an enormous night. And if they are, that's OK. But they should also feel immensely proud of their new manager, sporting director, and at least one supoorters group at help who issued the best possible response to troubling circumstances.
Varas makes it clear where his club stand
First there was Varas, who could've let the disappointment of a 0-0 draw and concern over Chucky Lozano's status with an apparent hamstring injury cloud his judgment or sour his remarks. Instead, the former U.S. men's national team assistant and interim head coach launched into the topic at the very beginning of his press conference without hesitation.
"I just want to start with a statement," Varas said. "The chant that was heard tonight was unacceptable. It's outside of our value system. It doesn't represent the players, myself, the club, and it certainly doesn't represent San Diego or Baja California. It's not a reflection of who we are. We're a community full of love, support, and we believe in the power of diversity.
"I want to make sure that everybody knows that was not from our main supporter group, La Frontera. They match the same values as us. They believe the same as us. They are our teammates. It came more from the general population in the seats, and it wasn't everybody, and I understand that. But it was loud enough that it was enough people (to hear), and I just want to make really clear that it has no place here. It has no place here, and if they're going to continue to come to the game and make that chant, it's better that they do not come."
Varas choosing -- or perhaps his public relations staff advicing him to choose -- to address the chant forcefully with his opening remarks assured that any outlets who weren't aware of the situation now were. If almost certainly resulted in a larger volume of immediate negative coverage.
But it was also an astonishingly astute series of remarks for someone who has never held a senior managerial position before. With them, Varas revealed a deep understanding of his role as the first manager of a new club, as well as how clubs relate to their communities, their casual fans and their hardcore supporters. Sporting director Tyler Heaps also echoed Varas' remarks and should be commended for understanding the moment as well.
The Locals have their say
Just as importantly, the social media admin with The Locals, one of the groups that comprises the San Diego Independent Supportrs Union, and one with more than 3,000 followers on X, went on to back the sentiments of the manager almost immediately. And that kind of buy-in is just as critical as at the club level to ensure an opening night issue does not become a recurring theme.
We condemn ALL chants that perpetuate any form of discrimination, bigotry, hatred, misogyny or hate. It has NO PLACE in football, our stadium, or our beautiful city. We do what we do to bring people together, not to feel alienated or targeted. It’s not acceptable. Be the change. pic.twitter.com/JhckNGl0jk
— The Locals (@TheLocalsSG) March 2, 2025
They should be reassured is that San Diego FC is actually not the first MLS club forced to grapple with this. Los Angeles FC also faced some fan behavior issues -- including the use of the same chant -- very early in their MLS days. Those issues were so fleeting that most of us have forgetten about them, which shows that this is a solvable problem if the stakeholders want to solve it.
San Diego fans should feel disappointed by the black eye the conduct of some put on what should have been a night with universally positive memories. But they should also feel heartened by how their leadership -- both inside the club and out -- reacted during a first real moment of adversity, and confident that they're on sound footing in the long term.