The 5 best games of the 2025 season for NYCFC

2025 is coming to a close, and New York City FC is focusing on 2026. In a city that never sleeps, it is easy to say the same idea goes for the club. The work to get better never stops, and that includes building the roster and improving tactics.

Thankfully, the Pigeons have already begun to improve on the pitch thanks to Pascal Jansen taking charge before the 2025 campaign. The head coach improved the product on the pitch after a few rough years, and he has been a breath of fresh air.

It is exciting to see what will happen in the future, but it is also a good time to look back at the top matches of 2025. So, let's take a look back at the best games of the year for NYCFC.

NYCFC's top games of 2025

5. Saturday, March 8: NYCFC 2, Orlando City SC 1

The home opener against Orlando City SC is certainly a memorable game. The Boys in Blue celebrated their tenth anniversary as a team in Major League Soccer. But it was also the anniversary of their first-ever game in the league, which happened to be against Orlando. At first, it felt like the fixture would end in a draw just like that first match did. However, a brilliant second half and goals from Alonso Martínez and Hannes Wolf secured the 2-1 win.

4. Thursday, June 12: NYCFC 4, Atlanta United FC 0

When NYCFC was on the road against Atlanta United FC, the Pigeons blew a lead and lost 4-3. It was one of the toughest losses of the year, and the Bronx side knew the same thing could not happen at home. So, when they hosted Atlanta in June, revenge was on the menu, NYCFC was served, and earned a 4-0 win. The result against Atlanta was quite impressive since multiple players, including Matt Freese and Martínez, were out. But the players dominated the Five Stripes offensively while Tomás Romero impressed between the sticks.

3. Sunday, May 4: NYCFC 1, FC Cincinnati 0

Some might ask why a low-scoring game is on this list, but NYCFC's home win against FC Cincinnati makes this list due to the fact that the Bronx team won against one of the top teams in MLS at the time and throughout the 2025 season. The players were strong offensively in the first half despite scoring just once, thanks to Julián Fernández. However, Cincinnati played better in the second half, and NYCFC had be perfect defensively. They were impressive at the time and showed early on that they can compete with the best.

2. Friday, November 7: Charlotte FC 1, NYCFC 3

NYCFC never won at Bank of America Stadium before the first game of the MLS Cup Playoffs. So, when the team and Charlotte FC had to play the third match of the Best-of-3 series, it was not expected that the Boys in Blue would win a second time. However, they shocked everyone and won 3-1 to book a spot in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Nicolás Fernández Mercau was the hero of the fixture, scoring twice. To make this better, the Pigeons won despite being outshot 16 to eight. The difference was that seven of the eight shots were on target, and that led to the win.

1. Saturday, September 27: RBNY 2, NYCFC 3

The best game of the season did not take place in the playoffs. Rather, it was the road Hudson River Derby in September that saw NYCFC win 3-2. The derby between the blue team and the New York Red Bulls had everything from "crazy goals, pushing and shoving, controversial calls, and the true hatred of each other on the pitch." Plus, it was a back-and-forth affair with RBNY tying the match twice. But Thiago Martins scored the winning goal to sweep the series in 2025 and win the Hudson River Derby trophy. This was one of the most exciting games of the season, which is why it is at the top compared to any playoff match.