Los Angeles FC (LAFC), the Major League Soccer club of South Korean national team captain Son Heung-min, has failed to reach the final of the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup.
LAFC lost 0-4 to Mexico's Toluca in the second leg of the semifinal played at Nemesio Diez Stadium in Toluca, Mexico on Thursday local time.
After winning the first leg 2-1 at home on Oct. 30, LAFC conceded four goals in the return fixture, falling 2-5 on aggregate and missing out on a place in the final.
Son started as the team's center forward and played the full 90 minutes, but put in a subdued performance, failing to register a single shot.
The home side Toluca dominated the match at Nemesio Diez Stadium, known as a "graveyard for visiting teams" due to its high-altitude location at 2,670 meters above sea level. Pressing LAFC aggressively from the early stages of the first half, Toluca opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the second minute of the second half. Winger Alexis Vega went down after being fouled by LAFC defender Ryan Hollingshead on the right side of the penalty area, and the referee immediately awarded a penalty.
Vega stepped up as the kicker and converted to give Toluca the opening goal in the fourth minute of the second half.
With momentum on their side, Toluca doubled their lead in the 58th minute when center-back Everaldo Lopez, who had joined the attack, unleashed a powerful left-footed long-range strike from near the penalty arc that once again found the net.
Needing a goal to force extra time, LAFC undid themselves in the 86th minute when defender Ryan Porteous was sent off.
Toluca then ran riot in stoppage time as Paulinho scored a brace to seal a 4-0 victory, dismantling LAFC and booking a place in the CONCACAF Champions Cup final.
Toluca will face fellow Mexican club Tigres UANL for the championship trophy.
