Christian Ramírez Becomes Second Austin FC Player to Score on Debut in 1-0 Win Over D.C. United

Austin FC acquired Christian Ramírez on Friday. By Sunday afternoon he was the toast of Q2 Stadium, having scored 14 minutes into his Austin debut.

Austin FC beat D.C. United 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at Q2 Stadium, in front of 20,738 fans, with Ramírez heading in the winner in the 82nd minute. Austin said he became the second player in team history to score on his debut. Austin moved to 1-1-0 with four points, while D.C. United fell to 1-0-1 with three.

Sean Johnson Builds a Wall

For most of the afternoon, this looked like it would go down as the Sean Johnson Show. The D.C. goalkeeper was busy almost from the opening whistle. In the 5th minute alone, he saved an Ilie Sánchez header, a Sánchez follow-up from very close range and a Guilherme Biro header from a Facundo Torres cross. Three saves in one minute is the kind of start that makes a goalkeeper either very confident or very nervous.

Austin kept coming. Oleksandr Svatok headed a Torres corner just wide in the 14th minute, and Johnson stopped Torres in the 26th and a Brendan Hines-Ike header aimed at the top of the net in the 36th. D.C. United's recap said Johnson made five saves in the first half.

The visitors had their moments too. Hosei Kijima, making his first start for D.C. United since Aug. 23, 2025, according to the club, forced Brad Stuver into a save in the 25th minute, and João Peglow tested Stuver again from distance in the 34th. Torres picked up a yellow card in between. It was 0-0 at the half.

Austin Keep Knocking

René Weiler made a double change at halftime, sending on Gabriel Pirani and Jackson Hopkins for Kijima and Jared Stroud. It did not change the pattern. In the 57th minute, Torres unloaded from outside the box and Johnson got a fingertip to it, per Austin's recap. Tai Baribo headed over from a set piece in the 64th minute.

Then came the 68th minute, which belonged in a pinball arcade. Hines-Ike had a header blocked, Biro had a shot blocked, Hines-Ike had another effort blocked, and Svatok finally got one on target only for Johnson to save it. Four attempts, zero goals. In the same minute, Austin head coach Nico Estévez sent on Besard Sabovic and Ramírez. That decision would win the game.

The chances kept piling up without a payoff. Joseph Rosales blazed high and wide after a corner in the 75th minute and made way for CJ Fodrey two minutes later. At the other end, Pirani fired over from the center of the box after a set piece in the 78th, a rare D.C. sniff that could have flipped the whole afternoon. Dani Pereira was booked for Austin a minute later, and the clock was becoming a factor.

The Debut Goal

The breakthrough came in the 82nd minute. Austin had a set piece just outside the box, according to D.C. United, and Sabovic's right-footed shot from the left side of the box was blocked. The ball fell to Ramírez on the right side of the six-yard box, and he headed it into the bottom right corner. Austin listed the goal as unassisted. D.C. United's recap noted Ramírez had been acquired off waivers from the LA Galaxy just two days earlier.

D.C. pushed late. Louis Munteanu, on for Peglow in the 78th minute, had a shot from distance blocked in the 89th, and Weiler threw on Nikola Markovic, whom D.C. United described as the first overall pick in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft. The fourth official added six minutes, but D.C. never put another shot on target after the 34th minute. Sabovic, Keisuke Kurokawa and Pirani all went into the book in the closing stages as the game got scrappy, and Myrto Uzuni had a shot blocked in stoppage time.

Who Delivered

Christian Ramírez scored with his only shot, 14 minutes after coming on. That is efficient by anyone's standards.

Sean Johnson made seven saves and kept D.C. United in the game far longer than the stat sheet said they deserved.

Facundo Torres put both of his shots on target and had a hand in Austin's chances all day.

Ilie Sánchez put both of his shots on target before he came off in the 68th minute.

Brendan Hines-Ike took three shots, more than anyone else on the field.

Brad Stuver made two saves to keep the clean sheet.

For D.C., Lucas Bartlett won five aerial duels, according to the club.

The Turning Point

The 68th-minute double change. Estévez sent on Sabovic and Ramírez together, and 14 minutes later, those two substitutes combined for the only goal: Sabovic's blocked shot became Ramírez's header. Sometimes coaching is all about the timing.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Austin 18, D.C. United 7.
• Shots on target: Austin 9, D.C. United 2.
• Saves: Johnson 7, Stuver 2.
• Corners: Austin won 10, D.C. United 4.
• Possession: Austin had 54.4 percent.

What It Means

Austin earned their first win of the season after a 2-2 draw with Minnesota United FC in the opener. The club said it improved to 4-0-0 all-time against D.C. United. Austin play their first away match of the season at Charlotte FC on March 7.

The bigger takeaway is the volume. Austin outshot their visitors 18 to 7 and put nine on target, and on another day Johnson does not stop seven of them. If that kind of pressure keeps coming, the goals should follow.

D.C. United are 1-0-1 after opening with a 1-0 home win over the Philadelphia Union. This was their first road match of 2026, per the club, and they defended well for long stretches but created little. Their next stop is a home match against Inter Miami CF at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on March 7.

The Last Word

Signed Friday, scored Sunday. It is the kind of storyline you usually only see in a Ted Lasso montage, except this one happened in real life in front of 20,738 people. Ramírez has had a debut that a lot of strikers would trade a whole season for, and Austin finally have a win to go with all those shots.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Additional details from AustinFC.com and DCUnited.com.