Tuesday’s match at Toyota Field was like many other games San Antonio FC has played this year.

Players dressed in the team’s red home jerseys strode out onto the pitch, awash in the bright lights while a cool breeze drifted in, as it does every autumn when San Antonio FC’s regular season turns into a push for the playoffs and USL Championship glory.

Except Tuesday was not like any other game.

On the sideline, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt for the hot weather, the opposing coach barked orders in another language. A German flag whipped in the wind next to its Texas and U.S. counterparts. The backs of the blue visitors’ jerseys read “Darmstadt” in stylized white letters.

Darmstadt 98 Managing Sport Director Paul Fernie directs his Darmstadt 98 FC players during a friendly match against the San Antonio FC at Toyota Field on Sept. 29, 2026. Credit: Amber Esparza / San Antonio Report

Two teams from opposite sides of the world had taken a break in the middle of their respective seasons to play a rare international friendly.

San Antonio FC squeezed the friendly in between a match against Tampa Bay and a trip to Las Vegas — and SV Darmstadt 98 traveled across an ocean for a week-long sojourn to San Antonio.

It was the culmination of a rare, years-long collaboration between two very different clubs: one, a century-plus-old German football team and the other, San Antonio’s only professional soccer team.

A unique partnership

San Antonio FC and SV Darmstadt 98 put together a formal agreement in July 2024 when then-mayor Ron Nirenberg visited the German city to renew a sister city agreement between the two municipalities.

But the relationship has been evolving for years, said San Antonio FC operations director Jose Lizardo.

“When their delegation came here to meet with our city, we had the opportunity to sit down over lunch and start talking about our two clubs. The more we talked, the more we realized [what] we had in common,” Lizardo said.

For San Antonio FC, a close connection with a European team provides a special opportunity for player development. SV Darmstadt 98 has spent the last decade playing in the top two levels of German soccer.

On Tuesday, it showed the gap in quality with a resounding 7-0 win over San Antonio FC.

The Germany-based Darmstadt 98 FC played a friendly match against the San Antonio FC at Toyota Field on Sept. 29, 2026. Credit: Amber Esparza / San Antonio Report

SV Darmstadt 98 coaches have come to San Antonio to host clinics and share their playing style and insight. San Antonio FC players, including from the developmental levels of the organization, have gotten to go the other direction.

“Being able to send our top academy kids to Germany to experience their environment and a way of life is an incredible opportunity,” Lizardo said. “It allows our players to see different pathways in the game and better prepare them for bigger and better opportunities.”

Lizardo hopes to see San Antonio FC youth teams get the opportunity to compete in Germany, or for SV Darmstadt 98 players to come play in San Antonio. Markus Pfitzner, SV Darmstadt 98’s president, sees the benefit for players to not just get better, but grow through exposure to new experiences.

Pfitzner added that there are benefits to working with a world-class organization like the San Antonio Spurs, which along with San Antonio FC is owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment.

Before Tuesday’s match, the Spurs’ Chief Legal Counsel Bobby Perez joined in celebrations. Pfitzner said he’s also met with RC Buford, the CEO of SS&E.

From pre-game festivities to marketing to ticket sales, Pfitzner said there are always little details to take away from how the Spurs do business. SV Darmstadt 98 players toured the Rock at La Cantera, the Spurs’ training center, and staff have attended games at the Frost Bank Center in the past.

Darmstadt 98 Managing Sport Director Paul Fernie, left, and San Antonio FC Sporting Director Marco Ferruzzi exchange team soccer jerseys before the international friendly match at Toyota Field in San Antonio on Sept. 29, 2026. Credit: Courtesy / Rance Ristau, San Antonio FC

“We always come back with a lot of energy with some new ideas and with an increased passion for the joint partnership,” Pfitzner said.

Those lessons don’t always translate neatly into German football, Pfitzner added. SV Darmstadt is, like many European clubs, a fan-owned operation. That creates a different environment when it comes to business operations, but there are still similarities, he said.

Pfitzner and Lizardo both emphasized the importance of connecting with the community and learning from loyal fan bases.

“One of the biggest things we’ve learned from them is how to continue strengthening that connection with the local community,” Lizardo said. “That’s been a big part of their success, and they continue to sell out their stadium regardless of what division they’re playing in.”

SV Darmstadt 98, nicknamed the Lillies, have tried to bring those strategies to the U.S.

They’ve hosted clinics and events for kids in San Antonio, giving away shirts and soccer knowledge. They welcome new fans with open arms.

“When we talk about values that the team should represent, I think that we have a lot in common, much more than I thought before I came here for the first time,” Pfitzner said.

A historical connection

Before the friendly kickoff between SV Darmstadt 98 and San Antonio FC, both cities’ mayors made their way down to the field to pose for photos.

Darmstadt Mayor Hanno Benz, who made the trip along with the team as part of an 80-plus person delegation from the German city, shook hands with San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones.

Benz’s delegation included athletes, team officials and other business representatives from Darmstadt who were interested in international collaboration.

“It’s bringing people together and building bridges between nations,” Benz said.

San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and Lord Mayor of Darmstadt Hanno Benz pose for a photo with San Antonio FC and Darmstadt 98 FC members before the international friendly match at Toyota Field in San Antonio on Sept. 29, 2026. Credit: Courtesy / San Antonio FC

Darmstadt and San Antonio have had a sister city agreement since 2017, but connections between the countries date back to the 1800s. German immigrants came to South Texas and played an early role in establishing San Antonio institutions and neighborhoods.

That influence is still felt in many Hill Country communities today. It’s a connection city leaders hope to foster further as they try to strengthen economic ties across the globe and bring back nonstop flights between San Antonio and Europe.

Spectators watch on during an international friendly match between the San Antonio FC and the Darmstadt 98 FC at Toyota Field on Sept. 29, 2026. Credit: Amber Esparza / San Antonio Report

For SV Darmstadt 98, San Antonio has been more than welcoming.

Staff from the team have forged relationships with not just Spurs Sports & Entertainment, but with the University of Texas at San Antonio and other San Antonio institutions.

Before the friendly match, Pfitzner said San Antonio’s open and welcoming atmosphere made it an easy trip. He hoped San Antonio FC will one day make a similar trip to Darmstadt so their city can return the hospitality.

“We’ve now been able to travel a few times to San Antonio and it feels to us like a second home,” Pfitzner said. “Today is the highlight of this partnership … it’s a milestone and an emotional highlight for us.”