FC Juarez nets trio of second half goals to top Locomotive FC in Derby Paso del Norte

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – There’s very few places in the world where two professional sports teams reside within a mile of each other on either side of an international border. FC Juarez and El Paso Locomotive FC showed what makes the Borderland so unique on Wednesday night.

Playing in front of a sold-out crowd of over 8,000 fans of both teams at Southwest University Park in El Paso, FC Juarez scored a trio of second half goals to take down Locomotive FC, 3-0 in the Derby Paso del Norte. The match was the first-ever meeting between the two sides held with fans in the stands.

“I think Locomotive have a great base of fans and Bravos are the same. They just came together and it was a great atmosphere and it was fun to see,” said FC Juarez goalkeeper Benny Diaz, who played for Locomotive FC in 2023.

Los Bravos got the scoring started off the opening kickoff of the second half, as Aitor Garcia tried a shot from distance that bounced through the Locomotive defense and into the back of the net before most of the fans were back in their seats from halftime.

El Paso had a couple of half-chances after FC Juarez opened the scoring, but the match began to get out of hand in the 67th minute.

Angel Zapata one-timed a volley from well outside the 18-yard box, a true golazo that got cheers from fans of both teams. The wonder goal made it 2-0 Bravos and they added to it in the 77th minute as Amaury Escoto scored off of a big mistake by El Paso’s backline.

The match didn’t count toward the standings for either team, but both will jump back into league play on Saturday. El Paso goes on the road for its first match away from the Sun City at Las Vegas Lights at 6 p.m. Saturday night, while FC Juarez will take on Puebla at 7 p.m.

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