One of Major League Soccer's biggest rivalries, El Trafico, returns for another edition as LAFC travel to meet their cross-town rivals LA Galaxy in league play.
While this rivalry is only in its sixth year, it's quickly risen to one of the fiercest in not just MLS but in North America.
Yet these two teams could not be trending in more disparate directions this season. While LAFC, the defending double winners from last season and favorites to repeat this year, are challenging atop the Western Conference, the LA Galaxy are yet to win a single game through six attempts.
Furthermore, there are rumors of LAFC supporters taking over Dignity Health Sports Park amidst LA Galaxy supporter unrest and possible boycott of the game. Even should that not come to pass, the LAFC form and Galaxy front-office trouble may be enough to push this match in one eventual direction.
The Sporting News football betting expert Kyle Bonn shares his best bets, props, and high risk/high return fliers for some of the biggest matches in the sport each week. Since the start of 2023, his best bets have hit 50.6% of the time, while his overall selections have generated a profit of over 32 units thus far. He has also correctly predicted 45 of 80 match outcomes via his 3-way moneyline leans to date.
LA Galaxy vs LAFC match facts
- Date: Sunday, April 16
- Kickoff Time: 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT
- Location: Dignity Health Sports Park (Carson, CA)
- Official: Armando Villarreal
- Last meeting: LAFC 3-2 LA Galaxy (Oct. 20, 2022 | MLS Cup Playoffs)
MORE: Name, history, and highlights, from across the short but explosive El Trafico rivalry
LA Galaxy vs LAFC prediction, odds
- Moneyline lean: LAFC (+130)
- Handicap lean: LAFC -0.5 (+125)
- Score prediction: LA Galaxy 1-3 LAFC
These teams are trending in opposite directions, and yet here we are with the defending champions and title favorites LAFC sitting at plus odds. Thanks to an overcorrection for the chaos this rivalry often presents, the value here couldn't be more delicious. As you will see, this predictions post will look to capitalize on that value at every opportunity, given the gulf in talent and form between these two teams.
Meanwhile, the skew towards lots of goalscoring makes those choices significantly muted and not worth the risk, especially with how tough it's been for the Galaxy to score of late.
| LA Galaxy win | Draw | LAFC win | Both teams to score Y / N | Over / Under 2.5 goals | LAFC -0.5 | LAG +0.5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BetMGM (USA) | +188 | +240 | +130 | -200 / +135 | -165 / +115 | +125 | -175 |
| Sports Interaction (Canada) | +185 | +240 | +130 | -110 / -141 | -164 / +118 | +127 | -169 |
LA Galaxy vs LAFC: best bet
- Pick: Half with most goals — 2H
- Odds: +100 (BetMGM)
This selection can get wonky in the small sample size of one match, but in this rivalry, the second half has proven to be even more chaotic than the first. Even with a goal before halftime, this could still easily come through. Over the past three El Trafico matchups, 11 out of 14 goals have been scored after the break.
Then, looking at these two clubs this year, the same has been true against other opponents. In LAFC's 10 matches across all competitions to start the year, 19 of the 27 goals scored in those games have come after the break. Meanwhile, the Galaxy's only goal over their past three matches came in the second half.
No matter the first half result, Dignity Health Sports Park should be turned upside down after the break.
LA Galaxy vs LAFC prop bet
- Pick: Correct score band — 0-1, 0-2, 0-3
- Odds: +400 (FanDuel)
- Pick: Correct score band — 1-2, 1-3, 1-4
- Odds: +450 (FanDuel)
We continue to pile on the LAFC bandwagon in this match by a pair of selections. Obviously, only one of these can come through, which mitigates the gain a bit, but risking two units to win four or more is a glorious pair of choices which essentially, in practice, uses ruling out more unlikely results in order to bump the value of LAFC to win up to 2/1 odds or beyond.
It's hard to imagine the Galaxy scoring more than once here against an LAFC defensive unit that's conceded just three goals in six games, while the Galaxy themselves have only scored the same amount. Therefore, should LAFC keep the Galaxy to just one goal or less and find a way to win, this will almost surely come through unless the visitors go absolutely bananas.
LA Galaxy vs LAFC flier bet
- Pick: LAFC to win both halves
- Odds: +600 (BetMGM)
Not only can we capitalize on the fact that LAFC are plus odds to win, we can also take the visitors to blow out their rivals by winning both halves. Sure, the Galaxy might get a goal, but the attacking presence that LAFC present makes this a delicious prospect.
LAFC have won three straight matches by 3-0 scorelines, including a pair against a decent Vancouver side in CONCACAF Champions League play. In two of those, they got goals in both halves. They did the same against an excellent New England Revolution side in mid-March amidst a 4-0 blowout and would have done the same to Portland if not for a pair of really excellent finishes late in the match.
There's huge value to this selection, given the LAFC firepower, and the fact that the Galaxy have just two goals in their past five games.
LA Galaxy vs LAFC live stream, TV channel
MORE: Watch Premier League matches live with Fubo in USA
| TV channel | Streaming | |
|---|---|---|
| USA | FOX, Fox Deportes | Fubo, Fox Sports app, MLS Season Pass (Apple TV) |
| Canada | TSN2 | Fubo |