D.C. United forward Tal Baribo defended his decision to celebrate so forcefully against his former club the Philadelphia Union by insisted that the incredibly difficult task of scoring goals is one which should be savored, regardless of circumstance.
The Philadelphia Union underwent a massive shift after winning the club’s second Supporters’ Shield in 2025. Their 2026 season-opener started with some flashbacks to that campaign which they’d rather forget.
Baribo, the scorer of 16 goals which underpinned that regular season title in November, notched his first of 2026 against the Union.
Starting for D.C. United after the club purchased his rights for upwards of $4 million, Baribo smashed home a finish in the 23rd minute, securing the 1–0 win for his new team against his old employers.
Clearly, there was no love lost, either. Baribo, despite spending parts of three seasons with the Union, fiercely celebrated his debut goal, pumping his fists and shouting mere feet away from his former teammates and coaches.
Tai Baribo opens his account for @dcunited against his former club 💪
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) February 22, 2026
📺 Apple TV: https://t.co/336GJKzKUS pic.twitter.com/wZn6KfoxBW
If there was a tradition of not celebrating when scoring against former teams, it’s not something Baribo believes in.
“I celebrate first of all, not because it’s against Philadelphia, but because I celebrate with my own fans. For me, every goal is important. It’s not easy to score goals,” he said, postmatch after netting the 26th goal of his MLS career.
“You can see all my goals in the past, even in Philadelphia, in Austria and Israel, I always celebrate with passion, because it's not easy.”
D.C. United’s Rebuild Starts Strong
For one of the most famous clubs in MLS, recent history has not been kind to D.C. United. This offseason, club leadership sought to improve their fortunes, signing Baribo from the Union, central defender Sean Nealis from Red Bull New York, and goalkeeper Sean Johnson from Toronto FC.
While it may take a while for them to be seen as legitimate contenders for a fifth MLS Cup in club history, Saturday’s opening win got the season started on a high note and marked a much-needed boost for the historic franchise.
“As a striker, you have to be decisive. He scored the goal. It was the decisive goal. So he did his job,” manager René Weiler said of Baribo’s performance. “I can only say that he did the job with this goal... So what else are we asking for?”
Now with Baribo’s goals and the positive start, D.C. will hope their big opening win can kickstart some further momentum, potentially leading them back to the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time since 2019.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Not Easy’— D.C. United Star Explains Controversial Celebration Against Former Team.
