On the second day of the TonyBet Virslīga season, one of the league favorites, Riga FC, secured a 2-0 victory against the promoted SK Super Nova side. Spanish attacking midfielder Brian Pena scored both goals for Riga.
SK Super Nova returned to the Virslīga after a one-year absence, with manager Ervīns Pērkons opting for a starting lineup featuring ten Latvian players. The only foreign player in the lineup was Senegalese left-back Hamidou Kante, one of two Super Nova players making their Virslīga debuts; the other was former JDFS Alberts player Kristers Augusts.
Adrian Gula made five changes from the team that played in the Super Cup. Krišjānis Zviedris took over in goal, and well-known players El Bachir Ngom and Brian Pena were joined in the starting lineup by new signings Joao Grimaldo and Iago Siqueira.
Brian Pena was the first to score in the 2025 season, finding the net in the 13th minute. After a great press from Riga, they regained possession, and Mankenda found Reginaldo Ramires, who then passed to Pena. He took a touch and fired a powerful shot that beat goalkeeper Frenks Orols.
At the start of the second half, Pena doubled the lead. He received a pass from the left side, skillfully maneuvered past a Super Nova defender, and placed a shot in the bottom right corner for a 2-0 score.
While SK Super Nova did not register a shot on target, they displayed some encouraging football. As the game continued, they showed their aggression, resulting in three yellow cards during the second half.
This victory marks Riga FC’s seventh consecutive year starting the Virslīga season with a win. Their last loss in an opening game occurred in 2018 against FK Liepāja.
Riga FC’s next league match will be on Monday, as they host FK Auda. Meanwhile, Ervīns Pērkons and SK Super Nova will be looking to secure their first points of the season when they host FK Metta on Wednesday.
Riga FC vs SK Super Nova – 2:0 (1:0)
Goals: Pena 13′ 50′
Yellow Card: Musah 55′ | Ošs 47′, Cīrulis 64′, Glaudāns 75′, Čudars 90′
RIG: Zviedris – Ngom, Musah, Černomordijs, Jurkovskis – Galo – Mankenda (Diop 70′), Grimaldo (Regža 70′), Siqueira (Ibrahim 80′), Pena (Dašķevičs 80′) – Ramires (Contreras 84′)
SUP: Orols – Augusts, Ošs, Vējkrīgers, Cīrulis (Tihonovičs 84′), Kante – Miņins (Stepanovs 65′), Nakamura, Šitjakovs (Čudars 70′), Glaudāns (Zeņģis 84′) – Deružinskis (Sylla 45′)
Referee: Sergejs Vasjkovs
| # | Club | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Riga FC | 16 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 28 | 39 |
| 2 | FC RFS | 16 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 25 | 37 |
| 3 | FK Auda | 16 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 25 |
| 4 | FK Liepāja | 16 | 6 | 4 | 6 | -3 | 22 |
| 5 | BFC Daugavpils | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | -4 | 21 |
| 6 | FS Jelgava | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 20 |
| 7 | SK Super Nova | 16 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 17 |
| 8 | FK Grobiņa | 16 | 4 | 4 | 8 | -16 | 16 |
| 9 | FK Metta | 16 | 3 | 3 | 10 | -21 | 12 |
| 10 | FK Tukums 2000 | 16 | 2 | 5 | 9 | -16 | 11 |
