U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the country's oldest ongoing national soccer competition. The competition was first held during the 1913–1914 season as the National Challenge Cup, with Brooklyn Field Club winning a trophy donated by Thomas Dewar for the promotion of American soccer. It was renamed and dedicated to North American Soccer League (NASL) and Major League Soccer (MLS) executive Lamar Hunt by the United States Soccer Federation in 1999.
| Founded | 1914 |
|---|---|
| Region | United States (CONCACAF) |
| Number of teams | 100 (2023) |
| Current champions | Houston Dynamo FC (2nd title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Bethlehem Steel F.C. and Maccabee Los Angeles (5 titles each) |
| Website | ussoccer.com/us-open-cup |
| 2024 U.S. Open Cup | |
The 2022 U.S. Open Cup marked the return of the competition after the 2020 and 2021 tournaments were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ending 106 years of consecutive play.
In its current format, the U.S Open Cup is contested by approximately 100 clubs from the professional leagues sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation – Major League Soccer (MLS), the United Soccer League's Championship and League One divisions, the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), and MLS Next Pro – as well as amateur clubs in the earlier rounds of the tournament that qualify through their respective leagues. The overall champion is awarded $300,000 in prize money and a berth in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, while the runner-up receives $100,000, and the furthest-advancing team from each lower-division league receives $25,000.
MLS teams have dominated the competition since the league began play in 1996. No lower division team has won the Open Cup since the Rochester Rhinos in 1999, and the most recent lower division team to reach the final was Sacramento Republic FC in 2022. The most recent champions of the competition, Houston Dynamo FC, won their second title after defeating Inter Miami CF in the 2023 final. From 1996 to 2023, MLS teams had participated in every Open Cup competition.
On December 15, 2023, MLS announced that affiliated reserve teams from MLS Next Pro would be sent in place of MLS teams for the 2024 edition. U.S. Soccer subsequently denied the request, ruling that MLS teams must compete in the 2024 edition of the U.S. Open Cup.