by elevencomms
TAMPA – The United Soccer League today confirmed that 47 USL teams will participate in the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, including all 36 USL men’s professional teams and the qualified 11 USL men’s pre-professional clubs. This follows U.S. Soccer’s announcement of the finalized format for the 109th edition of the tournament.
“The USL has supported the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup for nearly 30 years, and we are proud to be part of it again in 2024,” said USL President Paul McDonough. “We applaud all the USL clubs who have decided to participate in this year’s U.S. Open Cup, despite being handed the option to decline. We appreciate and share the fans’ passion for our country’s most historic and authentic competition, and we look forward to watching the drama unfold over the course of the tournament.”
The U.S. Open Cup is U.S. Soccer’s club championship and has crowned a national champion annually since 1914 (with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19). The historic tournament is conducted on a single-game, knockout basis and open to all professional and amateur teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in the United States and the world’s third-longest continuously run national cup tournament.
The First Round of the 2024 U.S. Open Cup will consist of 32 games with 32 amateur clubs from the Open Division meeting 32 professional teams from Division III.
USL League Two, part of the Open Division, will be represented by 11 clubs who qualified through their regular season performance in the 2023 season. USL League One, the preeminent Division III league in the country, will see all 12 clubs participate as part of the 32 professional teams in the First Round.
The 32 winners of the First Round will be paired up and face each other in the Second Round.
The 16 Second Round winners will then be matched up in the Third Round with 16 teams from the USL Championship, the top tier of the USL pyramid. These 16 USL Championship teams will be determined based on sporting merit through the USL Championship Players’ Shield standings.
The eight Third Round winners will advance to the Round of 32, where they will square off against the remaining eight USL Championship teams, including defending league title-holders Phoenix Rising FC and Players’ Shield winners Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, and eight teams from Major League Soccer.
For a full list of the USL clubs participating and the schedule for the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup competition windows, please see below.
2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Schedule
First Round: Tuesday, March 19 – Thursday, March 21
Second Round: Tuesday, April 2 – Wednesday, April 3
Third Round: Tuesday, April 16 – Wednesday, April 17
Round of 32: Tuesday, May 7 – Wednesday, May 8
Round of 16: Tuesday, May 21 – Wednesday, May 22
Quarterfinal: Tuesday, July 9 – Wednesday, July 10
Semifinal: Tuesday, Aug. 27 – Wednesday, Aug. 28
Final: Wednesday, Sept. 25
USL Championship (All clubs. League champion (Phoenix Rising FC) and next seven best teams from 2023 Players’ Shield overall standings enter in the Round of 32)
| Entering in Third Round Birmingham Legion FC Detroit City FC El Paso Locomotive FC Hartford Athletic Indy Eleven Las Vegas Lights FC Loudoun United FC Louisville City FC Memphis 901 FC Miami FC Monterey Bay F.C. New Mexico United North Carolina FC Oakland Roots SC Rhode Island FC FC Tulsa | Entering in Round of 32 Charleston Battery Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC Orange County SC Phoenix Rising FC Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC Sacramento Republic FC San Antonio FC Tampa Bay Rowdies |
| USL League One (All Clubs) Entering in First Round Central Valley Fuego FC Charlotte Independence Chattanooga Red Wolves SC Greenville Triumph SC One Knoxville SC Lexington SC Forward Madison FC Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC Union Omaha Richmond Kickers South Georgia Tormenta FC Spokane Velocity FC | USL League Two (11 clubs based on 2023 league competition) Entering in First Round Asheville City SC (North Carolina) Ballard FC (Washington) Brave SC (Formerly The Villages SC, Florida) Chicago City SC (Illinois) Des Moines Menace (Iowa) Hudson Valley Hammers (New York) Redlands FC (California) South Carolina United Bantams (South Carolina) Vermont Green FC (Vermont) Western Mass Pioneers (Massachusetts) TBD (11th team to be announced later) |
Originally posted on indyeleven.com