CHICAGO (April 6, 2023) – U.S. Soccer has confirmed the eleven groups from which the Third Round match-ups for the 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will be drawn. The Third Round will consist of 24 exciting games played across the country from April 25-26 and feature teams from every division of professional and amateur soccer in the United States.
The Third Round Draw will take place today, Thursday, April 6 at 6:30 pm ET. Watch LIVE on the B/R app and B/R Football YouTube as each club learns its fate.
The Draw will serve as the feature pre-game offering leading into the penultimate Second Round game between the 1995 Open Cup champion Richmond Kickers (USL League One) and cupset-minded amateurs Cleveland SC of the National Premier Soccer League, which is scheduled for 7:00 pm ET.
The Second Round will officially conclude next Tuesday, April 11 when Forward Madison FC (USLL1) welcomes Chicago House AC (MWPL) to Madison, Wis., with a ticket for the final berth in the Third Round on offer. Should Cleveland or Chicago win, they would join Tulsa Athletic as the only amateur clubs to reach the Third Round of the 2023 U.S. Open Cup. If neither are victorious, Tulsa will earn the $25,000 prize awarded to the Open Division team that advances farthest in the competition.
The Open Cup’s Third Round welcomes 18 lower-seeded Division I (MLS) clubs to the competition. Teams in the Third Round were pooled geographically and with the Div. I clubs distributed as evenly as possible among the groups. All Div. I sides will be drawn to face a Second Round winner and not another Division I club.
Atlantic
Charleston Battery (USLC)
Charlotte FC (MLS)
Charlotte Independence (USLL1)
South Georgia Tormenta FC (USLL1)
Southeast
Houston Dynamo FC (MLS)
Inter Miami CF (MLS)
Miami FC (USLC)
Tampa Bay Rowdies (USLC)
Midwest
Sporting Kansas City (MLS)
St. Louis CITY SC (MLS)
Tulsa Athletic (USASA / NPSL / Okla.)
Union Omaha (USLL1)
East
Richmond Kickers (USLL1) / Cleveland SC (USASA / NPSL / Ohio)
D.C. United (MLS)
Maryland Bobcats FC (NISA)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (USLC)
North
Chicago Fire FC (MLS)
Detroit City FC (USLC)
Forward Madison FC (USLL1) / Chicago House AC (USASA / MWPL / Ill.)
Minnesota United FC (MLS)
Northeast
Flower City Union (NISA)
Hartford Athletic (USLC)
Loudoun United (USLC)
New England Revolution (MLS)
Central
Columbus Crew (MLS)
FC Cincinnati (MLS)
Indy Eleven (USLC)
Louisville City FC (USLC)
South
Atlanta United (MLS)
Birmingham Legion FC (USLC)
Chattanooga FC (NISA)
Memphis 901 FC (USLC)
Nashville SC (MLS)
San Antonio FC (USLC)
Mountain
Colorado Rapids (MLS)
Las Vegas Lights FC (USLC)
New Mexico United (USLC)
Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC (USLL1)
Phoenix Rising FC (USLC)
Real Salt Lake (MLS)
Pacific
Orange County SC (USLC)
Portland Timbers (MLS)
San Diego Loyal SC (USLC)
Seattle Sounders FC (MLS)
West
Monterey Bay F.C. (USLC)
Oakland Roots (USLC)
Sacramento Republic FC (USLC)
San Jose Earthquakes (MLS)
Now in its 108th edition, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup – U.S. Soccer's National Championship – has crowned a champion since 1914 in every year except 2020 and 2021. The history-filled tournament is conducted on a single-game-knockout basis and open to all professional and amateur teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. In 1999, the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in the United States was renamed to honor American soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt.
The 2023 U.S. Open Cup winner will earn $300,000 in prize money, a berth in the 2024 Concacaf Champions League and have its name engraved on the Dewar Challenge Trophy – one of the oldest nationally-contested trophies in American team sports – now on permanent display at the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Frisco, Texas. The runner-up will earn $100,000, while the team that advances the furthest from each lower division will take home a $25,000 cash prize.
Orlando City SC are defending Open Cup champions, having earned the club's first tournament title thanks to a 3-0 victory against second-division (USL Championship) side Sacramento Republic FC on September 7, 2022 in a Final played before a capacity crowd at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium.
usopencup.com is the official website of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Fans can also follow the competition on Twitter and Instagram @OpenCup and Facebook @OfficialOpenCup.