FC Cincinnati and Houston Dynamo Drawn to Host 2023 U.S. Open Cup Semifinals
Semifinal Doubleheader to Take Place Wednesday, August 23 Beginning at 7 p.m. ET; CBS Sports Will Provide Exclusive Live Match Coverage of Open Cup Semifinals and Finals
CHICAGO (June 8, 2023) – The Draw to determine the hosts for the 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinals dealt FC Cincinnati and Houston Dynamo home field advantage in the next round of their pursuit of U.S. Soccer’s National Championship.
FC Cincinnati was drawn to host Inter Miami CF in the East Semifinal, which will kick off at 7 p.m. ET from TQL Stadium. The West Semifinal will see Houston Dynamo host Real Salt Lake at Shell Energy Stadium with kick off set for 9:30 p.m. ET/8:30 CT. Both Semifinals will be played on Wednesday, Aug. 23 and CBS Sports will have exclusive live match coverage with details and platforms to be announced at a later date.
The Draw also determined the hosting priority for the 2023 U.S. Open Cup Final with the four potential finalists drawn at random. Real Salt Lake received first priority to host the Final. Second priority went to Inter Miami, followed by FC Cincinnati and, in fourth spot, Houston Dynamo, who will not be eligible to host the Final. Full details for the Final, which is scheduled to be played on Sept. 27, will be announced at a later date.
In addition to live match coverage of the and Final, CBS Sports Golazo Network will provide in-depth analysis of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup across its live studio programming, including MORNING FOOTY and BOX 2 BOX. CBS Sports will also provide additional editorial coverage on CBSSports.com and across its @CBSSportsGolazo social accounts.
2023 U.S. OPEN CUP SETTING RECORDS
The Four Semifinalists (Houston Dynamo, Real Salt Lake, FC Cincinnati and Inter Miami CF) all survived a Quarterfinal round that broke attendance records. A total of 63,255 fans (nearly 16,000 per game) came out to watch the four matches, crushing the previous record for the Quarterfinal round of 55,382 set just last year.The highest-attended Quarterfinal took place in Sandy, Utah, where RSL beat two-time champions LA Galaxy 3-2 in front of a crowd of 20,712 that surpassed the previous record of 18,947, which was set in 2019 when LAFC took on the Portland Timbers in Los Angeles.
Additionally, USL Championship club Birmingham Legion FC set a club record for attendance with 18,418 fans filling in Protective Stadium for the club’s Quarterfinal showdown against Inter Miami. It is the second time this year Legion FC has set a club attendance record during an Open Cup match. The previous record of 12,722 fans was set for Birmingham’s 1-0 Round of 16 win against MLS side Charlotte FC.
OPEN CUP ROUND-UP
Houston Dynamo are the only remaining club to have lifted the Open Cup, having done so in 2018. 2013 runner-up Real Salt Lake, 2017 Semifinalists (while part of the USLC Championship) FC Cincinnati and Inter Miami CF are all chasing an inaugural Open Cup title. Should Miami win U.S. Soccer’s National Championship, it would be the club’s first silverware of any kind.
OPEN CUP ROUND-UP
Houston Dynamo are the only remaining club to have lifted the Open Cup, having done so in 2018. 2013 runner-up Real Salt Lake, 2017 Semifinalists (while part of the USLC Championship) FC Cincinnati and Inter Miami CF are all chasing an inaugural Open Cup title. Should Miami win U.S. Soccer’s National Championship, it would be the club’s first silverware of any kind. The only remaining lower-league teams (Birmingham Legion and Pittsburgh Riverhounds – both of the USLC Championship) went out of contention in the Quarterfinal round this week, leaving an all-MLS field in the Last Four for the first time since 2019.