2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Tournament details
CountryUnited States
Teams100
Final positions
ChampionsCanceled

The 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was planned to be the 107th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, a knockout cup competition in American soccer. Atlanta United FC were the defending champions after defeating Minnesota United FC in the 2019 final. The competition was suspended on March 13, 2020, before the first round fixtures, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and later canceled on August 17.[1] Despite the tournament's cancelation, the spot for the 2021 CONCACAF Champions League was awarded to the defending champions, Atlanta United FC.[2]

Qualification

This edition was planned to feature 100 teams, including 62 professional sides—both modern-era records.[3] Entrants included the American clubs from across the soccer leagues system, with timing determined by league division. These include the 23 American clubs from Major League Soccer and clubs from the USL Championship and USL League One that are not owned or operated by an MLS team; MLS-affiliated clubs from these two leagues are eligible. Additionally, clubs from the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), a sanctioned Division III league, were set to take part. This is the first time two professional leagues from the same tier have both competed in the tournament since 2017.

USL League Two and the National Premier Soccer League qualified teams based on previous season standings. Quantity of teams is determined by U.S. Soccer. Local qualifying was done by tournament and held in 2019. It featured 88 mostly amateur teams representing 18 different states and the District of Columbia (21 different state soccer associations).[4] 12 teams qualified out of this tournament. Finally, as with the previous year, the reigning champion of the National Amateur Cup, Newtown Pride FC, automatically qualify for the tournament proper.[5]

The 2020 edition of the U.S. Open Cup was planned to include a change in qualifying for professional teams. All Division II and Division III teams were to enter together in the second round, while Major League Soccer teams were planned to enter in the third and fourth rounds. The four 2020 CONCACAF Champions League qualifiers plus the four best American non-qualifiers in each 2019 MLS conference would enter in the fourth round; the remaining clubs would enter in the third round.[6]

The U.S. Open Cup was scheduled to begin in March 2020, its earliest calendar date since 1995. The final was scheduled to take place in either early August or late September.[6] The earlier start would have overlapped with the NCAA soccer season, causing lower-division teams to be unable to field their full lineups; Reading United AC and Flint City Bucks, both of USL League Two, along with Midland-Odessa Sockers FC of the National Premier Soccer League, announced they would not take part in the tournament due to this reason.[7][8]

Enter in First Round Enter in Second Round Enter in Third Round Enter in Round of 32
Open Division Division III Division II Division I
ANFEEU/USASA/USCS/USSSA
13 teams		 NPSL/USL League Two
25 teams		 NISA/USL League One
14 teams		 USL Championship
25 teams		 MLS
23 teams
ANFEEU
USASA
USCS
USSSA
NPSL
USL League Two
NISA
USL League One
  • $: Winner of $25,000 bonus for advancing the furthest in the competition from their respective divisions.
  • $$: Winner of $100,000 for being the runner-up in the competition.
  • $$$: Winner of $300,000 for winning the competition.

Number of teams by state

The 2020 Open Cup field represents a total of 36 states and the District of Columbia.

States Number Teams
1  California 17 ASC San Diego, Cal FC, California United Strikers FC, Chula Vista FC, FC Davis, FC Golden State Force, LA Galaxy, Los Angeles FC, Los Angeles Force, Oakland Roots, Olympic Club, Orange County SC, Sacramento Republic FC, San Diego Loyal SC, San Diego 1904 FC, San Jose Earthquakes, Ventura County Fusion
2  Texas 9 Austin Bold FC, Corpus Christi FC, Denton Diablos FC, El Paso Locomotive FC, FC Dallas, Fort Worth Vaqueros FC, Houston Dynamo, NTX Rayados, San Antonio FC
3  Florida 7 Inter Miami CF, Miami FC, Miami United FC U23, Naples United FC, Orlando City SC, Tampa Bay Rowdies, The Villages SC
4  Tennessee 5 Chattanooga FC, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, Memphis 901 FC, Nashville SC, Nashville United
5  North Carolina 4 Charlotte Independence, North Carolina FC, North Carolina Fusion U23, Stumptown Athletic
 Pennsylvania Philadelphia Union, Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, Vereinigung Erzgebirge, West Chester United SC
7  Colorado 3 Colorado Rapids, Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, FC Boulder Harpos
 Georgia Atlanta United FC, South Georgia Tormenta FC, South Georgia Tormenta FC 2
 Minnesota Med City FC, Minneapolis City SC, Minnesota United
 New Jersey Atlantic City FC, FC Motown, New York Red Bulls
 Ohio Cleveland SC, Columbus Crew SC, FC Cincinnati
 Oklahoma FC Tulsa, OKC Energy FC, Tulsa Athletic
 South Carolina Charleston Battery, Greenville Triumph SC, SC United Bantams
14  Arizona 2 FC Arizona, Phoenix Rising FC
 Connecticut Hartford Athletic, Newtown Pride FC
 Illinois Chicago FC United, Chicago Fire FC
 Massachusetts New England Revolution, Western Mass Pioneers
 Michigan Detroit City FC, Michigan Stars FC
 Nevada Las Vegas Lights FC, Reno 1868 FC
 New York New York City FC, New York Pancyprian-Freedoms
 Virginia Richmond Kickers, Virginia United
 Washington Crossfire Redmond, Seattle Sounders FC
23  Alabama 1 Birmingham Legion
 District of Columbia D.C. United
 Indiana Indy Eleven
 Iowa Des Moines Menace
 Kansas Sporting Kansas City
 Kentucky Louisville City FC
 Louisiana Louisiana Krewe FC
 Maine GPS Portland Phoenix
 Maryland Christos FC
 Missouri Saint Louis FC
 Nebraska Union Omaha
 New Mexico New Mexico United
 Oregon Portland Timbers
 Utah Real Salt Lake
 Wisconsin Forward Madison FC

States without a team in the Open Cup: Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Match details

All times local to game site.

On March 13, 2020, U.S. Soccer announced that the U.S. Open Cup would be temporarily suspended due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Several participating leagues, including MLS and USL, had already announced month-long suspensions of activities.[9] The tournament was cancelled on August 17, 2020, with all qualified teams planned to participate in the 2021 edition.[1]

First round

The first round of the Open Cup was scheduled to take place on March 24 and 25. There would have been 19 matches between 13 local qualifiers, 14 NPSL, and 11 USL2 teams. Teams are paired geographically, and pairings were announced on January 22.[10] The fixtures were suspended on March 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic

TBD West Chester United SC (NPSL) P-P Vereinigung Erzgebirge (LQ) West Chester, Pennsylvania
Stadium: WCUSC/PF Kildare's Pub Turf Field
TBD Virginia United (LQ) P-P Christos FC (LQ) Woodbridge, Virginia
Stadium: Howiston Homestead Soccer Complex
TBD Tulsa Athletic (NPSL) P-P Fort Worth Vaqueros (NPSL) Tulsa, Oklahoma
Stadium: Case Soccer Complex at Oral Roberts University
TBD The Villages SC (USL2) P-P South Georgia Tormenta FC 2 (USL2) Summerfield, Florida
Stadium: The Villages Soccer Complex
TBD Miami United FC U23 (LQ) P-P Naples United FC (NPSL) Hialeah, Florida
Stadium: Ted Hendricks Stadium
TBD Louisiana Krewe FC (LQ) P-P Corpus Christi FC (USL2) Lafayette, Louisiana
Stadium: Ragin' Cajuns Soccer/Track Facility
TBD Nashville United (LQ) P-P Cleveland SC (NPSL) Nashville, Tennessee
Stadium: Vanderbilt University Soccer/Lacrosse Complex
TBD Des Moines Menace (USL2) P-P Med City FC (NPSL) Urbandale, Iowa
Stadium: Lions Field at Des Moines Christian School
TBD Denton Diablos FC (NPSL) P-P NTX Rayados (LQ) Denton, Texas
Stadium: University of North Texas Soccer Stadium
TBD FC Boulder Harpos (LQ) P-P Crossfire Redmond (NPSL) Denver, Colorado
Stadium: Regency Athletic Complex at MSU Denver

Second round

The second round was scheduled to take place on April 7–9 with 29 matches, a modern-era Open Cup record. 19 winners from the First Round will be joined by 6 teams from USL1, 8 from NISA, and 25 from USL Championship (USLC). Pairings were made geographically when possible and announced on January 29.[11]

April 7 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC (USL1) v Birmingham Legion FC (USLC) Chattanooga, Tennessee
7:00 pm EDT Stadium: Chattanooga Christian School
April 7 Los Angeles Force (NISA) v San Diego Loyal SC (USLC) Los Angeles, California
7:30 pm PDT Stadium: Jesse Owens Stadium (Cal State LA)
April 8 Atlantic City FC (NPSL) or Austin Bold FC (USLC) v Austin Bold FC (USLC) or Newtown Pride FC (LQ) Glassboro, New Jersey or Austin, Texas
7:00 pm EDT Stadium: Rowan University Soccer Stadium or Bold Stadium
April 8 Indy Eleven (USLC) v Michigan Stars FC (NISA) Indianapolis, Indiana
7:00 pm EDT Stadium: Carroll Stadium
April 8 Louisiana Krewe FC (LQ) or Corpus Christi FC (USL2) v San Antonio FC (USLC) Lafayette, Louisiana or Corpus Christi, Texas
6:30 or 7:00 pm CDT Stadium: Ragin' Cajuns Soccer/Track Facility or Dugan Family Soccer and Track Stadium
April 8 FC Tulsa (USLC) v Tulsa Athletic (NPSL) or Fort Worth Vaqueros (NPSL) Tulsa, Oklahoma
7:00 pm CDT Stadium: Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium
April 8 Olympic Club (LQ) or FC Davis (NPSL) v Reno 1868 FC (USLC) San Francisco, California or Davis, California
7:30 pm PDT Stadium: Negoesco Stadium or Ron and Mary Brown Stadium at Davis Senior High School
April 9 Union Omaha (USL1) v Des Moines Menace (USL2) or Med City FC (NPSL) Omaha, Nebraska
7:00 pm CDT Stadium: Al F. Caniglia Field
April 9 Las Vegas Lights FC (USLC) v Cal FC (LQ) or Ventura County Fusion (USL2) Las Vegas, Nevada
7:30 pm PDT Stadium: Cashman Field
TBD Miami United FC U23 (LQ) or Miami FC (USLC) v Miami FC (USLC) or Naples United FC (NPSL) Hialeah, Florida or Miami, Florida
Stadium: Ted Hendricks Stadium or Riccardo Silva Stadium
TBD Denton Diablos FC (NPSL) or NTX Rayados (LQ) v OKC Energy FC (USLC) Denton, Texas or TBD
Stadium: University of North Texas Soccer Stadium or TBD
TBD San Diego 1904 FC (NISA) v ASC San Diego (NPSL) or Chula Vista FC (LQ) San Diego, California
Stadium: Lincoln High School

Third round

The third round draw was to be conducted on April 10, with 20 matches planned to be played on April 21–23. 29 winners from the Second Round will be joined by the 11 lower-ranked American MLS teams in the 2019 season's final standings.[6]

v

Round of 32

The round of 32 draw was to be conducted on April 24, with 16 matches to be played on May 19–20. 20 winners from the Third Round would join the 12 higher-ranked MLS teams.[6]

v

Round of 16 and beyond

The draw for the round of 16 and quarter-finals was to be conducted on May 21. Beginning with the Round of 16, match dates would have been flexibly scheduled as follows:

  • June 10: Possible Round of 16
  • June 23–24: Possible Round of 16 or Quarter-finals
  • July 14–15: Quarter-finals or Semi-finals
  • August 11–12: Semi-finals or Final
  • September 22–24: Possible Final[6]

Broadcasting

All matches from the first round to the final were to be streamed on ESPN+. This is the second year of a four-year agreement between U.S. Soccer and ESPN to air the tournament.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 "2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Cancelled Due to COVID-19" (Press release). United States Soccer Federation. August 17, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  2. ↑ "2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Cancelled Due to COVID-19" (Press release). United States Soccer Federation. August 17, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Record-Setting 100 Teams Confirmed for 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, 107th Edition of U.S. Soccer's National Championship" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. January 8, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
  4. ↑ "2020 US Open Cup qualifying: First Round matchups for Open Division Local tournament announced" (Press release). United States Soccer Federation. August 26, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  5. ↑ Arnison, Tom (August 5, 2019). "Newtown Pride FC win first Amateur Cup title, qualify for 2020 US Open Cup". TheCup.us. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Restructured Competition Format for 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Provides Opportunity for More "David vs. Goliath" Matchups in 107th Edition of U.S. Soccer's National Championship" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. December 12, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Reading United will not participate in 2020 U.S. Open Cup". Reading Eagle. December 17, 2019. Archived from the original on December 19, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  8. ↑ "Bucks Celebrate 25 Years Without US Open Cup Plans" (Press release). Flint City Bucks. December 18, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  9. ↑ "U.S. Soccer Temporarily Suspends 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Due to Covid-19 Outbreak" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  10. ↑ "Thirty-Eight Open Division Teams Learn First Round Opponent for 2020 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
  11. ↑ "2020 U.S. Open Cup Second Round Pairings and Host Scenarios" (Press release). U.S. Soccer. January 29, 2020. Retrieved January 29, 2020.
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