Due to the pandemic the Open Cup won't be so "open" this year. Only 8 MLS teams will play in it, how they will be chosen will be announced at a later time. 16 lower league teams will also be in it, for a total of 24 teams in a reduced tournament. https://www.si.com/soccer/2021/02/08/us-open-cup-2021-plans-us-soccer-teams-format
Yikes, "abbreviated" competition is one way to put it. Surely they'll go off prior year standings for MLS, I don't see them sending second tier teams for something that awards a Champions League slot (top four from each conference perhaps?).
From that article: The schedule is tight, but U.S. Soccer has given itself leeway to cancel the opening round if necessary. On March 29, it’ll consider whether or not to move forward with the first 16 games on May 4-5. If the pandemic makes staging those games impossible, U.S. Soccer will cancel the round and select eight teams to progress to the round of 16. Then on April 19, the federation will determine whether the round of 16 can be played a month later. Perhaps start the tournament later on in the year? Like September. Shocking I know.
Perhaps, however the fixture dates from FIFA are handed out in advance. So our USSF Open Cup committee can easily work around them if that is a back breaker. And the Olympic Qualifying tournament is all played and done in March next month. Honestly, reading between the lines from that article with quotes from the folks that run this century plus old tournament and it just appears at face value that they need a fresh outlook on how to run the tournament soup to nuts!
Stealing the idea from @AlbertCamus but as a nod to the missed 25th anniversary of MLS last season they should just give the spots to the 8 cities that have played every season of MLS.
It is kind of odd that they haven't figured out a way to play earlier USOC rounds on international dates. There's really no reason why Indianapolis can't play Detroit (for example) on the same weekend when USA plays Jamaica or whoever, is there?
Yes! A fantastic idea. But you know they'll figure out a way to put Atlanta and Seattle in there. Because fans = money.
The full details have been announced by the USSF: https://www.ussoccer.com/stories/20...tingency-plan-for-2021-lamar-hunt-us-open-cup There will only be 24 teams invited to take part this year: Open Division 4 teams selected from the 36 teams that were eligible for the 2020 U.S. Open Cup. Division III 4 teams. 2 from USL League One and 2 from NISA Division II 8 teams from USL Championship Division I 8 teams from MLS We don't now yet which 8 MLS teams will participate. Schedule: 1st Round - May 4-5 The 16 teams from the 3 lower Divisions will face off. They will make a decision on March 29 if that round can take place. If not then only half the teams will be chosen to advance. Round of 16 - May 18-19 MLS teams will face 1st Round winners. Quarterfinals - May 25-26 Semifinals - June 15-16 Final - June 29-30
The US Open Cup has often put games in international summer tournament windows. In the last three normal years it had rounds during the Gold Cups and World Cup when MLS was on a reduced schedule or a short break. If they wanted to use the one-week "in-season" FIFA windows, there usually haven't been any between March and September. March is too early for the top pro divisions in the Open Cup, and September is time for the late rounds, when teams will be more reluctant to see international absences.
I prefer to think of this year's format as a throwback to the 1996 Open Cup, in which only four MLS teams, DC United, Kansas City Wizards, Dallas Burn, and Tampa Bay Mutiny, participated. A fifth, the Colorado Rapids, was added in the quarterfinals to replace the Colorado Foxes, who withdrew. And in the first half-decade of the Open Cup, MLS' participation was similarly spotty to the point where there are only two MLS teams that have participated in 24 Open Cups: FC Dallas and aforementioned Rapids. Yes, the team that was only in the '96 edition because their crosstown A-League counterparts withdrew. And to be honest, you could probably find similarly seats-of-the-pants organization of previous editions of the Open Cup. So I'm supposed to get exercised about this year's edition, which is taking place during a pandemic and when everyone's schedules are gonna be WAY compressed?
Only if you count those qualifying games (including one MLS game that was counted as a Open Cup qualifier despite the competitions having different rules).
I'm counting them, given how many teams begged out of even participating during the early years. Playing in qualifying matches at least indicated an intent to continue participating if they won.
Fellow Fire fans REALLY don't like it when you point out that a large chunk of their early success in the tournament came from the fact that Chicago were one of the few teams who weren't treating the competition as a scheduling annoyance.
At the end of the day, they had to beat SOMEBODY to win it. It's not like the USSF drew a name out of the hat to figure out who'd win it.
8 MLS teams qualify. If they exclude the CCL teams, the Leagues Cup teams, and, of course the Canadian teams, that leaves 12 MLS teams for the U.S. Open Cup. Last year's regular season standings for those teams: 1. FCD 1.55 PPG 2. LAX 1.45 PPG 3. NSH 1.39 PPG 4. NER 1.39 PPG 5. SJE 1.30 PPG 6. MIA 1.04 PPG 7. LAX 1.00 PPG 8. CHI 1.00 PPG ----------------------- 9. RSL 1.00 PPG 10. DCU 0.91 PPG 11. HOU 0.91 PPG 12. CIN 0.70 PPG Maybe something like this.
If was a fan of a team in the Leagues Cup, I'd be pissed about this setup. Open Cup has a hell of a lot more prestige, and is, quite frankly, an easier route to the CCL.