Format and Teams Finalized for 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

CHICAGO (March 1, 2024) – U.S. Soccer has finalized the format for the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup which will include 96 teams from across the amateur and professional ranks playing a total of 95 games from March to September.

In a historic shift for the tournament, the upcoming First Round will mark the first time since 2008 that all 32 matchups will be exclusively between amateur and professional teams. Overall, this year’s edition of the tournament will feature the most First Round matchups between amateur and professional teams in the tournament’s 109-year history, more than doubling the previous amount of 16.

U.S. Soccer will be making its largest-ever investment in the tournament in 2024. With new commercial partners – including Marriott, Michelob Ultra, New York Life, and Nike – U.S. Soccer has prioritized enhanced financial incentives for participating teams, including significantly increased travel reimbursement. The Federation’s financial commitment also represents the most significant effort to date towards promotion of the tournament, underscoring U.S. Soccer’s dedication to fostering a more vibrant Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup experience for teams and fans alike.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is U.S. Soccer’s Club Championship and has crowned a 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 and 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. The Open Division representatives include 11 Qualifying Round winners, 11 USL League Two teams, eight NPSL teams, the USASA National Amateur Cup champion and the UPSL Spring Champion. Division III representatives include 12 USL League One teams, nine NISA teams and 11 MLS Next Pro teams. The winners of the First Round will play each other in the Second Round of the tournament.

The winners of the Second Round will then be matched up against the 16 Division II professional teams from the USL Championship which will enter the competition in the Third Round. The remaining eight USL Championship teams and eight MLS teams will enter in the Round of 32, along with the winners from the Third Round. The eight USL Championship teams include 2023 league champion Phoenix Rising FC and the next seven best teams from 2023 standings enter Round of 32.

The MLS clubs participating in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup, and their MLS Next Pro teams, were excluded from the selection process for the 2024 U.S. Open Cup, which was determined based on results in the 2023 MLS regular season. See below for the full list of participating teams.

“First and foremost, I want to extend my sincere gratitude to all our members for their invaluable input over the past couple of months— sharing with us of the reasons the U.S. Open Cup is so great, and what we can do to make it even better,” said U.S. Soccer CEO JT Batson. “After extensive discussions, we have put together a competitive format specific to the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, promising exciting matchups from the First Round and through the entire tournament. U.S. Soccer values the tradition and importance of the U.S. Open Cup, and we will continue to have conversations with all our members to explore avenues for enhancing future editions of the tournament and how we all work together to grow soccer in every community in the country”.

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

*Dates are subject to change

Complete List of Teams for 2024 Open Cup Proper

Professional Division Teams

Division I
8 teams
Major League Soccer
(All 8 teams enter in the Round of 32)

Atlanta United FC
FC Dallas
Houston Dynamo FC (Defending U.S. Open Cup Champion)
Los Angeles FC
Real Salt Lake
San Jose Earthquakes
Seattle Sounders FC
Sporting Kansas City

Division…