The amateur teams that will take part in the 2016 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup qualifying tournament have been announced by the US Soccer Federation. Next year, 36 amateur clubs will take part in the 103rd edition of the tournament with the Premier Development League (PDL) receiving 15 spots and the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) being awarded 13.
The remaining eight places will be determined by the federation’s new open division qualifying tournament that will begin in mid-October. Regional competitions will consist of 56 amateur clubs from 16 different states among those registered from the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA), US Club Soccer, and the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA).
Teams from the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions will kick off the tournament the weekend of Oct. 17-18, with the remaining teams in the competition beginning play the following weekend, Oct. 24-25. The second round is scheduled to take place Nov. 14-15 for the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic and Nov. 21-22 for the remaining teams. The matchups for Round 1 will be announced on Sept. 21.
The teams that survive Round 2 will advance to the third and final round the weekend of April 2-3 of next year. The eight teams that are left standing will qualify for the 2016 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, which has a tentative start date of May 11, 2016.
The open division teams will submit their rosters by Sept. 28 (22 player limit). Those rosters cannot be altered until the spring deadline of March 21, 2016. After the second round, open division teams are only allowed to add up to five new players, as long as they are not already Cup-tied. Any players who take part in the federation’s open division qualifying tournament are Cup-tied to that club for the remainder of the 2016 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. The PDL and NPSL teams will submit their league-approved rosters by April 27 (tentative) for the tournament proper. In Open Cup play, amateur clubs do not have a limit on the number of international players on a roster.
Below is the list of qualified teams from the PDL and NPSL and the open division qualifying entries as announced by the US Soccer Federation in their release:
2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Open Division Teams Entering via the Local Qualifying Track
Listed by State (Region) and League (Sanctioning Body) Affiliation
CALIFORNIA (NORTH)
NorCal Adult Premier League (US Club Soccer)
Davis Legacy (Davis, CA)
International Fútbol X-Change (IFX) Ballistic (Livermore, CA)
San Francisco City Football Club* (San Francisco, CA)|
San Francisco Soccer Football League (Calif. Soccer Assn.-North/USASA)
El Farolito (San Francisco, CA)
CALIFORNIA (SOUTH)
So Cal Premier League (Calif. State Soccer Assn.-South/USASA)
Buena Park FC (La Palma, CA)
Chula Vista FC* (Chula Vista, CA)
Corinthians USA (Rialto, CA)
Footballers Academy (Irvine, CA)
Outbreak FC (Long Beach, CA)
Real Sociedad (Bellflower, CA)
United Premier Soccer League (Calif. State Soccer Assn.-South/USASA)
Cal FC* (Agoura Hills, CA)
Del Rey City SC (Playa Del Rey, CA)
La Maquina (Lake Forest, CA)
LA Wolves FC (Manhattan Beach, CA)|
Ozzy’s Laguna FC (Monterey Park, CA)
San Nicolas FC (Chino, CA)
San Pedro Monsters FC (San Pedro, CA)
Strikers FC South Coast (Lake Forest, CA)
Temecula Football Club (Temecula, CA)
Valley United SC (North Hills, CA)
COLORADO
Colorado Amateur Soccer League (U.S. Specialty Sports Assn.)
Colorado Rovers (Commerce City, CO)
Colorado Rush (Wheat Ridge, CO)
FC Boulder (Boulder, CO)
Harpo’s FC* (Commerce City, CO)
CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Soccer League (Conn. State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Newtown Pride FC (Sandy Hook, CT)
FLORIDA
American Premier Soccer League (Florida State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Boca Raton Football Club (Boca Raton, FL)
Real Miami Club of Football (North Miami, FL)
Red Force FC (Pembroke Pines, FL)
Uruguay Kendall FC (Pembroke Pines, FL)
KANSAS
Kansas City Kansas Soccer League (Kansas State Soccer Assn./USASA)
KC Athletics* (Overland Park, KS)
LOUISIANA
Louisiana Premier League (Louisiana Soccer Assn./USASA)
CD Motagua of New Orleans (New Orleans, LA)
MARYLAND
Maryland Major Soccer League (Md. State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Maryland Bays* (Elkridge, MD)
Washington Premier League (Md. State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Dulles Sportsplex Aegean Hawks FC (Boyds, MD)
MASSACHUSETTS)
Bay State Soccer League (Mass. Adult State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Battery Park Gunners (Roxbury, MA)
Global Premier Soccer (GPS) Omens (Wayland, MA)
Worcester FC (Auburn, MA)
Massachusetts State Soccer League (Mass. Adult State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Boston Olympiakos FC (Boston, MA)
Southie FC (Roxbury, MA)
NEW JERSEY
Garden State Soccer Association (New Jersey Soccer Assn./USASA)
Jersey Shore Boca (Bayville, NJ)
South Jersey Elite Barons (Hammonton, NJ)
NEW YORK
Cosmopolitan Soccer League (Eastern New Youth State Soccer Assn./USASA)
Lansdowne Bhoys FC (Bronx, NY)
New York Greek American SC*^ (Maspeth, NY)
New York Pancyprian Freedoms# (Jamaica, NY)
NORTH CAROLINA
National Soccer League US Atlantic Division (U.S. Specialty Sports Assn.)
Charlotte Sporting Soccer Academy FC (Charlotte, NC)
Queen City United FC (Charlotte, NC)
Triangle Adult Soccer League (North Carolina Adult Soccer Assn./USASA)
Tobacco Road FC (Raleigh, NC)
OREGON
Oregon Premier Soccer League (Oregon Adult Soccer Assn./USASA)
I.P.S. (Portland, OR)
PENNSYLVANIA
Greater Pittsburgh Soccer League (Pa. West Soccer Assn./USASA)
Tartan Devils Oak Avalon (Pittsburgh, PA)
Philadelphia Premier Soccer League (Eastern Pa. Soccer Assn./USASA)
Junior Lone Star FC (Drexel Hill, PA)
Salone FC (Philadelphia, PA)
United Soccer League of Pennsylvania (Eastern Pa. Soccer Assn./USASA)
Vereinigung Erzgebirge (Warminster, PA)
West Chester United (Wayne, PA)
RHODE ISLAND
USA Soccer League (US Club Soccer)
Newport FC (Portsmouth, RI)
TEXAS
North Texas Premier Soccer Association (North Texas Soccer Assn./USASA)
NTX Rayados* (Dallas, TX)
Texas Premier Soccer League (US Club Soccer)
Austin Real Cuauhtemoc (Georgetown, TX)
VIRGINIA
Soccer Organization of the Charlottesville Area (Metro D.C.-Va. Soccer Assn./USASA)
Aromas Café FC (Charlottesville, VA)
* Advanced to 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
^ Four-time U.S. Open Cup Champion (1967-69, 1974)
# Three-time U.S. Open Cup Champion (1980, 1982-83)
Facts and Figures of Open Division Teams Entering via the Local Qualifying Track:
• 25 different leagues represented
• 16 different states represented
• 20 teams entering from California alone (16 from Southern Calif., 4 from Northern Calif.)
• 5 teams each from Massachusetts and Pennsylvania
• 4 teams each from Colorado and Florida
• 3 teams each from New York and North Carolina
• 2 teams each from Maryland, New Jersey and Texas
• 1 team each from Connecticut, Kansas, Louisiana, Oregon, Rhode Island and Virginia
• 8 Open Division teams who reached the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup tournament proper have entered
• Cal FC created a stir in 2012 by defeating the Portland Timbers (MLS) on the road in overtime in the Round of 32
• New York Greek American SC is a four-time U.S. Open Cup Champion (1967-69, 1974)
• New York Pancyprian Freedoms are a three-time U.S. Open Cup Champion (1980, 1982-83)
Teams Qualified (15) via National League Track: Premier Development League
Burlingame Dragons FC* Southwest Division Winner
Charlotte Eagles South Atlantic Division Winner
Des Moines Menace* Heartland Division Winner
FC Tucson* Mountain Division Winner
GPS Portland Phoenix Northeast Division Winner
Kitsap Pumas* Northwest Division Winner
Michigan Bucks* Great Lakes Division Winner
Mississippi Brilla Mid South Division Winner
New York Red Bulls U23 Mid Atlantic Division Winner
Ocala Stampede* Southeast Division Winner
Jersey Express* At-Large Berth
Long Island Rough Riders* At-Large Berth
Reading United* At-Large Berth
Seacoast United Phantoms* At-Large Berth
Ventura County Fusion* At-Large Berth
* Advanced to 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Teams Qualified (13) via National League Track: National Premier Soccer League
New York Cosmos B Championship Game Winner
Chattanooga FC* Championship Game Finalist
CD Aguiluchos USA Playoff Semifinalist
Indiana Fire Playoff Semifinalist
AFC Cleveland Playoff Quarterfinalist
Clarkstown SC Eagles Playoff Quarterfinalist
Myrtle Beach Mutiny Playoff Quarterfinalist
Sacramento Gold Playoff Quarterfinalist
Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves At-Large Berth
FC Wichita At-Large Berth
Fredericksburg FC At-Large Berth
Miami Fusion FC At-Large Berth
New York Athletic Club At-Large Berth
* Advanced to 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
2016 U.S. Open Cup Competition Calendar for Open Division Entries
Key Dates in 2015:
Monday, Sept. 21 – Matchups for first qualifying round and bracket for second qualifying round announced
Sept. 28 (4 p.m. CT) – Fall roster submission deadline for teams participating through the Open Division local qualifying track (22 player limit, no additions allowed after the deadline)
Oct. 9 (4 p.m. CT) – Roster approval/clearance deadline for first two qualifying rounds (players must be approved by their team’s state association or league and cleared by U.S. Soccer to play)
Oct. 14 – Player passes received by teams in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states (from Maine to Virginia and West Virginia)
Oct. 17-18 – First qualifying round for teams in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states
Oct. 21 – Player passes received by teams in all other states
Oct. 24-25 – First qualifying round for teams in all other states
Nov. 14-15 – Second qualifying round for teams in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states
Nov. 21-22 – Second qualifying round for teams in all other states
Key Dates in 2016:
January date TBD – Final allocation determined for Open Division slots into 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup
Jan. 6 (4 p.m. CT) – Home Game Application deadline for third qualifying round
January date TBD – Matchups for third qualifying round announced
March 21 (4 p.m. CT) – Spring roster submission deadline for teams still alive through the Open Division local qualifying track (teams may add up to five new players to their Fall roster who are not already cup-tied; 22 player limit remains)
March 23 – Venue Declaration Form deadline for teams wishing to host games in the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (date tentative)
March 25 (4 p.m. CT) – Spring roster approval/clearance deadline for Open Division local qualifiers (rosters for these teams will be frozen through June 30 to include the opening rounds of the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup)
April 1 (2 p.m. CT) – Home Game Application deadline for First, Second and Third Rounds of the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (date tentative)
April 2-3 – Third qualifying round for all teams
April 6 – 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup First Round pairings and Second Round possible matchups announced (date tentative)
April 27 – Deadline for teams entering at First Round (not including Open Division local qualifiers) to submit initial roster (date tentative)
May 11 – 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup First Round (date tentative); Dates for remaining rounds of the competition and deadlines to apply to host in these rounds will be determined by January 2016
July 1-15 (4 p.m. CT) – Summer roster changeover period for Open Division local qualifiers still in the Friday, July 15 competition (teams may add up to five new players to their Spring roster who are not already cup-tied; 22 player limit remains)