• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • US Open Cup Central
  • US Open Cup Qualifying
  • US Open Cup History
  • Amateur Cup

Complete U.S. Open Cup Coverage

  • 2025 USOC Schedule
  • 2025 USOC Stat Leaders
  • 2025 USOC Qualifying Results
  • TheCup.us Awards
  • Join TheCup.us Patreon!
  • Contact Us

2022 US Open Cup Final: Orlando City blanks underdog Sacramento Republic to become 2nd Florida team to lift trophy

September 8, 2022 by Austin David

Orlando City SC celebrate the 2022 US Open Cup championship after a 3-0 win over the Sacramento Republic. Photo: Mathieu Starke
Orlando City SC celebrate the 2022 US Open Cup championship after a 3-0 win over the Sacramento Republic. Photo: Mathieu Starke

It finally happened. After eight seasons in Major League Soccer, Orlando City finally lifted their first silverware as they beat Sacramento Republic 3-0 on Wednesday night.

Support TheCup.us and its coverage of the US Open Cup by purchasing a "We Want The Cup" shirt in your team's colors. Visit THECUP.US SHOP
Support TheCup.us and its coverage of the US Open Cup by purchasing a “We Want The Cup” shirt in your team’s colors. Visit THECUP.US SHOP

The Lions scored all three of their goals with only 15 minutes to go in the match, as the USL Championship side held the game scoreless for the majority.

“I think it’s important to recognize that Orlando has won the first style here,” head coach Oscar Pareja said after the game. “We are very proud of the community of the club, the fans, the players and have this opportunity to bring this trophy means a lot. We’re proud. Congratulations to all involved in this trophy. We are very grateful for tonight, and we’ll hope to continue and just give a lot of joy to the community.”

Pareja’s Open Cup win makes him just the second coach in the Modern Era (1995-present) to win a title with two different clubs, doing so with FC Dallas back in 2016. The only other to do it is the late Sigi Schmid when he won with LA Galaxy in 2001 and with the Seattle Sounders four times (2009-11, 2014).

WHAT A BEAUTY ???? #MagicOfTheCup | #DaleMiAmor pic.twitter.com/5ELOGerrAH

— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) September 8, 2022

After a scoreless first 74 minutes of action, the Lions broke through thanks to a combination of Ivan Angulo, Benji Michel and Facundo Torres. After Sacramento began to build out of the back, pressure from Angulo and Michel forced a turnover, allowing Michel to get off a pass to Torres to bend a shot around Danny Vitiello to break the deadlock.

Ivan Angulo (left) and Facundo Torres of Orlando City SC celebrate during the club's 3-0 win over Sacramento Republic FC in the 2022 US Open Cup. Photo Credit: Luis Corazon
Ivan Angulo (left) and Facundo Torres of Orlando City SC celebrate during the club’s 3-0 win over Sacramento Republic FC in the 2022 US Open Cup. Photo Credit: Luis Corazon

Just five minutes later, Michel was involved in the second goal, as Dan Casey took down the Orlando homegrown player in the box. Facundo Torres stepped up and buried the penalty to double the lead for the Lions in the 80th minute.

That goal by Torres made him the fifth player in the Modern Era to have scored multiple goals in an Open Cup Final and the first to do it since 2016, when Oscar Pareja’s FC Dallas won, and Maxi Urruti notched a brace.

The Lions would add the cherry on top as Michel got in behind the Republic backline and tapped home the third, sealing the win for the Lions.

76' | Right place, right time ???? @facutorresss | #DaleMiAMmor pic.twitter.com/z1b5DP35H3

— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) September 8, 2022

“They have a defense of three that is very difficult to break,” Pareja said on Michel. “We knew that Ercan will give us presence in the box, but there was a time in the game that we stuck (Michel) in there because we needed to stretch the field. Benji gave us that possibility to run in behind, to help us with the presence too. It was a good job by Ercan but at that point we needed more energy. And I thought Benji changed (the energy) tremendously.”

Wednesday’s result also marks the first time a Florida team has won the Open Cup since the St. Petersburg Kickers when they lifted the trophy in 1989. Fittingly, that same 1989 Kickers team was honored with a pre-game ceremony.

Orlando becomes the fifth team of the Modern Era to win the tournament while playing every game at home. They join the 2006 Chicago Fire, 2008 D.C. United, 2011 Seattle Sounders and the 2018 Houston Dynamo. Although, the Lions are the first to play six home games in a competition.

The home crowd was definitely a factor with a sold-out Exploria Stadium. The announced crowd of 25,527 was the eighth-largest crowd to ever watch a US Open Cup match in the tournament’s 107-year history. It was also the fourth largest crowd for a championship game.

In addition to lifting the club’s first major trophy, Orlando also wins $300,000 in prize money and qualifies for the CONCACAF Champions League. Sacramento earns $100,000 as the runner-up.

That's a lot of champagne ???? pic.twitter.com/JAHE8yDBnm

— Orlando City SC (@OrlandoCitySC) September 8, 2022

The Lions will host a Championship celebration tomorrow at City Hall, with festivities kicking off at noon. The win also means the Orlando City flag will fly at City Hall in Sacramento as the mayors of each city placed a friendly wager on the game. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg will also have to make a contribution to a charity of Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer’s choosing.

PHOTO GALLERY by Mathieu Starke

Filed Under: 2022 US Open Cup, Feature - Main, US Open Cup Tagged With: 2022 US Open Cup, Orlando City SC, Sacramento Republic FC

Primary Sidebar

Follow Us on Social Media

  • Bluesky
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

U.S. Open Cup History

Jim Gregory, president of Charleston Battery supporters group The Regiment (right), presents the Coffee Pot Cup to Sachin Shah after D.C. United's 2-0 win in the 2004 Carolina Challenge Cup. Photo: Mike Buytas

How a US Open Cup classic, locker room vandalism inspired fans to create Coffee Pot Cup

It remains one of the greatest games of the US Open Cup’s Modern Era but what happened after the game gets more attention than the instant classic that took place on the field.

  • Highs and lows of Los Angeles’ 25 all-time US Open Cup Final appearances
  • Before Lionel Messi’s 2023 US Open Cup impact, Pele changed the 1975 Final in a different way
  • A history of violence against referees in US Open Cup
  • How St. Petersburg Kickers became Florida’s first US Open Cup champion
  • San Francisco Bay Seals, the ‘amateur’ pro team that reached 1997 US Open Cup Semifinals

Analytics powered by

Copyright © 2025 • Built by Jacob Martella Web Development