2026 US Open Cup Round 3: Julian Hall’s brace leads Red Bull New York past Pittsburgh Riverhounds

Red Bull New York (the artist formerly known as the New York Red Bulls) defeated the Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, 3-1, on Saturday night in Round 3 of the 2026 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup. A brace from one of Major League Soccer’s top goal scorers this season Julian Zakrzewski Hall and team captain Emil Forsberg sent the MLS side into the next round. The light crowd in Harrison, NJ, reportedly under 1,000 fans, were loud the entire night.

They will face Hudson River Derby rivals New York City FC in Round 4 between April 28-29. RBNY will host that match, in a series where NYCFC has yet to beat the Red Bull in any knockout competition (USOC, Leagues Cup, or MLS Cup Playoffs).

Saturday marks RBNY head coach Michael Bradley’s first USOC win from the sideline. He elected to use a starter heavy XI against the Riverhounds, something he explained after the match came down to respect for the opponent as his team’s ethos.

“We’ve said over and over again…  that we are going to go for it every single game. And if you say that, that means you don’t get to pick and choose. We value the Open Cup in a big way,” Bradley said. “(We are going to try) and put a team on the field every single game that is ready to go after things.”

New York’s offense included Julian Hall and the team’s USOC headline maker Mohammed Sofo on offense alongside Rafael Mosquera. Team captain Emil Forsberg led the midfield alongside teenagers Adri Mehmeti and Nehuén Benedetti. Finally a near regular backline stood in front of backup goalkeeper John McCarthy.

The first half was all New York, demonstrating how effectively the home side could control the game. Controlling the ball for nearly 3/4ths of the half it took until the 25th minute for the breakthrough. A foul outside the penalty area set-up Red Bull captain Emil Forsberg for a free kick which he sent into the top right corner. Riverhounds’ keeper Nico Campuzano had little chance to stop it.

The goal was not unsimilar to the one Forsberg scored against FC Dallas last year in the Round of 16. 

New York added another a few minutes later in the 28th minute. A cross from the left side from Mohammed Sofo found Forsberg, who passed back to Nehuén Benedetti. The Argentina native one touched the ball forward to an on the run Julian Hall slotting a right-footed shot into the bottom left corner.

Hall doubled his goal count right after the halftime break when Forsberg found him in the box in the 47th minute. His low right footed shot got past Campuzano and made any realistic chance of a Hounds comeback very low.

“Of course I want to score goals, but my main objective is to make as much of an impact as I can,” Hall said about his impact on the field. “Thankfully, I got two tonight, and now I’m just ready for the game on Saturday.”

The goals mark Hall’s first two-ever USOC cup goals. The 18-year-old Manhattan native has seven goals across all competitions for New York in 2026, and has been one of MLS’s biggest stars so far in the season.

New York nearly made it 4-0 in the 51st minute when Rafael Mosquera’s curving shot attempt from outside the right area of the box just barely went wide left of the goal. 

The Hounds controlled the ball even less in the second half, only keeping it for about 20% of the 45 minutes. The team only had three shots in the half but did claw back a goal in the 79th minute. Eliot Goldthorp sent in a cross to the box that Trevor Amann headed into the bottom left corner to make it 3-1. Former Ocean City (N.J.) Nor’easters keeper John McCarthy would lose out on his clean sheet. But with the win he extended his Lamar Hunt US Open Cup unbeaten streak to 11 matches, going 7-0-4 in that span.

One of the only other unfortunately notable moments of the half came in the 67th minute, when Hounds’ Lasse Kelp was replaced by Victor Souza with a concussion substitute after a collision. The other party, New York’s Roald Mitchell, was subbed off a few minutes later for Jorge Ruvalcaba.

The Hounds exit the tournament with a disappointing result, unable to make it a conquering of Big Apple MLS teams after being New York City FC last year.

Speaking of the blue side, when asked about playing NYCFC next in the Open Cup, coach Bradley said he and his team were incredibly excited. 

“We are really excited. Obviously, I’ve watched the (Hudson River Derby) from afar. I was at the game here last season and so I think it speaks for itself in terms of the two clubs and everything that it means when two teams in the same city now play and are ready to go after each other,” said the former US Men’s National Team captain. “Obviously, there’s important games and there’s work to do between now and then. But for sure, when that game comes around, we will be ready, and we’re going to be really excited.”