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Chicago Fire

2026 US Open Cup Round of 16: St. Louis CITY rally to beat Chicago Fire to reach first Quarterfinals

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Mykhi Joyner of St. Louis CITY SC prepares to shoot against the Chicago Fire in the Round of 16 of the 2026 US Open Cup. Photo: St. Louis CITY SC
Mykhi Joyner of St. Louis CITY SC prepares to shoot against the Chicago Fire in the Round of 16 of the 2026 US Open Cup. Photo: St. Louis CITY SC

St. Louis CITY SC advanced to their first US Open Cup Quarterfinal in the club’s young history on Wednesday night in Bridgeview, Illinois as they came from behind to defeat the Chicago Fire, 2-1. 

It was an emotional night not just because of grabbing a bit of tournament history, but because the winning goal was delivered by captain Eduard Lowen who returned to action on April 18 after the passing of his wife, Ilona, following a two-year battle with cancer. 

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“I hope this is gonna give him and the group a lot of confidence going forward,” said St. Louis head coach Yoann Damet of Lowen, who entered the game as a substitute in the second half. “The way he’s able to express himself, he brings a lot of quality in the final third.” 

“We all know that Edu is a very special player and a very special person,” said Tomas Totland, the other scorer on the night for the victors. “I’m so so happy for him and for the team as well.” 

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The game’s first half was cagey, with the home side dominating possession and hitting the woodwork of Roman Burki’s goal twice via shots from Hugo Cuypers and Maren Haile-Selassie. The Fire eventually found a breakthrough in the 64th minute via captain Anton Saletros heading in from close range off a Philip Zinckernagel cross in front of the Harlem end to bring the crowd of 3,246 to life. 

Ironically, the goal seemed to ignite City, who within 14 minutes had turned it around. In the 71st minute — following a poor giveaway by Robin Lod in the Fire penalty area and goal line clearance by Joel Waterman — Totland found the loose ball and squeezed his shot past a sprawling Chris Brady and a still-in-the-goalmouth Waterman to equalize. 

The winner came in the 78th minute on an efficient counter attack, with a fizzed ball through the box by Mykhi Joyner finding a wide-open Lowen, as he struck a shot into the top right corner of Brady’s net. Lowen was soon engulfed by teammates like he’d just scored the winning penalty in a cup final. Due to that goal, the team from the Gateway City can keep dreaming about competing for silverware this season despite poor form in their Major League Soccer season so far. 

“The Cup is always a special thing,” Totland said, reflecting not only on the Open Cup but his years playing in Sweden’s Svenska Cupen. “It’s something that the club has big ambitions in.” 

“We take a lot of pride in being the first to make a quarterfinal, that was part of the goal for the season,” Damet said. “We want to leave our mark on the history.” 

City can now look four weeks ahead to another chance to make a little Open Cup history.

“The first thing I said when it came to the cup was we’re gonna be all in,” Damet said. “You’re only two games away from a final so we’re gonna keep going all in.” 

2025 US Open Cup Round 5: Chicago Fire responds to Gregg Berhalter’s challenge, beats New England 3-1

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Rominigue Kouame of the Chicago Fire surverys the field against the New England Revolution in the Fifth Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC
Rominigue Kouame of the Chicago Fire surverys the field against the New England Revolution in the Fifth Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC

New England Revolution’s second trip to Rhode Island in 2025 didn’t go as well as their first, as they fell 3-1 to Chicago Fire FC in a Round of 16 matchup at Providence College’s Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium on Tuesday.  

The Revolution’s trip south was their second visit to the Ocean State in this year’s competition, after it topped USL Championship side Rhode Island FC  2-1 in the Round of 32, while the Fire advanced to the Round of 16 after topping USLC side Detroit City FC 4-0. 

Playing the match a half-hour south of their typical home of Gillette Stadium and with a lineup largely composed of players from their MLS NEXT Pro reserve side, the Revolution mostly held their own through the first half. They lost the possession battle but accumulated a handful of near chances against a Chicago side primarily composed of regular first-team faces.  

In the 38th minute, the Fire broke through when midfielder Jonathan Bamba found an opportunity from a loose ball in the box. It took a slight deflection off Revolution defender Eric Klein, preventing goalkeeper Alex Bono from making the save and leading to an own goal. It would be the only goal of the half. 

In the middle of a congested part of their schedule, this being New England’s second of five games in a two-week span, Revolution coach Caleb Porter said his youthful lineup was an attempt to give younger players meaningful first-time experience while also giving starters a rest.

“I thought did well,” Porter said. “It was a tricky game to manage, having played Saturday. There was no way we were going to risk, with three games next week, guys like Ganago or Gil, especially on this turf. We used it as an opportunity to try to advance with younger guys.”

Fire coach Gregg Berhalter said his squad agreed with his halftime assessment that their showing had been underwhelming. 

“It was challenging at half time. I wasn’t happy with the performance, I asked them if they were happy with their performance and they said no.” Berhalter said. “There were clearly expectations that we could perform better.”

Chicago’s possession advantage continued into the second half, eventually leading to more chances. In the 69th minute, Chicago’s first official shot of the night found its target when Hugo Cuypers wrangled a deflection off the crossbar and beat Bono to make it 2-0. 

The Fire would add another goal in the 79th minute, when Danish midfielder Philip Zinckernagel calmly dribbled through the defense, showing good control before slipping it past Bono. Maren Haile-Selassie was credited with the assist. 

According to Berhalter, the Revolution’s inexperienced lineup didn’t relieve any pressure on Chicago.

“Anytime we’re on the field we want to win,” Berhalter said. “When you see lineup, perhaps the pressure goes up on you, because you have to win. They had nothing to lose.”

He added he’s happy to be playing three games in a week, saying in-game experience is the best way to maintain fitness levels. 

“I think this Open Cup is a great, historic tournament,” he said. “The alternative is we have two very difficult sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday to get the same type of fitness we got today. We got to do this with a real opponent. It’s great.”

The Revolution added a consolation goal in the 89th minute, as Providence College alum and Rhode Island native Gevork Diarbian’s attempt was deflected into the net by Chicago defender Justin Pledger Reynolds, who was credited with the own goal. The final whistle sounded minutes later, leading to a 3-1 finish. 

With the loss, the last time New England moved past the Round of 16 was 2017, when they lost in the Quarterfinals against the New York Red Bulls. 

The Quarterfinals now await Chicago Fire, who improved their all-time US Open Cup record to 47-17-7, the most wins and advances (51) of any club in competition history. They’re chasing a record-tying fifth Open Cup title.

 

2025 US Open Cup Round 4: Chicago Fire use strong lineup to blank Detroit City FC

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Chicago Fire players celebrate after scoring a goal against Detroit City FC in the Fourth Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC
Chicago Fire players celebrate after scoring a goal against Detroit City FC in the Fourth Round of the 2025 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC

A strong Chicago Fire lineup rolled through to the Round of 16 with a 4-0 victory at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois over a well-supported Detroit City team that couldn’t generate much against a front line containing Chicago’s two designated players backed up by no shortage of supporting talent.

“Overall I think they tried to play hard,” said Fire winger Maren Haile-Selassie, who contributed to three of the four goals, of the USL Championship side. “But obviously in the end I think the quality was higher on our side”

Within four minutes, the Fire leveraged that quality. As Detroit city attempted to play the ball out from the back on a goal kick, Haile-Selassie charged in on the press to poke the ball to Hugo Cuypers, who was all alone near the penalty spot and smashed a shot with the outside of his right boot into the top left corner of the net to give the hosts the lead on his eighth goal in all competitions.

“To come out and press, be aggressive and put the opponent on the back foot was really impressive,” said Chicago head coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter of the way his team began the match. For Berhalter, it was his first coaching win in the tournament since 2016. In fact, as head coach of the Columbus Crew from 2014-2018, Berhalter was eliminated three times by the Chicago Fire.

The rest of the first half proceeded in second gear, as the Fire were in no hurry having taken the early lead and Detroit struggled to string passes together on the rare occasion they managed to establish possession.

A Detroit striker was the next player to score, but just not how the visitors and their large cadre of traveling fans would have hoped. A Fire corner kick was flicked on at the near post by Cuypers, only for it to be met by Darren Smith who volleyed into his team’s net. The net should have rippled again late in the half, but Cuypers was denied by Detroit City goalkeeper Carlos Saldana charging out from his goal and Maren Haile-Selassie then saw his rebound effort cleared off the line.

Though it was getting quite cold after sunset in Bridgeview, there was a moment to feel warm inside about for the Fire and their fans early in the second half as 21-year-old Omari Glasgow scored his first goal for the Fire first team after a 40-yard dribbling run by Jonathan Bamba.

“Playing with the first team has been a dream I’ve been working (towards) since I first came to Chicago,” said Glasgow, who has now made 14 appearances for the Fire between Major League Soccer and the Open Cup. “I think the work has been shown and it’s paid off.”

The Fire’s substitutes weren’t interested in turning down the temperature, as wave after wave of attack eventually produced another goal when Haile-Selassie passed into an open Detroit goal following good passing by Kellyn Acosta and Brian Gutierrez.

Detroit recorded just two shots on target and never looked likely to match last season’s club-best result of reaching the Round of 16. The dominant display from the Fire earns them a trip to Foxboro for a date with the New England Revolution later this month.

 

2023 US Open Cup Quarterfinals: Houston Dynamo win in Chicago following offensive explosion

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Photo: Houston Dynamo
Photo: Houston Dynamo
Going into Tuesday night, the focus was mainly on the Chicago Fire. They were the ones at home at SeatGeek Stadium. They were the ones going after a historic fifth US Open Cup title. They were the ones who really needed a win. The Houston Dynamo did not care for any of that. They rocked up and outplayed the hosts for most of the contest, ultimately coming away with a 4-1 victory to book their spot in the Semifinals of the competition. “I’m super excited to just keep moving in this tournament,” said Houston head coach Ben Olsen. “We’ve advanced in an important competition, one we’ve taken seriously from the start, and we’re looking forward to being in the Semifinals and trying to create a culture of winning.” After a back-and-forth start to the contest, Houston opened the scoring. Arnaud Souquet tripped up a streaking Nelson Quiñónes, and the referee decided that it was enough contact to point to the spot. Amine Bassi stepped up to take the spot-kick, and he calmly converted it with a powerful strike down the middle. “It took a little sting out of the crowd. They’re a good team, and it was a good atmosphere,” Olsen said. Bassi had a big chance to double the advantage about five minutes later, as a loose ball fell perfectly to him on the edge of the penalty area. His first-time effort was decent, but Spencer Richey was able to make the important save. It was 2-0 at the half hour mark, though. Hitting on the break, the Dynamo had two men flying forward. Ibrahim Aliyu was on the ball, and he smartly went for goal himself, passing the ball towards the near post and into the back of the net. Things were looking bad for the hosts, but they found a lifeline before the break. A corner picked out Arnaud Souquet, and his header was perfect, as he redirected the ball into the bottom corner to halve the deficit. The Fire came out hot to start the second half, and they were robbed of a clear penalty. Brian Gutiérrez was brought down by an onrushing Andrew Tarbell, who missed the ball completely. However, the referee saw otherwise, giving a corner kick instead of a penalty, showing the need for VAR in this part of the USOC. Despite their spell of dominance, it was the Dynamo who scored next. A mazy run from Quiñónes led to him getting a strong shot off, and even though his attempt was saved, the rebound fell right to Aliyu for an easy tap-in. “We dodged a couple of bullets in the first half, and we did a better job in the second half in terms of fixing things,” Olsen said. “It was a scrappy game. The field wasn’t perfect, and that led to more duels. It becomes more of a true cup game, a true fight. We had to make sure we were up for that.” Chicago sent bodies forward in search of a goal, but that cost them. Houston hit on the break once again, with Héctor Herrera blowing by his marker before setting up Quiñónes for a simple finish at the back post. “The goal was a reward for a really good performance,” Olsen said when asked about Quiñónes. “He’s simplified his game and boiled it down to the areas where he can have success. Offensively he’s got real pace and quality and technical ability. His talent is scary. He also gave a real shift on the defensive end, constantly getting back in the right spot, constantly helping match the numbers down the flank.” “Our transition was good,” Olsen said. “Seeing out goals in the run of the play has been better as of late, but scoring goals and that final ball has haunted us, so it was nice to score a bunch tonight.” That killed off the contest, and the Dynamo held on to secure the victory. They now await the winner of Wednesday’s Quarterfinal between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Real Salt Lake. “When we came here we wanted to change the culture. Wins help change that,” Olsen said. “It’s nice to advance, get to the Semifinals, put yourself in a spot to be two games away from a trophy. It won’t be easy, every round gets more difficult, but we’re thrilled to be one of the remaining four teams.”

2023 US Open Cup Round of 16: Chicago Fire continue quest for five with win over Austin FC

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Austin FC vs. Chicago Fire FC - Photo: Scott W. Coleman
Photo: Scott W. Coleman

Frank Klopas wants to help the Chicago Fire become the winningest MLS team in US Open Cup history.

The Fire continued their journey towards an all-time record-tying fifth Open Cup trophy on Wednesday night, going on the road to beat Austin FC 2-0 at Q2 Stadium.

“If you’re in a tournament then you want to win,” Klopas said. “Every time we play we want to win. That’s the way we approach it. We’re always going to put our best team forward that is going to give us opportunities to win the game.”

Chicago will travel to face the Houston Dynamo in the Quarterfinals the week of June 6-7.

Despite losing the possession battle, the Fire were able to frustrate Austin FC and held a 12-9 advantage in shots, including an 8-2 lead in shots on goal. 



Rafael Czichos opened the scoring with a header in the first half before Kacper Przybylko scored for the fifth time in all competitions off an assists from Xherdan Shaqiri in the second half.

“It was a great win,” Klopas said. “Any time you’re on the road, especially when you’re playing against a really good team in a great atmosphere, it’s always difficult. We had a really good gameplan. We were good with the ball and made them chase.”

Austin FC was on a bit of a high entering the Open Cup match after winning back-to-back MLS games for the first time this season to vault back up into a playoff spot.

“It’s disappointing to get knocked out,” Austin FC head coach Josh Wolff said. “This is a competition we wanted to progress in. Physically, we looked fatigued. When the team isn’t performing well, you’ve got to stay resolute.”

Both teams had their chances for the first 20 minutes of the game, but then Austin started getting sloppy with its passes, and Chicago started to have their way a bit more.

Kei Kamara took advantage of an Austin FC turnover with a shot from inside the penalty area in the 25th minute. Less than a minute later, Xherdan Shaqiri picked out Maren Haile-Selassie behind the back line for an open look, forcing Austin keeper Brad Stuver into a diving save.

The Fire took advantage of the ensuing corner as Rafael Czichos headed home a corner form Brian Gutierrez into the top corner to give Chicago the lead in the 27th minute.

“After 20 minutes, it looked leggy with a lot of sloppiness,” Wolff said. “It almost becomes contagious. It’s an elimination game, and dueling is important. It was concerning that we looked a little labored and physically slow.”

The Verde & Black started the second half strong, with headed chances on goal with headed caches for Gyasi Zardes and Aleksandar Radovanovic.

Shaqiri had his initial shot saved in the 77th minute, but he passed the rebound to a wide-open Kacper Przybylko in front of net for an easy tap-in goal to seal the win.

“We were very disciplined, organized and we had really good moments with the ball where we created lot of opportunities,” Klopas said. “We had some great individual performances, but from a collective standpoint, that was a the difference.” 

2023 US Open Cup Round 4: Frank Klopas returns to lead Chicago Fire to win over St. Louis CITY

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Maren Haile-Selassie of the Chicago Fire FC celebrates after scoring a goal against St. Louis CITY SC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago FIre FC
Maren Haile-Selassie of the Chicago Fire FC celebrates after scoring a goal against St. Louis CITY SC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago FIre FC

It was a historic night at Bridgeview on Tuesday as the Chicago Fire beat St. Louis CITY SC 2-1 in the first-ever meeting between the two sides to book their place in the Round of 16 of the 2023 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.

Chicago took the lead after just two-and-a-half minutes. A long ball bounced over the opposing backline, and it fell right into the path of Maren Haile-Selassie. It seemed like the angle was too tight, but he had a bit of luck on his side as his strike deflected off a defender before looping over the goalkeeper and into the back of the net. 

“We started the game very well, and that set the tone for the full 90 minutes,” said Chicago defender Wyatt Omsberg. “Our start was very important, and we won a lot of first and second balls to set the tone.

They continued to control proceedings early on, but St. Louis started to grow into the game. They really should have tied things up in the 15th minute when Jared Stroud was left unmarked on a corner, but he scuffed his first-time attempt from close range.

The contest ebbed-and-flowed until the end of the first half, and that pattern continued to start the second. A big chance came as Miguel Navarro broke free on the counter, but his attempt was hit too close to the goalkeeper.

St. Louis then had their best opportunity soon after. Célio Pompeu danced into the area, and he set himself up for a superb shooting opportunity. However, he was denied by Mauricio Pineda, who heroically got across to make the block.

The next goal finally came with 15 minutes to go, and it was scored by the hosts. Goalkeeper Ben Lundt lost control of the ball at his feet, which allowed Brian Gutiérrez to poke it to Fabian Herbers. From there it was all too easy, as the German converted from close range to double his side’s lead.

“It was kind of a messy ball in,” said midfielder Fabian Herbers. “They played it under pressure to their goalkeeper, who took a bit of a longer touch. Guti was able to steal it and pass it to me, and I didn’t have too much work left to do, just pass it into the empty net.”

St. Louis tried to respond, and they even pulled a goal back through Miguel Perez in stoppage time, but it wasn’t enough. Chicago held on to secure the win, booking their spot in the next round of the competition as a result.

“The team played great today. There was a team spirit, they fought to the end, we grew stronger toward the end, and we found a way,” said head coach Frank Klopas, who scored the golden goal in the 1998 US Open Cup Final for the Chicago Fire. “So, this was a really difficult match. We came out ahead and we’re not going to expect any of the other ones to be any easier.”

“We didn’t play super pretty today, but we put in the work and showed the fans what the team is about and that we still have a little fire left in us,” said Herbers.

The contest was also the first match for interim-head coach Frank Klopas, who returned to take over the team following Ezra Hendrickson’s firing on Monday morning. 

“It was difficult because when you’re in this business, you know, I’ve been there on the other side, so I know what it feels like,” said Klopas, who will patrol the sidelines for the Fire for the third time. “And for me, the only thing that I really focused on was being very clear with certain things to the team. Give them confidence, give them belief, and let them come out and show that on the field. And the most important thing was just to compete and leave everything on the field.”

“Frank is super passionate. He loves the club, he wants the best for the club. It was more about his motivation and less about his tactics,” said Herbers. “It was about our fight, and I think he did a good job transmitting his passion.”

“In some ways it was kind of nice to just be like ‘alright we’ve got a game, let’s just turn the page and focus on the game,’” said Omsberg. “I think all the players at the club are so comfortable with Frank and the rest of the staff that we know we’ll be in safe hands.” 

Chicago has often stated how much they care about the Open Cup, and they proved it tonight by naming a first-choice starting lineup for the contest. It was enough to earn a spot in the Round of 16, and now everyone at the club has their eyes set on continuing their run in the tournament.

“We’ve always put, as a club, a big emphasis on the Open Cup. You know, I talked to the team a little tactically but I also had the video team put together a little video for the players to understand what this means to us,” said Klopas. “I told the guys the journey has started already, this is the second game. I said, ‘Hey, let’s make history and lift one cup together.’”

2023 US Open Cup Round 3: Chicago Fire blank Chicago House AC in Windy City battle

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Federico Navarro of the Chicago Fire dribbles against Chicago House AC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC
Federico Navarro of the Chicago Fire dribbles against Chicago House AC in the 2023 US Open Cup. Photo: Chicago Fire FC

The US Open Cup is known for its wild upsets and magical moments, but the host Chicago Fire made sure that none of that took place on Wednesday night as they soundly defeated Chicago House Athletic Club 3-0 at SeatGeek Stadium in their Third Round tie.

Two goals in the span of 11 minutes gave the Fire a comfortable lead going into the break, and they kept their foot on the gas pedal. They grabbed a third with about 20 minutes to go, and that final goal allowed them to coast to a comfortable victory.

“It’s been a long time since this organization won a trophy. Tonight was an opportunity for us to start changing that,” said head coach Ezra Hendrickson. “This tournament is a way to reconnect with our fans. It’s something that supporters are really up for, and it can ignite and energize a fanbase, and that’s something we need to do. What better tournament to do it in than the Open Cup?”

“It’s a big tournament for us,” said defender Kendall Burks, who scored twice on the night. “We talk about it in the locker room all the time. It’s something we want to win, and it’s something we think we can win, and tonight was just the first step in doing that.”

Their starting lineup was a real signal of intent, as the likes of Federico Navarro, Maren Haile-Selassie, and Mauricio Pineda all got the nod from the opening whistle.

Things were still pretty even to open up the contest, and the House actually had a fair share of the ball early on. The Fire eventually grew into the game and slowly took control of proceedings.

Neither side created much of anything until the 25th minute, when the hosts struck first. Miguel Navarro was given too much space out wide, which allowed him to hit a quality cross into the area. The goalkeeper missed it, and Kacper Przybylko was at the right place at the right time to slot home from close range.

It was 2-0 about 10 minutes later. A corner from Alonso Aceves picked out Kendall Burks, and he rose highest before finding the bottom corner with an excellent header. That’s how simple the goal was, and it gave the Fire some much-needed breathing room in the matchup.

They almost killed the game off with a third goal right after. Youngster Alex Monis broke past the opposing backline, but he dragged his shot just wide of the far post. That was the end of the action in terms of the first half. The Fire didn’t create too many chances, but converted the ones that came their way.

The hosts came out strong following the break, trying to grab that match-sealing third goal. It came in the 69th minute, and again it came via Burks and a corner. This one had an added wrinkle, though, as the corner from Aceves first found Wyatt Omsberg, who cleverly flicked it towards the backpost. That’s where Burks was, and he reacted quickest to convert from just a few yards out.

It was another wonderful moment in what proved to be a dream night for the centerback, who scored twice, secured the clean sheet, and came away with the victory. 

“Being a centerback, you don’t expect to score a lot of goals, let alone two in one game. It was definitely good to get on the scoresheet,” he said. “Being in the starting lineup today was a good confidence booster. I feel like I’ve been improving each day, and that’s the biggest thing for me.”

The Fire killed the contest off at that point, as their main objective was getting the job done and booking their spot in the next round.

“It feels a lot better than last year, that’s for sure,” said goalkeeper Spencer Richey, who was the starter when the Fire were knocked out by Union Omaha in the Third Round last season. “There’s no easy cup game. Everytime you play a lower-division side you know that they’re going to give you everything they have. It’s important that we do well in this competition. There’s always going to be some rotation, and hopefully whatever group is on the field in the next round can get the job done and we can go from there.”

For House, it was an emotional end to their stellar cup run. They had won five games just to get to this stage, and they were one of only two amateur teams in the Third Round. Despite the loss, there was still a lot for the club to be proud of.

“You know, one of our centerbacks is a senior in high school and he’s got school in the morning,” said House head coach Matt Poland. “It’s an awesome experience for us. From where we were a year ago to where we are now is an incredible achievement. This was a great platform for our guys to showcase themselves against some really talented players, and this should give our team confidence going into the summer season.”

American soccer’s greatest modern underdog story: Rochester Raging Rhinos win 1999 US Open Cup

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The Rochester Raging Rhinos celebrate their 1999 US Open Cup championship after defeating the Colorado Rapids 2-0 at Columbus Crew Stadium in Columbus, OH. Photo: Rochester Rhinos

A version of this story by Josh Hakala originally appeared on FourFourTwo.com

Every sport has its go-to underdog story. Hockey has the “Miracle on Ice”, college basketball has N.C. State in 1983, baseball has the “Miracle Mets” in 1969, and boxing has Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson. World soccer has plenty to choose from with Leicester City (2015/16 Premier League champions) being the most recent example.

For American soccer, it’s the 1999 Rochester Raging Rhinos, who became the first and, to date, the only lower division club to win the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup since Major League Soccer launched in 1996. Fans of domestic cup competitions like the FA Cup (England) know that anything can happen, and in 1999, the Rhinos of the A-League (Div. 2) upset four MLS teams en route to lifting the trophy.

The last team to come close to repeating their accomplishment was the 2008 Charleston Battery who reached the Final in 2008, but lost to D.C. United. More recently, FC Cincinnati, then of the USL, let a 2-0 lead on their home field slip away in the 2017 Semifinals, falling to the New York Red Bulls. If they would have held on for the win, they would have had a chance to join the Rhinos in the American soccer history books.

However, looking back at the 1999 Rochester Raging Rhinos (they dropped the “Raging” part of their name prior to the 2008 season), their magical Open Cup run almost didn’t happen. Multiple times.

Round 2: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, New York Freedoms 1 (OT)

The Rhinos began the tournament in Round 2 and their opening game was against the New York Freedoms, an amateur team from the Premier Development League (PDL, now known as USL League Two). To put the mismatch in perspective, the US Soccer Federation assigned seedings to the teams for the 1999 US Open Cup and the Rhinos were the No. 9 seed and the Freedoms were 28th out of the 32-team field. 

Mauro Biello of the Rochester Raging Rhinos battles for the ball against the New York Freedoms in the Second Round of the 1999 US Open Cup. Photo: Democrat & Chronicle

The New York Pancyprian Freedoms were three-time US Open Cup champions (1980, 1982, 1983) and long-time members of the New York’s famed Cosmopolitan League. They launched a PDL team in 1999 under the name “New York Freedoms” and qualified for the Open Cup in their debut season.

More than 7,000 fans showed up at the Rhinos’ Frontier Field to cheer on the defending A-League (Div. 2 pro) champions. In the first half, it looked like it was going to be a one-sided affair when New York’s Ronan Wiseman, who was on loan from the Long Island Rough Riders, received a straight red card for a hard tackle in the 35th minute.

“I’m very disappointed,” Freedoms manager Tony Noto told the Democrat and Chronicle after the game. “The referee made a difference. He changed the destiny of the Freedoms. You don’t (throw) players out on the first foul.”

Despite being down a man, the Freedoms walked into the locker room at halftime scoreless against the Rhinos.

According to Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli, his team’s smaller field dimensions at Frontier Field may have helped the visiting team stay in the game as they bunkered down once they were down a man.

In the 57th minute, New York’s Rodney Rambo stunned the announced crowd of 7,131 by giving the 10-man Freedoms the lead. The former University of Portland star stole the ball from Rhinos midfielder Kirk Dietrich near the Rochester penalty area, dribbled in and put the ball past goalkeeper Bill Andracki, who was filling in for injured starter Pat Onstad.

“ was certainly a wake-up call,” said Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli. “When you’re playing the amateur teams, sometimes you take them for granted, just like the MLS teams have done in certain cases with lower division teams. The lower division teams tend to up their game and the higher division teams tend to play down to .”

That lead would be short-lived as Mauro Biello, the team’s top scorer, received a pass just outside the box from Doug Miller, the A-League’s 1997 MVP. Biello launched a shot from a little more than 20 yards out to tie the game in the 62nd minute.

The match would head into golden goal extra time where Biello played provider, delivering a corner kick to the head of Darren Tilley who nodded home the game-winner in the 110th minute. The Freedoms gave the Rhinos a scare despite Rochester outshooting New York 22-7 and earning 19 corners to the Freedoms’ four. New York’s goalkeeper Roberto Sir kept his team in the game, making seven saves over 110 minutes of action.

After the game, Tilley told Jeff DiVeronica of the Democrat and Chronicle that the team was just happy to advance.

“We didn’t play to our best, as I think everyone would acknowledge, but it’s all about winning in Cup competitions.”

The headline in the July 15, 1999 edition of the Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY) after the Rochester Raging Rhinos upset the defending MLS Cup and US Open Cup champion Chicago Fire.

ROUND 3: Rochester Raging Rhinos 1, Chicago Fire 0

In the next round, the Rhinos found themselves in a battle worthy of a Final. Rochester, the defending A-League champions welcomed the defending MLS Cup and US Open Cup champions in the Chicago Fire. With two major trophies already added to Chicago’s trophy case after its inaugural season, the Rhinos were not intimidated.

Photo: Democrat & Chronicle archives

After Yari Allnutt headed home a Michael Kirmse corner kick to put the Rhinos ahead in the 51st minute, the more than 10,000 fans in attendance at Rochester’s Frontier Field saw the game’s physical play cranked up to another level.

“We had a mentality that we don’t care where you play, we’re going to come and take it to you and compete on any given day and make sure we’re going to be successful,” said Rhinos forward Doug Miller. “Other teams, they had given more respect and time for these guys to play … we were very hard-nosed and very chippy.”

That hard-nosed approach produced a tournament-high 45 fouls between the two teams, but the cards didn’t start coming out until about 20 minutes into the second half.

With roughly 15 minutes left in the game, Chicago’s Lubos Kubik got into a confrontation with multiple Rhinos players which led to him putting Rochester’s Scott Schweitzer in a headlock. Kubik and Schweitzer, who were the previous year’s Defender of the Year in their respective leagues, were both sent off.

Despite missing their top defender, goalkeeper Pat Onstad and the Rhinos were able to keep the Fire’s high-powered offense off the scoresheet. Rochester’s defense held Chicago to just eight shots with Onstad, a Canadian international, only needing to make three saves to earn the clean sheet. With the win, the Rhinos were moving on to the Quarterfinals, 1-0.

“We had that swagger where we knew we could win. They came in with their best team and we came in with our best team and it was a fight,” said Ercoli.

“Some of those things we did in that game, you wouldn’t get away with today. You would have seen four or five red cards ,” Ercoli added with a chuckle.

QUARTERFINALS: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, Dallas Burn 1 (OT)

The sports page in the Democrat & Chronicle (Rochester, NY) on Aug 12, 1999 as the Rochester Raging Rhinos defeated the Dallas Burn in the Quarterfinals of the 1999 US Open Cup.

In the Quarterfinals, the Rhinos hosted the 1997 US Open Cup champion Dallas Burn in front of another crowd of more than 10,000 fans. This was nothing new for the Rhinos faithful who’s attendance figures had made Rochester a strong candidate to join Major League Soccer. The match against Dallas drew an announced crowd of 10,730, which was the seventh time that a US Open Cup match cracked the 10,000 mark in the Modern Era. Of those seven games, four of them were hosted by the Rhinos at Frontier Field, one of them was the 1998 Final, and the record of 20,376 was a Colorado Rapids game at Mile High Stadium against the Seattle Sounders (A-League) that was given a significant boost as being the opening match of a doubleheader with the US Men’s National Team playing against Derby County of the English Premier League.

After a scoreless first half, Mauro Biello opened the scoring by redirecting a Tim Hardy shot past Dallas’ All-Star goalkeeper Matt Jordan in the 71st minute. Jason Kreis, who would finish tied as MLS’ leading goalscorer that year and win the MLS MVP award, rescued the Burn with an 85th minute equalizer on a cross from Paul Broome.

Just like the match against the Freedoms in Round 2, it came down to extra time and another golden goal from the Rhinos. Michael Kirmse was at the right place at the right time. In the 110th minute, Biello sent in a free kick that Tilley headed off the crossbar. The rebound fell right to Kirmse who put it into the back of the net to send Rochester back to the Semifinals for the second time in four years.

The game was satisfying for the Rhinos because of the criticism directed at them by members of the Dallas Burn before the game. Chief among them was outspoken Dallas head coach Dave Dir saying that Rochester played like “11 Dennis Rodmans”, referring to the physical style of play of the NBA star. While Dir attacked the players’ style of play, Kreis mocked the size of the Rhinos’ Frontier Field, saying “when they play on a real field, they’re going to get their butts beat.”

“That was definitely fodder for the locker room,” said Ercoli. “Scott Schweitzer was one of the guys on our team that made sure everyone knew about it.”

SEMIFINALS: Rochester Raging Rhinos 3, Columbus Crew 2

The Rhinos played away from home for the first time as both Semifinals were scheduled at a neutral venue at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex (Va.) on Sept. 1. Both games featured an A-League vs. MLS match-up, however, the event was overshadowed, quite literally, by the weather as Hurricane Dennis was bearing down on the region. The game was able to move forward because Dennis was downgraded to a tropical storm, but it still brought high winds and heavy rain to the doubleheader.

Rochester Raging Rhinos head coach Pat Ercoli celebrates his club’s 1999 US Open Cup title. Photo courtesy of Pat Ercoli

Earlier in the evening, the Colorado Rapids (MLS), the team the Rhinos beat in the 1996 Semifinals, punched their ticket to the Final with a 3-0 win over the A-League’s Charleston Battery. All the scoring came in the second half with Jorge Dely Valdes accounting for two of them and Paul Bravo adding another. Wolde Harris assisted on two of the three goals, while Ian Feuer made four saves to earn the clean sheet. After the match, Rapids head coach Glenn Myernick had the quote of the night: “It was a great night, if you’re a duck.”

It was already announced that the tournament’s championship game two weeks later would be held at the Crew’s new soccer-specific stadium in Columbus. So when the Rhinos kicked off against a star-studded Crew team in the pouring rain, they would play spoiler in the most dramatic way possible.

With wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, it was not a fun night for anyone but especially the goalkeepers.

“I’ve never played in wind like that before in my life,” said Rhinos goalkeeper Pat Onstad, who was the A-League Goalkeeper of the Year in his debut season the year before. “I would try to hit a goal kick as hard as I possibly could and it would get about 30 yards out and it would be coming back at our center backs and they would be heading it out. It was crazy.”

After a scoreless first half, the game opened up with the Rhinos answering everything the Crew fired at them. Despite facing 8 Rochester players in the wall, Columbus’ Robert Warzycha connected on a stunning free kick in the 56th minute to give the Crew, one of the top teams in MLS, a 1-0 lead. The Rhinos nearly equalized in the next few minutes as Darren Tilley had a goal disallowed for offside and Bill Sedgewick launched a shot from distance that hit the post.

Rochester would finally level the match in the 68th minute when Tilley headed home a Tommy Tanner cross. Just under ten minutes later, the Crew’s speedy winger Brian West put his team back in front, only to see Schweitzer take a rare free kick from 25 yards away that took a deflection off of Tanner and ended up in the back of the net.

It looked like Rochester was headed to its third extra time match in four matches, but three minutes into stoppage time, another Rhinos defender came to the rescue. Tim Hardy, cut inside his defender on the wing, took a shot that caught a gust of wind that carried into the corner of the goal, out of the reach of MLS goalkeeper wins leader Mark Dougherty.

It remains one of the most exciting finishes of the US Open Cup’s Modern Era (1995-present).

Mali Walton of the Rochester Raging Rhinos celebrates after winning the 1999 US Open Cup with a 2-0 win over the Colorado Rapids.

“At that point, we knew we were destined to win this thing,” said Ercoli.

FINAL: Rochester Raging Rhinos 2, Colorado Rapids 0

The hopes of a sold-out Crew Stadium for the Final were dashed as soon as the Rhinos eliminated Columbus in that rainy Semifinal in Virginia Beach. The vast majority of the announced crowd of 4,555 were cheering for the Rhinos against the Rapids, with many of those fans making the roughly 400-mile trip from Rochester on a Tuesday night. Those unable to make the trip were able to watch the game live on ESPN2, giving fans around the country a taste of the drama that the US Open Cup is capable of.

After three upsets of MLS teams, Rhinos beat writer Jeff Di Veronica wrote in his recap of the Columbus Crew game that “it might be time to stop calling Rochester’s wins over MLS teams upsets.”

After a scoreless first half, the Rhinos were struggling to create chances and needed to add some speed to the attack, so Coach Ercoli brought on a not-so-secret weapon in the 62nd minute. The club’s all-time leading scorer Doug Miller, who was frustrated because he had been the odd man out of the starting lineup in recent weeks, gave the Rhinos the spark they needed.

Rochester Raging Rhinos: 1999 US Open Cup champions
Rochester Raging Rhinos: 1999 US Open Cup champions

Three minutes after entering the game, Miller received the ball on the left wing, beat Rapids defender Peter Vermes and fired a shot through the legs of Colorado goalkeeper Ian Feuer to give the Rhinos the lead. Pat Onstad made some big saves down the stretch and Yari Allnutt put the game away with a goal in the 90th minute to kick off a long night of celebrations for the Rhinos and their traveling fans.

Miller used that moment to spark the rest of his season as he played a big role in the team’s playoff run as he scored six goals in the team’s seven playoff games as Rochester reached the A-League championship game before losing 2-1 to the Minnesota Thunder.

For Miller, looking back on his career, the US Open Cup title is something he will never forget.

“I’ve got four championships, two indoor, two outdoor, and I’ve got an amateur championship, but that ranks right up there at the top for many reasons,” said Miller. “To win the US Open Cup and to beat all those MLS teams in the fashion that we did was special.”

 

 

FULL MATCH REPLAY

“WHEN MLS DIDN’T WIN THE US OPEN CUP”

SOCCER SAM RECAP: 1999 US OPEN CUP FINAL

LOCAL NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

2019 US Open Cup Round 4: Saint Louis FC earns first MLS upset, 2-1 over Chicago Fire

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Lewis Hilton celebrates with his Saint Louis FC teammates in a 2019 US Open Cup Fourth Round match against the Chicago Fire. Photo: Saint Louis FC
Lewis Hilton celebrates with his Saint Louis FC teammates in a 2019 US Open Cup Fourth Round match against the Chicago Fire. Photo: Saint Louis FC

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

Saint Louis FC reached the Fifth Round of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup for the first time in club history with a stunning 2-1 victory over the Chicago Fire at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium in St Charles, Missouri. With the game relocated from the Worldwide Technology Soccer Park in Fenton due to the Meramec River flood waters covering the roads around the stadium, the game had an away day feel for both sets of fans going into the game.

The Chicago Fire started the game well and dominated early. For the first ten minutes they were camped inside the Saint Louis half and the goal from Austin Martz, a diving header from a Russell Cicerone cross was somewhat against the run of play in the 17th minute.

It was the fourth career US Open Cup goal for Martz, who previously scored goals for the Baltimore Bohemians (2014) and the Wilmington Hammerheads (2016).

The Saint Louis FC fans had hardly had time to catch their breath before the green and blue doubled their lead with a swinging Lewis Hilton cross being headed home by Israeli midfielder Guy Abend, who beat the keeper for his second goal of the tournament.

Chicago looked shellshocked and disjointed by this turn of events and struggled to regain their foothold in the game. Halftime came at just the right juncture for them as they were able to regroup for the second 45 minutes.

Austin Martz of Saint Louis FC celebrates his goal against the Chicago Fire in the Fourth Round of the 2019 US Open Cup. Photo: Saint Louis FC
Austin Martz of Saint Louis FC celebrates his goal against the Chicago Fire in the Fourth Round of the 2019 US Open Cup. Photo: Saint Louis FC

As expected, they laid siege to Tomas Gomez in the Saint Louis net, but that enabled STLFC to counter with pace and Cicerone and Martz were a constant thorn in the Fire’s side with Dikwa in the middle running between the back four. St. Louis almost garnered a third as another cross into the middle by Hilton was smacked against the post by the onrushing Caleb Calvert.

Chicago finally did get on the board when Djordje Mihailovic was fouled in the box and Nemanja Nikolic made no mistake from the spot in the 71st minute. after 71 minutes. It was the fifth career US Open Cup goal for Nikolic who scored four during last year’s tournament.

Chicago continued to press, but Saint Louis were not to be denied their first win against an MLS opponent having fallen short against previous games against Sporting Kansas City (2015) and the Fire just two years ago.

Coach Pulis was obviously ecstatic after the game.

“I’m really proud of the players, I think the effort they put in tonight was immense,” said Pulis. “I genuinely believed we could win the game tonight.”

It was a stunning loss for the Fire as they were taking part in their 10th Fourth Round game in club history and for the first time, they were eliminated.

Saint Louis will find out who their Round of 16 opponent will be when the United States Soccer Federation conducts the draw on Thursday.

2018 US Open Cup Semifinals: Who should be voted TheCup.us Player of the Round?

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Houston Dynamo Cory Burke Philadelphia Union 2018 US Open Cup Semifinals
The Houston Dynamo won a dramatic penalty kick shootout with LAFC and Cory Burke scored a pair of goals in the Philadelphia Union’s 3-0 win over the Chicago Fire in the 2018 US Open Cup Semifinals. Photos: Houston Dynamo / Philadelphia Union

There were only two games in the 2018 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Semifinals, but there were plenty of impressive individual performances to choose from for TheCup.us Player of the Round. The staff of TheCup.us and a select panel from the North American Soccer Reporters will be voting for the award and while the votes are being cast and tallied up, check out the list of nominees below (in alphabetical order) and tell us who YOU think deserves to win on Facebook or Twitter:

Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union, MLS): Bedoya started and played all 90 minutes and assisted on both of Cory Burke’s goals in a 3-0 home win over the Chicago Fire (MLS).

Cory Burke (Philadelphia Union, MLS): Burke started and played 81 minutes and scored the first two goals for the Union in a 3-0 home win over the Chicago Fire (MLS).

Jack Elliott (Philadelphia Union, MLS): Elliott started in place of the injured Mark McKenzie and played 90 minutes was part of a Union defense that held the Chicago Fire to just eight shots and goalkeeper Andre Blake only had to make one save in Philadelphia’s 3-0 home win over Chicago.

Memo Rodriguez (Houston Dynamo, MLS): Rodriguez came off the bench in the 72nd minute and scored the third goal of the game three minutes later in the Houston Dynamo’s 3-3 draw (7-6 PK win) over LAFC (MLS). Rodriguez also converted his PK attempt in the shootout.

Diego Rossi (Los Angeles FC, MLS): Rossi scored all three goals for LAFC and played all 120 minutes in a 3-3 road draw (7-6 PK loss) at the Houston Dynamo. Down 3-1, Rossi scored to make it 3-2 and then his third goal came deep in second half stoppage time to force extra time. He also converted his penalty kick attempt in the shootout. He is the first Modern Era player (and the first Uruguayan) to score a hat trick in the Semifinals.

Andrew Wenger (Houston Dynamo, MLS): Wenger scored the Dynamo’s first goal of the game in the 12th minute (answering an early goal by Diego Rossi) and he started and played the entire 120 minutes in Houston’s 3-3 draw vs. LAFC (MLS). Wenger also converted the second-to-last PK in the shootout in Round 7.

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