Sporting Kansas City will travel to play Sacramento Republic FC in the 2022 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinals at Heart Health Park in California's capital city at 9:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday, July 27 live on ESPN+.
U.S. Soccer conducted the official U.S. Open Cup draw on Thursday to determine the hosting priority for the semifinals and final. U.S. Soccer confirm the semifinal round schedule - including match dates and venues -- today. For more information, visit ussoccer.com/us-open-cup.
Hosting Priority for U.S. Open Cup Final
1) Winner of Nashville/Orlando
2) Sporting Kansas City
3) New York Red Bulls
4) Sacramento Republic FC
Sporting KC will make the team's sixth all-time appearance in the U.S. Open Cup Semifinals after an emphatic 6-0 win against USL League One champions Union Omaha on Wednesday at Children’s Mercy Park. In each of the last four runs to the semifinal round, Sporting has gone on to win the competition (2004, 2012, 2015 and 2017).
Sporting KC's four U.S. Open Cup titles are tied for the most among MLS clubs and one shy of the all-time record shared by Maccabi Los Angeles and Bethlehem Steel for most in the tournament’s 107-year history. Sporting have now prevailed in 24 U.S. Open Cup matches since 2013, more than any other team in American soccer.
The winner between Sporting Kansas City and Sacramento Republic FC will secure a berth in the U.S. Open Cup Final on Sept. 7 to face the winner from the second semifinal featuring the New York Red Bulls and the winner of the Orlando City SC vs. Nashville SC quarterfinal on June 29.
Open to all professional and amateur teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer, the 2022 U.S. Open Cup featured the largest field in the competition’s modern era (1995-present) with 103 clubs from all levels of American soccer competing in U.S. Soccer’s single-elimination national championship.
Sacramento, representing the USL Championship as the only remaining lower division team in the tournament, advanced to the semifinals with back-to-back upsets of MLS clubs. After advancing past the Portland Timbers U-23's (Second Round), Central Valley Fuego FC (Third Round) and Phoenix Rising FC (Round of 32), Sacramento earned a 2-0 victory over the San Jose Earthquakes in the Round of 16 and a 2-1 road win over the LA Galaxy on Tuesday in the quarterfinals.
Sacramento, who won a championship in the club's inaugural season in 2014, are led by 35-year-old club captain Rodrigo Lopez with four goals in the 2022 U.S. Open Cup - tied for most in the tournament - and fellow midfielder Luis Felipe with goals in each of the team's last three U.S. Open Cup matches. Defensively, the club has conceded just three goals in their past 10 games across all competitions since the start of May.
The U.S. Open Cup, named in honor of former Kansas City Wizards owner Lamar Hunt, has been contested since 1914. The winner of this year's edition will receive $300,000 in prize money, a berth in the 2023 Concacaf Champions League and have its name engraved on the Dewar Challenge Trophy.
