Sporting KC Weekly Schedule: June 10-16, 2019

Sporting Kansas City will begin the club's journey in the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday, traveling to face regional rival Minnesota United FC at 7 p.m. CT at the new Allianz Field in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Fourth Round battle will stream live on ESPN+ as Sporting begin their chase for a fifth Open Cup title, having hoisted the prestigious trophy in 2004, 2012, 2015 and 2017.

Should Sporting defeat Minnesota on Wednesday, Manager Peter Vermes' men will learn their opponents for the tournament's Round of 16 on Thursday. The draw will place the remaining clubs into a fixed, geographically-based bracket, with Fifth Round matches slated for June 18-19. Kickoff times and venues for the Round of 16 will also be announced on Thursday.

Sporting Kansas City and The Victory Project will host the second day of their annual blood drive from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. CT on Tuesday at No Other Pub in the Kansas City Power & Light District (1370 Grand Blvd., Kansas City, MO). Donors wishing to participate in the life-saving blood drive can make an appointment online or by walk-up. All individuals who sign up will receive an “I Bleed Sporting Blue” T-shirt, while supplies last. Guests will also have an opportunity to win a variety of raffle prizes, enjoy food and drink inside No Other Pub and take photographs with Sporting mascot Blue.

Sporting Kansas City has partnered with the Kansas City 2026 FIFA World Cup Bid and the Kansas City Power & Light District to host free Women’s World Cup watch parties at the KC Live! Block and No Other Pub in downtown Kansas City. The reigning World Cup champion United States Women's National Team will begin its pursuit of a second straight title on Tuesday, meeting Thailand at 2 p.m. CT in Reims, France. KC Live!, the 25,000-square-foot entertainment block in Kansas City's Power & Light District, will be the area’s premier destination for all U.S. Women’s National Team games. Match broadcasts will be shown live on the theater-sized screen and match commentary will play throughout the venue.

In addition to participating in U.S. WNT watch parties, No Other Pub will open early at 10 a.m. for every 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup matchday. No Other Pub is showing 43 of the tournament's 52 matches on its 10-foot-by-15-foot cinema screen and surrounding HDTV screens, in addition to offering food, drink and gaming options for viewers.

Four Sporting KC players will represent their national teams on Tuesday as UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifying continues in Europe. Botond Barath, Krisztian Nemeth and Hungary will host Wales, Nico Hasler and Liechtenstein will host Finland, and Johnny Russell and Scotland will visit No. 1-ranked Belgium, with all three matches streaming live on ESPN3 and WatchESPN at 1:45 p.m. CT.

A new episode of The Sporting KC Show Podcast will debut at 7 p.m. CT Tuesday on Sports Radio 810 WHB with hosts Nate Bukaty and Carter Augustine. Sporting midfielder Roger Espinoza will also join the show as Bukaty and Augustine preview Wednesday's Open Cup battle and look ahead to the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup.

Fan Voting for the 2019 MLS All-Star Game Fan XI presented by Target remains open online at SportingKC.com, through the free MLS app, and via the EA SPORTS “More Than a Vote” Challenge until 1:59 a.m. CT on Thursday. The following Sporting players are eligible for fan voting: goalkeeper Tim Melia; defenders Matt Besler and Graham Zusi; midfielders Gianluca Busio, Felipe Gutierrez and Ilie Sanchez; and forwards Krisztian Nemeth and Johnny Russell.

Fans and families are welcome to attend the fifth annual Sporting KC Day at the Zoo on Saturday at the Kansas City Zoo in Swope Park (6800 Zoo Dr., Kansas City, Mo.). Sporting stars Gianluca Busio, Benny Feilhaber, Tim Melia and Daniel Salloi will lead a family-friendly day of activities at one of the premier zoos in the region, painting with elephants, playing soccer with sea lions, interacting with penguins and signing autographs for everyone in attendance beginning at 2 p.m. CT. In conjunction with the event, the Kansas City Zoo is offering $3 off the price of regular admission to guests that wear Sporting apparel. Sporting mascot Blue will be on-site from 1:30-2:30 p.m. and the Sporting KC futsal court will be open inside the zoo from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Swope Park Rangers (1-7-5, 8 points) will continue their 2019 USL Championship campaign on Saturday, hitting the road to meet North Carolina FC (6-2-5, 23 points) at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina. The Eastern Conference clash will kick off at 4 p.m. CT and stream live on ESPN+.

Players of all ages are invited to join Sporting for the club's annual King of the Court Futsal Tournament series presented by Raising Caines. Registration is now open at SportingKC.com for the second tournament on Saturday at Welborn Park in Kansas City, Kansas (N. 55th St. & Rowland Ave.). The family-friendly event is free of charge and will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. CT. Tournaments will be split into two age groups (13 and under, 14 and over) and the winning teams will qualify for a final playoff at Children’s Mercy Park, taking place before a Sporting Kansas City home game later this summer.

For news, videos, photos and instant updates throughout the 2019 season, follow SportingKC on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat (sportingkc), and download the new Sporting KC App on the App Store or Google Play.