The Hosting Priority Draw for the 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final will be conducted this this Saturday, July 20, live on MLS Countdown.
MLS Countdown can be streamed for free via MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. The hour-long MLS Countdown program begins at 5:30 p.m. CT, with the draw slated to take place during the first 30 minutes of the program.
During the draw, the four Semifinalists will be randomly drawn into positions one through four through a two-step process. The team drawn in position one will know that a Semifinal win will see it host the Final, while the teams drawn into positions two and three will need a win potentially coupled with a favorable result in the other Semifinal in order to host the Final. The team drawn into the fourth position will not serve as host for the Final.
The Semifinals will be played as a doubleheader on Tuesday, August 27, starting with the competition’s lone remaining Division II squad, USL Championship’s Indy Eleven, taking to the road to face Major League Soccer’s Sporting Kansas City at 7 p.m. CT. That will be followed by an all-MLS affair in the Pacific Northwest between powerhouse sides Seattle Sounders FC and Los Angeles Football Club at 9:30 p.m. CT.
All three remaining Open Cup contests will be available to stream for free on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. With broadcasts in more than 100 countries worldwide, the conclusion of the 109th edition of the Open Cup will be available to its largest global audience to date.
Sporting Kansas City will continue the club's quest for a record-tying fifth Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup trophy with a semifinal match-up against USL Championship foe Indy Eleven at 7 p.m. CT on Tuesday, Aug. 27 at Children's Mercy Park. Tickets for the cup clash are on sale via SeatGeek.
Sporting Kansas City and Indy Eleven will meet for the first time in a competitive match on Aug. 27 at Children's Mercy Park. Sporting advanced to the semifinals with a 2-1 win in extra time at Union Omaha (USL League One) in the Round of 32, a 4-0 victory over FC Tulsa (USL Championship) in the Round of 16 and a 2-1 triumph in extra time against FC Dallas (Major League Soccer) in the Quarterfinals.
In the club’s 11th season, Indy Eleven are making the team’s first ever appearance in the U.S. Open Cup Semifinals after earning a 1-0 road result at Chicago Fire FC II (MLS NEXT Pro) in the Third Round, a 2-0 victory over San Antonio FC (USL Championship) in the Round of 32, a 3-0 home win over Detroit City FC (USL Championship) in the Round of 16 and a 2-1 upset of Atlanta United (Major League Soccer) in the Quarterfinals.
Led by head coach Sean McAuley, Indy Eleven’s roster features nine players with MLS experience including a trio of internationals in Romario Williams (Jamaica), Augustine Williams (Sierra Leone) and Douglas Martinez (Honduras), as well as former Sporting KC midfielder James Musa and USL Championship assist leader Aedan Stanley.
Open to all professional and amateur teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer, the 2024 U.S. Open Cup will crown a champion on Sept. 25 after eight rounds of single-elimination play and the winner will claim the Dewar Challenge Trophy along with $300,000 in prize money and a berth in the 2025 Concacaf Champions League.
The U.S. Open Cup, named in honor of former Kansas City Wizards owner Lamar Hunt, has crowned a champion since 1914 and Sporting KC (2004, 2012, 2015, 2017) are four-time winners of U.S. Soccer's national championship, tied for the most among MLS clubs. Sporting have prevailed in 28 U.S. Open Cup matches since 2012, more than any other team in American soccer, during a run that includes an active 15-match home unbeaten streak in U.S. Open Cup play since the start of 2015.
