The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup has always meant more to FC Dallas.
The Open Cup was the club’s first-ever major trophy, won back in 1997 when the team was still called the Dallas Burn. The tournament is also named after FC Dallas’ patriarch, Lamar Hunt, one of American soccer’s early pioneers. FC Dallas won the tournament again in 2016 and followed it up with the MLS Supporters’ Shield – a rare Cup Double that won’t soon be forgotten.
FC Dallas’ affinity with the Open Cup could take center stage once again this year. The team is weathering one of its roughest starts to a league campaign, sitting bottom three in the overall standings. A long Cup run would go a long way to bringing the fun factor back to Toyota Stadium.
“We're having a tough year right now. And when teams have a tough year, sometimes these cup competitions can be a great spark as a chance to win a trophy,” said goalkeeper Jimmy Maurer, who’s started between the sticks in FCD’s previous two Open Cup campaigns.
The single-game knockout nature of the Open Cup also brings a natural excitement to proceedings. Win and you move on. Lose and you go home. For teams beginning in the Round of 32, you “only” need to win five games to claim a major trophy—as well as a place in the Concacaf Champions Cup.
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Sale Now!
FC Dallas will begin its 2024 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup campaign against Memphis 901 FC on May 7th at 7:30PM!
“I was thinking about this just the other day, the opportunity is really incredible for us,” said defender Nkosi Tafari. “Certainly, because there's a Concacaf Champions Cup spot on the line and we know what comes with that. It's a really, really massive opportunity.”
That opportunity starts Tuesday night when FC Dallas takes on USL Championship side Memphis 901 FC at home. The winner would advance to face the winner of Tampa Bay Rowdies vs. Birmingham Legion FC – two other USL clubs. For Dallas, there’s a real chance of reaching the quarterfinal round without facing another MLS club, as only eight MLS clubs entered the Open Cup this year, partly due to fixture congestion.
“We want to play in it,” Maurer said. “It’s got a lot of history. I've had some really great moments over the years in the Open Cup at different stages of the competition myself. We understand it's a complicated process, there's a lot of issues with the calendar right now. I don't know what the solutions are long term…it's not an easy situation for anyone. But of course, we want to play in it and we want to go after any trophy we can.”
Considering FC Dallas’ longstanding history in the Open Cup and its current standing in the MLS table, there’s only one thing to do Tuesday night: Go for it. But USL teams have been known to raise their games when facing MLS competition; it’s a rare chance to get one over their top-division opponents. Dallas can’t take that lightly.
Maurer: “It’s always a challenge. We know they're going to be super up for it. They're thinking the same way. There are five games to a trophy and they're excited and they're going to be flying. There’s been a lot of work on and off the field to get the mind to get the body ready and give it everything.”
