The Black & Gold head south on I-71 for the first ever meeting with the United Soccer League’s FC Cincinnati in the Fourth Round of the 2017 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET. The domestic tournament brings amateur and professional clubs from each tier of U.S. Soccer's divisional pyramid together in competition.
Last week, while Crew SC downed the defending 2016 Major League Soccer champion, Seattle Sounders FC, in a 3-0 triumph, FC Cincinnati knocked out in-league rivals Louisville City FC, 1-0, to secure their place in the Fourth Round. This will be the first matchup between the two Ohio-based teams. The young Cincinnati team is currently sitting in ninth in the USL Eastern Conference with a 4-5-4 record. The Black & Gold are also in the top half of their conference with a 7-8-1 record.
Wednesday’s Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Fourth Round match between Columbus Crew SC and FC Cincinnati will be stream live online at www.USsoccer.com broadcast live on Spectrum Sports Ohio. The match kicks off at 7 p.m. at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati.
Should Crew SC advance in the tournament and later be chosen to host an Open Cup match at MAPFRE Stadium, all 2017 Crew SC Season Ticket Members are set to receive tickets to all potential Crew SC U.S. Open Cup matches at MAPFRE Stadium through the quarterfinals as part of their memberships. All Open Cup matches that Columbus is drawn to host will be played as true home matches at MAPFRE Stadium — the site of Crew SC's 2002 U.S. Open Cup Final victory.
Re-live Crew SC's 3 U.S. Open Cup Final appearances
U.S. Open Cup broadcast information announced for 4th Round
The winner of Wednesday’s match will move forward to the Round of 16 of the Open Cup. A draw is scheduled to take place on June 15 to determine the next opponent. The winner of the 2017 Open Cup will receive an automatic bid to the CONCACAF Campions League and a large winner’s purse.
Dating back to 1913, the U.S. Open Cup is the oldest cup competition in U.S. soccer. Crew SC holds a 23-16-2 record in the U.S. Open Cup, including a 13-5-1 record in the opening match in the competition dating back to the Black & Gold's tournament debut in 1998. Columbus is 6-2-0 all-time against USL teams in the U.S. Open Cup. The Black & Gold were crowned U.S. Open Cup champions on October 24, 2002, when they topped the LA Galaxy 1-0 at MAPFRE Stadium.
Columbus will next travel for a June 17 match in Atlanta against MLS-expansion side Atlanta United with a 7 p.m. ET kickoff. Crew SC next plays the Montreal Impact at MAPFRE Stadium on Saturday, June 24 with a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff. Enjoy half-off select beers (for supporters ages 21-and-over), Pepsi products, brats and pretzels through the 15th minute.
concession items subject to change
The Black & Gold welcome German Bundesliga-side and DFB Pokal-finalist Eintracht Frankfurt to MAPFRE Stadium for an international friendly on Monday, July 17. The match is set to kick off at 7:30 p.m.
