FC Cincinnati has a special relationship to the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and for now, the club can look forward to participating in the event again.
After two consecutive years of cancelling the U.S. Open Cup due to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Soccer on Wednesday announced the competition format for the 107th edition of the tournament to be staged in 2022.
The 2022 Open Cup will see changes that were ratified after the 2019 edition, including MLS clubs entering in the third round of matches – one round earlier than in 2019.
FC Cincinnati is slated to be one of 17 MLS clubs to begin play in the third round, and the tournament is designed to produce more matches between MLS clubs and lower-league sides.
The third-round draw is scheduled for April 8 with matches to be staged April 19-21.
The championship match is tentatively scheduled to take place Sept. 6 or 7, or Sept. 13 or 14.
It's important to note that while the announcement of the format for the 2022 tournament is encouraging, it's still not guaranteed to occur.
Plans to stage the tournament in amidst the pandemic could be upended, just as they were in 2021. U.S. Soccer originally planned for a qualification process for MLS sides based on early-season results, but that plan and the entire tournament were later jettisoned.
FC Cincinnati's history in the Open Cup is well-documented and the 2017 competition was crucial to the club earning a bid to join MLS.
FCC went 4-1-1 in the 2017 Open Cup and advanced to the semifinal round, where the club was within touching distance of its first-ever major cup final but squandered a 2-0 lead against New York Red Bulls and bowed out in front of a raucous and emotional Nippert Stadium crowd.
The 2017 Cup run saw FC Cincinnati, then of the second-division United Soccer League, famously beat AFC Cleveland, rival Louisville City FC, Columbus Crew SC, advance past Chicago Fire on penalty kicks and defeat Miami FC of the North American Soccer League prior to losing to New York.
In 2018, FC Cincinnati, final year in USL, the club went on another attention-grabbing cup run and went undefeated in three matches but lost on penalty kicks at Nippert to Minnesota United.
FC Cincinnati's most recent Open Cup journey was a forgettable one. In 2019, FC Cincinnati slipped past rival Louisville again but was the victim of a "cupset" – an Open Cup upset – when it lost on a late goal at St. Louis FC.
FC Cincinnati's all-time record in the Open Cup is 8-2-3.
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