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MLS FC Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati to Compete in Leagues Cup 2025, FC Cincinnati 2 to Compete in Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

January 28, 2025 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
FC Cincinnati News Release


Major League Soccer today announced MLS club qualification criteria for official North American cup competitions during the 2025 and 2026 seasons, and the 2025 participants. The four tournaments -- the Concacaf Champions Cup, Leagues Cup, Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, and Canadian Championship -- provide important opportunities for clubs to compete for trophies outside of MLS play.

In addition to the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup, FC Cincinnati will participate in Leagues Cup 2025, marking the third consecutive year the Orange and Blue have competed in the unique MLS & Liga MX cup competition.

After having no club participation in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup last season due to MLS club qualification guidelines, FC Cincinnati will enter the club's MLS NEXT Pro franchise, FC Cincinnati 2, into the Open Cup. This continues the Orange and Blue's storied participation in the nation's oldest cup competition.

In the club's second season in 2017, then-USL side FC Cincinnati made a historic run to the Open Cup semifinals. The Orange and Blue knocked off multiple top division MLS sides, including Hell is Real rival Columbus Crew, en route to the penultimate stage of the tournament.

FC Cincinnati Season Ticket Members will have the first match of Leagues Cup 2025 included in their 2025 Season Ticket package. Ticketing information regarding future Leagues Cup 2025 games, as well as FC Cincinnati 2's U.S. Open Cup games, will be announced at a later date.

Per MLS, the framework for MLS club participation in North American cup competitions rewards club performance, manages player workload, and ensures that every MLS club has the opportunity to compete in at least one, but no more than two, North American competitions that run concurrently with the MLS league season.

This qualification structure will be in place for the 2025 and 2026 MLS seasons, providing a guideline for MLS' qualification parameters during this exceptional moment -- as the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 and FIFA World Cup 2026 are played in North America. This process will be re-evaluated for 2027 as the landscape of competitions continues to evolve.

FC Cincinnati participation in North American Cup Competitions by year:

Concacaf Champions Cup - 2024, 2025 - Best Finish: Round of 16 (2024)

Leagues Cup - 2023, 2024, 2025 - Best Finish: Round of 16 (2024)

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup^ - 2016-2019, 2022, 2023, 2025 * - Best Finish: Semifinal (2017, 2023)

Will be contested by FC Cincinnati 2

^ U.S. Open Cup canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic*

The full release from Major League Soccer can be found at MLSSoccer.com.

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