USL1 Lansing Ignite

Lansing Ignite FC to Host AFC Ann Arbor in U.S. Open Cup First Round

April 10, 2019 - United Soccer League One (USL1)
Lansing Ignite News Release


LANSING, Mich. - The pairings for the First Round of the 2019 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, U.S. Soccer's National Championship, have been determined by U.S. Soccer, and Lansing Ignite FC will host AFC Ann Arbor at 7 p.m. ET from Cooley Law School Stadium on May 8.

Single-game tickets will be made available soon, with Ignite FC season ticket holders having a pre-sale opportunity to secure their tickets to the match.

The First Round of the tournament will commence May 7-8 and consist of six Division III (USL League One) pro clubs, including LIFC, and 32 Open Division teams (USL League Two, National Premier Soccer League [NPSL], local qualifiers) in head-to-head, single-elimination competition. Two of the 19 matches are between teams from the same qualifying pool under a First Round provision that allows avoidance of extensive travel at this stage of the tournament.

The Second Round will follow on May 14-15 and introduces 25 Division II (USL Championship) professional sides. Division I Major League Soccer teams enter in the Fourth Round on June 12.

Home teams for each round are determined by a random selection process among those clubs that have applied to host and whose venues meet the minimum tournament requirements.

Every game of the 2019 U.S. Open Cup, including those in the First and Second Rounds, will be available for fans to watch on ESPN+.

This year's winning team will receive $300,000, a berth in the 2020 Concacaf Champions League and have its name engraved on the historic Dewar Challenge Trophy, one of the oldest nationally contested trophies in American team sports. The runner-up will earn $100,000, while the team that advances the furthest from each lower division will take home a $25,000 cash prize.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, recognized as U.S. Soccer's National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The tournament has crowned a champion for 105 consecutive years dating from 1914. In 1999, the competition was renamed to honor American soccer pioneer Lamar Hunt.



United Soccer League One Stories from April 10, 2019


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