Nine Carolinas Teams Prepare for the 2025 Open Cup
Six Carolinas clubs will compete in the First Round of the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, March 18-20.
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Yesterday, U.S. Soccer announced the draws for the first round of the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the country's oldest national soccer competition. This year’s marks the 110th edition of the tournament, with the winner advancing to the CONCACAF Champions Cup. Like March Madness, the Open Cup is a win-or-go-home knockout tournament.
Six North Carolina clubs and three South Carolina clubs will compete in this year’s Open Cup. Columbia, South Carolina’s Soda City FC are making their first appearance in the tournament, while Appalachian FC, Asheville City SC, and Carolina Core FC are all making their second-ever appearance.
The first round matchups are as follows, with three of the four fixtures in North Carolina:
March 18, 7:30 PM ET
Asheville City SC (USL2) hosts Greenville Triumph SC (USL1)
Greenwood Field, Asheville, North Carolina
Buy Season Tickets - Single Game Tickets on Sale SoonMarch 19, 7:00 PM ET
Appalachian FC (NPSL) hosts One Knoxville SC (USL1)
Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex, Boone, North Carolina
Buy TicketsMarch 20:
7:00 PM ET
Long Island Rough Riders (USL2) host Charlotte Independence (USL1)
Mitchel Athletic Complex, Uniondale, New York
Buy Tickets7:30 PM ET
Carolina Core FC (MLS NP) hosts Soda City FC (UPSL)
Truist Point; High Point, North Carolina
Buy Season Tickets - Single Game Tickets on Sale Soon
The full schedule of matches across the country is available here.
All of the first round matchups in the Carolinas feature amateur and semi-pro teams from leagues like the UPSL and USL League Two versus Division III professional teams from USL League One and MLS NEXT Pro; additionally, eight Division II teams from the USL Championship league will enter in the first round.
Along with USL Championship sides Charleston Battery and North Carolina FC, Charlotte FC will enter the competition in the third round of the tournament. Charlotte FC will return to the Open Cup for the first time since 2023; the organization was represented by MLS NEXT Pro side Crown Legacy FC in 2024’s tournament, losing in the first round.
Carolinas Teams Hope to Make History
Charlotte Independence Face Former Cinderella
Ten years ago the Charlotte Independence made not only their debut in the U.S. Open Cup, but also their best ever finish, defeating the New England Revolution to make it to the Round of 16, where they would eventually lose 3-1 to the Chicago Fire.
"As we do every year, we look forward to the opportunity to participate in the US Open Cup,” said Charlotte Independence Head Coach, Mike Jeffries. “Facing such a storied and successful team as the Rough Riders with their NY talent and Open Cup history will be a formidable challenge. In addition, we have the opportunity to experience the cold weather of the Northeast for the 2nd year running!"
Jeffries is referencing last year’s first round match against Vereinigung Erzgebirge at Carin University in Pennsylvania, where the Independence prevailed 0-2 on the road in near-freezing temperatures.
Last year the Jacks posted their best result since 2015, surviving two penalty shootouts at home in later rounds to make it to the Round of 32, where they would travel to Georgia to lose 3-0 to Atlanta United of MLS. However, the Independence will need to find new ways to win this year as they will be without shootout hero Austin Pack, the former USL League One goalkeeper of the year, as the club declined his contract option in the offseason.
Charlotte’s opponent, the Long Island Rough Riders, reached the quarterfinals of the 1997 Open Cup. This is their first berth since 2018.
“We are very excited to be competing in the U.S. Open Cup and even more excited to be bringing the U.S. Open Cup to Long Island,” Rough Riders general manager Tanner Sands said in a press release. “There’s obviously a beauty to the tournament where you never know what can happen, and to be able to play in front of our home fans – we believe we can make something special happen.”
The Rough Riders have had several memorable Open Cup matches over the years. These include a 4-3 comeback win at the New England Revolution (Major League Soccer) behind late heroics by Jim Rooney (two goals, one assist) and Dahir Mohammed (game-winner) in 1997, and a 1-0 home loss to the New York/New Jersey MetroStars (MLS) at Stony Brook University several weeks later.
“We will have a competitive roster that will be able to compete with anyone, and this organization has a history of producing some major upsets, so hopefully, we will be able to once again do that on March 20,” Sands said.
Deep Open Cup Run is a Priority for the Foxes
While the Independence is yet again playing their first round match away, Carolina Core FC will host an Open Cup match in High Point for the first time. In their first-ever Open Cup fixture in 2024, they hosted Northern Virginia FC at UNC Greensboro’s soccer stadium, and after prevailing in a 3-2 tug of war they travelled to snowy Burlington to take on the Vermont Green in an exciting, sell-out 1-2 victory in the second round. The road win earned them the right to travel down I-40 to take on North Carolina FC, with the reigning “promoted” USL League One champions winning a narrow 1-0 victory over the Foxes.
In conversations with Soccer Sheet, both chief sporting officer Eddie Pope and head coach Donovan Ricketts have said a deep Open Cup run is a goal for the Foxes this year.
"It's always an honor to participate in the Open Cup,” said Pope. “It gives our club the opportunity to play against competition that we don't normally get to see. The games are always filled with excitement and drama, and I'm sure this year won't disappoint. We look forward to competing and progressing through the rounds.”
Amateur Clubs Hope for Upsets after Helene
While Carolina Core FC will host the Open Cup debutants from Columbia, the two other amateur teams from the Carolinas - Asheville City SC and Appalachian FC - get to play at home after an offseason that was defined by recovering from Hurricane Helene.
Prior to the hurricane, Asheville City won their spot in the Open Cup thanks to a deep run in the USL League Two playoffs that saw them reach the national semifinal for the first time. The club would also win the award for USL2 Organization of the Year and Coach of the Year honors for Scott Wells.
“We’ve wanted and worked for this match for years - it’s genuinely surreal that it’s finally happening,” said Tim Blekicki, Asheville City SC’s Chief Brand Officer. “We’re going to do absolutely everything we can as a team, staff, and fanbase to welcome anyone from down mountain with open arms.”
Last year, in their first-ever Open Cup match, Asheville City fell 0-2 at home in the first round of the Open Cup to One Knoxville SC, Asheville’s former League Two rival that has since moved to USL League One. With One Knox playing their first round match in Boone this year, Asheville will have to settle for an I-26 Derby against the Greenville Triumph. In the 109th Open Cup, Greenville beat One Knoxville in the second round to make it to the third round for the second time in four total Open Cup appearances. They would lose 3-1 in Louisville against USL Championship opponents.
“[We want to send Greenville] back down [the mountain] with one more ‘L’ in their name,” added Blekicki.
Like Asheville City, Appalachian FC is also making their second appearance in the tournament. Though they missed last year’s competition, America’s “Squatchiest” team made it to the second round of the Open Cup in their 2023 debut, losing to the Charlotte Independence 2-0. The perennially on-brand club already has 2025 Open Cup shirts available in their shop, which notable donated 100% of proceeds to Hurricane Helene recovery last fall.
First Round Open Cup action begins around the country on March 18th, with U.S. Soccer broadcasting most matches for free on YouTube. Links to buy tickets are below:
March 18, 7:30 PM ET
Asheville City SC (USL2) hosts Greenville Triumph SC (USL1)
Greenwood Field, Asheville, North Carolina
Buy Season Tickets - Single Game Tickets on Sale SoonMarch 19, 7:00 PM ET
Appalachian FC (NPSL) hosts One Knoxville SC (USL1)
Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex, Boone, North Carolina
Buy TicketsMarch 20:
7:00 PM ET
Long Island Rough Riders (USL2) host Charlotte Independence (USL1)
Mitchel Athletic Complex, Uniondale, New York
Buy Tickets7:30 PM ET
Carolina Core FC (MLS NP) hosts Soda City FC (UPSL)
Truist Point; High Point, North Carolina
Buy Season Tickets - Single Game Tickets on Sale Soon