As Major League Soccer has been looking to figure out how to ease games on teams with the expansion of Concacaf Champions Cup and Leagues Cup and following the Board of Governors meeting on Thursday, a decision has been made on how to do that. MLS’ participation in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will be changing as the league will be represented by MLS Next Pro clubs instead of their top teams. This will mean that now teams like Inter Miami will be sending youth to the tournament instead of their stars like Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and the incoming Luis Suarez.
While the move will provide youth players with the chance to compete in the tournament, they were already doing that due to teams rotating their sides for midweek competition. The change will now free up up to six midweek match dates for MLS clubs during the season. The U.S. Open Cup has been won by MLS sides for the last 20 editions since 1999-2000 when the Rochester Rhinos won the competition but that may now come to an end for the 105-year-old cup. Taking place since the 1913-14 season uninterrupted outside of a pause for 2020 and 2021 due to COVID, the U.S. Open Cup will still come with a Concacaf Champions Cup berth but it’s unknown if that will go to an MLS Next Pro team if they are to win it at this time although according to the Athletic, the aim is to ensure that if a Next Pro team won the competition, they would receive that spot.
Commissioner Don Garber alluded to changes potentially coming to the cup participation during his State of the League press conference before MLS Cup but it wasn’t expected that it would be a full departure for teams like this. Even the United Soccer League was caught by surprise.
“The MLS announcement today about the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was a surprise to us and contrary to recent public statements,” USL president Paul McDonough said in a statement. “We will speak with U.S. Soccer, and with our owners, before making any further public comment about MLS’s position.”
Other stars to play in the U.S. Open Cup
While Messi may not get a chance to take part in the tournament now, players like Kaka Lothar Matthaus, Hristo Stoichkov were all Ballon d’Or winners to compete in the competition. It is a tournament that has brought moments of Cupsets and magic over the years but that could all change with Next Pro teams competing in the tournament.
