Before Leagues Cup was a thing, the US Open Cup started late enough that qualified adult-amateur teams usually had the bulk of their rosters available for the first round proper of the competition.
Yes, they were a few players particularly college players at schools whose spring semesters extended into May that weren’t available but by and large clubs were able to field competitive teams based on either the teams that they had used to qualify for the tournament or the teams they intended to play with in their summer leagues.
With the first round now in March, thanks to Leagues Cup, adult-amateur clubs have had to scramble to construct rosters.
Yet nearly 25% of them still advanced beyond the first round, defeating professional teams in round one as well as several other teams that were unlucky not to advance.
How did they do it?
Some clubs used ex-pros (Sacha Kljestan was the most famous of these but not the only one) while others found loopholes to bring in active college players. Still others used this as an exercise to build a roster for the upcoming 2024 summer seasons.
(This post unlocks for free subscribers on Thursday March 28)
AS Frenzi of UPSL had success finding younger players that aren’t tied to college programs and were local to Central Florida to build out their US Open Cup roster. Frenzi lost to Club de Lyon of NISA on a goal late in second half stoppage time.
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Nova FC (Northern Virginia) was able to recruit several former pros, most notably fomer DC United and USMNT keeper Bill Hamid but also the likes of Michael Akinkoye and Oniel Fisher. NoVa played very well against Carolina Core of MLS Next Pro and were unfortunate to lose 3-2. For most of the match they were the better side. Nova FC was without over a dozen players that helped them qualify last year from USL League Two.
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One of the biggest stories of the first round of US Open Cup was Vermont Green FC’s 4-3 victory over USL League One side Lexington SC. Vermont whose team that successfully qualified from USL League Two a year ago has largely dissipated, aggressively recruited active college players on spring break (which means school is not in session therefore the same rules that apply to active college players summer leagues applied here). The players I am told came specifically from two conferences who had cleared them - The Atlantic Ten and America East Conference.
As to the legality of what Vermont did (let me make it clear here any “legality” question was related to NCAA rules not his competition), I have received confirmation that the players they used in the match remain fully eligible under NCAA rules.
I also consulted with an attorney who deals with compliance issues related to college sports and he told me beyond not having complicated eligibility issues for the players, in his mind what Vermont did was “brilliant,” and wondered if it might be something that can be done in other amateur sports.
Perhaps this is a template for the future for some clubs.
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El Farlito and Miami United both of whom won their first round matchups versus MLS Next Pro teams were able to recruit former professionals from South America to play in the competition. In fact, both clubs boasted goals scored by former professionals from Colombia.
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Some clubs like Lubbock Matadors were able to play with a number of the players they had last year in NPSL, but also used US Open Cup’s early start as a way to recruit new players for the upcoming 2024 NPSL campaign.
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Much has been made of the recruitment of Sacha Kljestan, one of the most decorated US players in the history of UEFA competitions by USL League 2 side Des Moines Menace. But Des Moines significantly also recruited Luis Arriaga who had spent the last five seasons either in MLS or USL as well as Gabriel Claudio a recent USL player. Brian Rowe who was once in my opinion a top MLS goalkeeper was between the sticks for Des Moines in their shootout win over NISA’s Capo FC.
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Brave SC of USL League Two brought in several local players including a high schooler, for what was basically a one-shot deal. The club played well but lacked a finishing touch in a 2-0 loss to Savannah of NISA. My hunch is Brave SC’s team in USL League Two will look significantly different this summer.
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Apotheos FC didn’t actually have to play their game against Georgia Lions due to the later’s forfeit, but I am told they had a squad which mixed Atlanta-area eligible players with some of the older players from last year’s squad that made a run all the way to the NPSL National Championship game.
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In the past Open Cup was seen as a logical way to build into the adult-amateur season, but now represents in the Leagues Cup era a differently-timed competition often with entirely different squads.
Great content, as usual, Kartik!
You should have a more "click-baity" title, though, like "Secrets of the U.S. Open Cup: Roster-building and More" : )))