Inter Miami II begins historic quest for the U.S. Open Cup
The Herons’ MLS Next Pro team hosts UPSL side Miami United at 7 p.m. EDT Wednesday at Chase Stadium in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup competition.
Inter Miami II vs. Miami United, 7 p.m. EDT Wednesday, March 19, at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. U.S. Soccer will stream the match for free on its YouTube channel.
Inter Miami II players stand for the National Anthem before their 2025 MLS Next Pro season-opener earlier this month. Photo: intermiamicf.com
Inter Miami II will play its first-ever match in the United States’ oldest and one of its most prestigious soccer tournaments Wednesday when it hosts Miami United in the first round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
The knock-out tournament gives clubs from all levels, amateur through professional, a chance to compete for a national club championship. Brooklyn Field Club won the first National Challenge Cup in 1914. In 1999, U.S. Soccer changed the cup’s name and dedicated it to Lamar Hunt, who was integral in founding the North American Soccer League and Major League Soccer as well as American football’s American Football League.
U.S. Soccer began allowing MLS teams to enter their Next Pro sides in Open Cup competition in 2024, primarily because the introduction of the Liga MX/MLS Leagues Cup tournament in 2023 between first-division teams from Mexico and the United States had created an overly congested match schedule. Sending “B” sides to the Open Cup let first-division teams properly rest their players.
Meet Inter Miami II
Herons II play in MLS Next Pro, a developmental league comprised primarily by MLS-sponsored second teams. It is unofficially considered to be in U.S. Soccer’s third division.
First-year head coach Cristian “Lobo” Ledesma leads the young Herons, who are 0-1-1 with a single point after the first two Next Pro matches of the season.
Inter Miami II midfielder Bailey Sparks. Photo: SMU Athletics
Midfielder Bailey Sparks, Inter Miami’s first pick in the 2025 Super Draft (second round, 52nd overall), has started both matches for Inter II. Expect Ledesma to start Matias Marin in goal; Alejo Ristano, Tyler Hall, Giovanni Ferraina and César Abadía-Reda on the backline; Alejandro Flores, Ricardo Montenegro, Sparks and Idoh Zeltzer-Zubida in midfield; and two of Lovends Delinois, Cristian Ortiz and Daniel Pinter at the front.
Meet Miami United
Miami United plays in the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL), a fourth-division pro-am league with about 400 teams nationwide. Founded in 2012, the club claims to be the city’s oldest current club and has adopted the nickname El Equipo del Pueblo — “the people’s team.”
United, which began play in the UPSL Florida South division in 2024, is coached by Claudio Frean. It ran undefeated through the 14-team division (which includes Inter Miami Academy) before losing in the playoffs last year and has started 2025 with a 3-1 win against Pinecrest Premier SC. It defeated Celebration OFC Barca 2-0 in February to win its second-straight Florida Regional Cup title.
Frean is optimistic about United’s chances against Inter Miami II.
“The team we have right now is one of the strongest we’ve ever assembled, and one of the best I’ve coached,” Frean said in an article for premier.upsl.com. “…We want to win all we can this season and make a strong run in the national playoffs and the U.S. Open Cup. We were focused and worked very hard all this week to win (the Florida Regional Cup), and now, we will bring that same mindset into the new season and other competitions.”
Miami United midfielder Robertino Insua. Photo: Clarin.com
Robertino Insua, 30, and Diego “Cachete” Morales, 38, both from Argentina, anchor United’s midfield. Insua scored twice for United against Pinecrest.
United has been a regular Open Cup competitor since 2015. The People’s Team claimed upset wins in 2024 against Chattanooga FC (1-0) and Club Lyon (2-0) before losing to Memphis 901 (2-0) in the third round.