Open Cup: CBS Sports to present all remaining matches
Nation’s oldest soccer competition signs deal providing greater access to its matches as heavyweights begin entering the competition.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is among the most prestigious trophies in American soccer. Photo: USSF
Open Cup is an overlooked jewel of U.S. sports landscape
The Open Cup bracket is American soccer’s field of dreams.
Each year since 1914 (except 2020 and 2021, when the competition was cancelled because of COVID), hundreds of amateur, semi-pro and professional clubs have competed in a single-elimination tournament for the right to raise the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup trophy.
The Cup has enjoyed varying degrees of popularity through the years, never quite reaching the audience its prestige deserves. But with the growth of local and regional leagues, USL’s plans to introduce a system of promotion and relegation (pro/rel) when it launches its first-division Premier League in 2028, and the ever-improving access to teams, players and games via the Internet, the Cup is poised for the spotlight.
The New Deal
Under U.S. Soccer’s new agreement with CBS Sports, all Open Cup matches after the second round will stream live on Paramount+, with some matches airing on the CBS Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network, through the 2026 competition.
The multimedia rights deal will make the network the exclusive English-language home of the Cup.
First- and second-round games will continue to be streamed on U.S. Soccer’s YouTube channel.
According to a U.S. Soccer news release, the deal includes studio programming on the Golazo Network and create content featuring markets and clubs in the competition and the tournament’s history.
“The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is a marquee addition to CBS Sports’ premium soccer portfolio with its reach across all levels of the domestic game,” Dan Weinberg, CBS Sports executive vice president for programming, said in the U.S. Soccer news release. “We’re expanding our coverage by making the tournament’s exciting competition more accessible to fans than ever before and further solidifying Paramount+ as the premier destination for soccer in this country.”
CBS Sports also will provide additional Open Cup editorial coverage on CBSSports.com, the Golazo Starting XI newsletter and across its @GolazoAmerica and @CBSSportsGolazo social accounts.
The 2025 Open Cup will see the 16 seeded USL Championship clubs enter play in the Third Round, while participating Major League Soccer clubs enter the competition in the Round of 32.
El Farolito: Cinderella superheroes
El Farolito, an amateur soccer club from San Francisco, is named for the team’s owner: a chain of taco restaurants. Photo: U.S. Soccer.
In 1993, a small amateur team owned by San Francisco-area tacqueria (playing as CD Mexico for reasons lost to time) won the coveted Dewar Cup (the Open Cup’s predecessor).
El Farolito, like its taqueria namesake, is an institution in the Bay Area and an Open Cup favorite among neutrals, a team that did it, that pulled off the Hoosiers-esque championship run, proving the little guys can win it all.
In March, U.S. Soccer published a feature about El Farolito written by Jonah Fontela and Abel Anguiano; it’s an excellent read for anyone interested in the Cup’s unique appeal.
What happens next?
El Farolito is the last amateur team still standing as more pro teams join the competition in the third round. But with plenty of lower division teams in the field, spectators are hoping for a few more “Cupsets” in the coming weeks.
Daniel Feuerstein of Beyond the 90 gives published a roundup of second-round results at the site below.
The 2025 field included 64 professional clubs: 14 from USL League One, 10 from MLS NEXT Pro, all 24 teams of the USL Championship, and 16 teams from Major League Soccer. The MLS squads will enter the competition in the Round of 32 in May.
Below are matches coming up this month:
2025 U.S. Open Cup
Third Round
All matches to be streamed on Paramount+
(All times Central)
Tuesday, April 15
Pittsburgh Riverhounds at Columbus Crew 2, 5 p.m.
Loudon United FC at Louisville City FC, 6 p.m.
North Carolina FC at Charlotte Independence, 6 p.m.
Rhodes Island at Portland Hearts of Pine, 6 p.m.
South Georgia Tormenta at Charleston Battery, 6:30 p.m.
San Antonio FC at Union Omaha, 7 p.m.
Orange County SC at AV Alta, 9 p.m.
Oakland Roots SC at Tacoma Defiance, 9:30 p.m.
Wednesday, April 16
Tampa Bay Rowdies at FC Naples, 6 p.m.
Westchester SC at Detroit City FC, 6 p.m.
Miami FC at Indy Eleven, 6:30 p.m.
Phoenix Rising at FC Tulsa, 7 p.m.
One Knoxville at Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, 8 p.m.
El Paso Locomotive at New Mexico United, 8:30 p.m.
El Farolito at Sacramento Republic FC, 9 p.m.
Chattanooga Red Wolves SC at Las Vegas Lights, 9 p.m.