COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — The Colorado Rapids’ 2023 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup match against Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC will be livestreamed on the Rapids’ YouTube channel, the club announced today. The match, which is scheduled for Wednesday, April 26, at 7 p.m. MT, will also be broadcast live on Altitude Sports Radio AM 950.
The Rapids will host Hailstorm FC in the Third Round of the tournament in their first-ever encounter against the USL League One side. Formed in 2021, Hailstorm FC made its competitive debut last year, earning its first win as a club in the second round of the 2022 U.S. Open Cup—a 1-0 upset of Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC despite playing with only 10 men for most of the match. The club went on to reach the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 after a 1-0 win over MLS side Real Salt Lake before falling to fellow USL League One club Union Omaha in a 2-0 loss. This season, Hailstorm FC advanced to the Third Round after defeating Switchbacks FC once again in the Second Round.
First introduced in the 1913-14 season as the National Challenge Cup and rebranded in 1999, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in the United States. This year marks the 108th edition of the competition after play was suspended in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The single-elimination tournament includes clubs from different professional leagues in the United States, including MLS, the United Soccer League (USL) and the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), as well as semi-pro and amateur teams who qualify through the first two rounds of the tournament. The U.S. Open Cup spans eight rounds with the winner earning an automatic berth in the Concacaf Champions League.
In 2022, the format changed so only 17 MLS teams enter in the third round of the tournament—as opposed to all MLS teams—the four MLS clubs competing in the Concacaf Champions League that season, along with the next four best-seeded MLS teams, entered in the next round. In 2023, 18 MLS teams, including the Rapids, will enter in the Third Round, while retaining the qualifiers for MLS teams entering in the Round of 32.
The Rapids will kick off their tournament run midweek after facing St. Louis CITY SC at home in league play on April 22. Rapids season ticket members will receive complimentary admission to the U.S. Open Cup match; tickets are available to the general public at ColoradoRapids.com/Tickets.
