Soccer By Ives

A look at the changes to the CONCACAF Champions League and U.S. Open Cup

The recent changes to the Major League Soccer schedule and competition format are hardly the only ones impacting professional soccer teams in North America.

Coinciding with the MLS SuperDraft, U.S. Soccer and CONCACAF announced major changes to the CONCACAF Champions League and U.S. Open Cup going forward, changes that drastically alter the regional and domestic competitions. The biggest change to the CCL is that the preliminary round is no longer, and a straight group-to-knockout format featuring fewer overall games is the new arrangement. For the U.S. Open Cup, it is now a 64-team field with all U.S.-based MLS teams being entered into the bracket instead of having their own qualifying path.

The changes for both tournaments go into effect immediately, meaning that Real Salt Lake and the Houston Dynamo, which had qualified for the now-defunct preliminary round of the CCL, are entered directly into the group stage instead of having to go through preliminary games this summer.

Here is a closer look at the differences between past and present for the two tournaments:

U.S. Open Cup undergoes major changes

 

By FRANCO PANIZO

The 2012 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will much different than any of its predecessors.

U.S. Soccer announced a number of changes for the 99th edition of the tournament. Those changes include a 64-team field (the largest in the modern era), a random selection process for determining home teams from the opening round until the quarterfinals, and the inclusion of all professional teams from the top three divisions, meaning the MLS qualifying bracket is no more.

The Division 1 field will include all 16 U.S.-based MLS clubs, while all six U.S.-based NASL teams and all 10 U.S.-based USL Pro sides are also included. This marks the first time that NASL clubs will participate in America's oldest national soccer tournament.

A Look Back at the Sounders' U.S. Open Cup run

Photo by Stephen Brashear/ISIphotos.com

By JASON MITCHELL

More than the usual smattering of Rave Green gear sprinkled the streets of downtown Seattle Wednesday. A plane circled high above Lake Union in the late afternoon, trailing a 3,000 square-foot Sounders FC scarf visible from downtown to the city of Bellevue across Lake Washington. Sure signs of a soccer-crazed city celebrating another trophy.

And there was a good deal to celebrate. The first Lamar Hunt United States Open Cup three-peat since New York Greek American in 1969, sure. But more than that, a record-breaking 35,615 in attendance to watch the victory, one that qualifies the Sounders for the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League. The end of a hectic and historic two-month stretch that saw the Sounders go 12-2-2 in all competitions, winning the Cascadia and U.S. Open Cups and defeating Monterrey -- in Mexico -- in the process. And perhaps most importantly, the promise of more good things to come. As a champagne-soaked Kasey Keller said late Tuesday night, "We're not done yet."

Looking forward, the Sounders are in the MLS playoffs for the third time in three years. They still have a slim shot at the Supporters' Shield, trailing the Los Angeles Galaxy by seven points. The Galaxy have two games remaining, the Sounders three. Not likely, but not impossible, either. In CCL play, Seattle hosts Monterrey on Oct. 18 in its lone remaining midweek match. The Sounders have already qualified for next spring's quarterfinals and can win its group outright with a win or tie.

But that's all in the future. First, here's a look back at Seattle's historic Open Cup run:

Seattle 2, Chicago 0: Match Highlights

Sounders defeat Fire to win third straight U.S. Open Cup

 

By JASON MITCHELL

SEATTLE, WA - New York Greek American in the late 1960s. A St. Louis brewery side in the 1930s. The Seattle Sounders. After the Sounders topped the Chicago Fire 2-0 Tuesday night before a raucous, record-breaking crowd, those are the lone teams to three-peat in the 98-year history of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

As has been the case so often lately, Fredy Montero made the difference for the Sounders, breaking a tense scoreless deadlock with a goal from close-range in the 78th minute. Fire goalkeeper Sean Johnson made a diving save on a Jeff Parke header off a corner kick, but Montero was lurking in front of the goal to finish off the deflection. The goal was Montero’s third in the Open Cup and comes off back-to-back braces in league play.

When Osvaldo Alonso provided the insurance goal in stoppage time with a beautiful dribble and shot, the celebration officially began as Sounders fans rejoiced at the making of history.

“I think our depth and being able to balance playing in so many competitions is a tribute to what the club has been able to build up over three years,” said Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid, who has now won trophies in each of the past four years (having coached Columbus to the 2008 MLS Cup title).

“We have a lot of stars on this team, but the star of the team is the team.”

U.S. Open Cup Final: Match Night Commentary

The Seattle Sounders and Chicago Fire look to make history tonight as they face off in the U.S. Open Cup Final at CenturyLink Field (10pm, Fox Soccer Channel).

The Sounders are searching for their third straight Open Cup title, while the Fire are looking to become only the third team to ever win five U.S. Open Cup titles.

SBI will be providing live commentary on tonight's match so please feel free to follow along here. As always, you are welcome to share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action (Tonight's commentary is after the jump):

Who will win the U.S. Open Cup?

Photo by Stephen Brashear/ISIphotos.com

Either way, history is going to made in Seattle Tuesday night.

Should the host Seattle Sounders defeat the Chicago Fire in the U.S. Open Cup final (10 p.m., Fox Soccer Channel), then they'll put the finishing touches on a three-peat, something that has never been done in the Major League Soccer era and hasn't been accomplished since Greek American AA did so in 1967-1969.

The Fire, however, can win their fifth title, which would tie them with Bethlehem Steel and Maccabi Los Angeles for the most tournament championships all-time.

So who will win the 2011 U.S. Open Cup? Let's take a closer look at the two finalists:

Chicago downs Richmond to reach sixth U.S. Open Cup Final

 

By DAVID GUBALA

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill -- After five years without lifting a trophy, the longest drought in the club's 14-year history, the Chicago Fire moved one step closer to giving their fans a new trophy to celebrate.

The Chicago Fire defeated the Richmond Kickers, 2-1, in the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup at Toyota Park on Tuesday night. Goals from Sebastian Grazzini and Dominic Oduro helped propel the Fire to their sixth U.S. Open Cup Final, and first since 2006.

Grazzini converted a penalty kick and Oduro finished off a beautiful goal for Chicago, which will take on the Seattle Sounders in the U.S. Open Cup Final in Seattle on Oct. 4th. The Sounders beat FC Dallas, 1-0, in the other U.S. Open Cup semifinal.

U.S. Open Cup semifinals: Your Running Commentary

By night's end, the final of the 2011 U.S. Open Cup will be set.

The Chicago Fire and Richmond Kickers square off in a battle of unlikely semifinal participants who are both looking to maintain their surprising runs (8:30 p.m., live stream on Chicago-Fire.com). The Kickers are the last non-MLS team remaining in the field and will look to beat their third straight MLS opponent, although the Fire enter the match in good form as winners of two straight games.

In the nightcap, two MLS Western Conference powers do battle for a spot in the final as the Seattle Sounders host FC Dallas (10 p.m., live stream on SoundersFC.com). Both teams have been coping with schedule congestion, but both will be amped up in hopes of getting a step closer to potentially sealing a place in the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League.

If you will be watching Tuesday's U.S. Open Cup semifinals, please feel free to share any thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below. Enjoy the action.

U.S. Open Cup semifinals: A Look Ahead

The way the U.S. Open Cup has played out, there's certainly a David bracket and a Goliath bracket.

The Chicago Fire and Richmond Kickers meet in the former, as both carry underdog stories into their Open Cup semifinal matchup at Toyota Park Tuesday night.

FC Dallas and two-time defending champion Seattle square off in the heavyweight matchup, with the winner undoubtedly being the favorite to capture the championship and automatic berth in the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League that goes along with it.

Here's a closer look at the U.S. Open Cup semifinals:

Seattle's Open Cup defense still on, downs LA 3-1

By CALEB SONNELAND

In a rematch from last year's Third Round Open Cup fixture, the Seattle Sounders played host to the Los Angeles Galaxy with the hosts and defending champions trotting out to a 3-1 win and a spot in the next round. 

With a goal and an assist, Nate Jaqua led the Sounders to the victory and picked up a Man of the Match award for his shift up top.

It didn't take long for the scoring to begin, as in the 4th minute as Jaqua was sprung free by a good through ball from newly-returned Pat Noonan to be left 1-on-1 with LA keeper Josh Saunders.  Despite not having scored in the MLS this season, Jaqua slotted the ball away cooly to give Sigi Schmid a dream start to the fixture.  Jaqua later found himself in prime real estate to score on several occasions, but the big man couldn't convert on any.

U.S. Open Cup: SKC kicked out by Richmond, FCD turns tables on RSL

The Richmond Kickers figured out how to do something no Major League Soccer team could -- beat Sporting Kansas City at Livestrong Sporting Park.

The USL Pro side scored twice after a lengthy weather delay in the second half to keep its U.S. Open Cup hopes alive with a surprise 2-0 quarterfinal victory.

Sporting KC fielded a number of first-team players, with Teal Bunbury, Kei Kamara, Aurelien Collin and Matt Besler among those who started and Omar Bravo and C.J. Sapong appearing off the bench. It didn't matter. After play resumed following an 81-minute storm delay, Shaka Bangura scored to put Richmond ahead, and David Bulow iced the result with a penalty to seal Richmond's second consecutive win over an MLS team.

Richmond, which defeated the Columbus Crew in the Round of 16 and won the Open Cup in 1995, will face the Chicago Fire in an Open Cup semifinal on Aug. 30 at Toyota Park.

Barouch's brace fires Chicago past Red Bulls reserves into U.S. Open Cup semis

Photo by Tracy Allen/ISIphotos.com

By ANTHONY ZILIS

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- New York Red Bulls manager Hans Backe just didn’t seem to care about the U.S. Open Cup – at least not on Tuesday, when his team played the Chicago Fire in its fourth of nine games in July.

Backe sent mostly reserve players to Toyota Park for the quarterfinals of the tournament, and the full-strength Fire trounced their Eastern Conference foes, 4-0, behind two goals from Orr Barouch, and tallies from Dominic Oduro and Yamith Cuesta. The Fire will play either Sporting Kansas City or the Richmond Kickers in the semifinals.

Mehdi Ballouchy and Bouna Coundoul were the only players who suited up for the Red Bulls that could be considered starters. The most telling sign that Backe may have overlooked the game, though, was that he wasn’t even there.

Though Chicago coach Frank Klopas didn't offer any comment on the matter, the Fire players definitely had it on their minds.

"We took it personally," Fire midfielder Patrick Nyarko said. "Before the game we talked about punishing this team, beating them 5-0."

Soccer Tuesday: Your Running Commentary

Three spots in the U.S. Open cup semifinals will be claimed by the night's end, and the Copa America picture will clear up a bit as well, as Group C co-leaders Chile and Peru square off and Uruguay faces Mexico in their final games in the group stage. The summer club friendly schedule also continues, as the San Jose Earthquakes host Premier League club West Brom.

Here's the schedule for the night's matches:

6 p.m. - Streaming video - Chicago Fire vs. New York Red Bulls

6:15 p.m. - Telefutura/YouTube - Chile vs. Peru

8:30 p.m. - Streaming video - Sporting Kansas City vs. Richmond Kickers

8:45 p.m. - Univision/YouTube - Uruguay vs. Mexico

9 p.m. - Streaming video - FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake

10:30 p.m. - Streaming audio - San Jose Earthquakes vs. West Brom

If you will be tuning in to any of Tuesday night's matches, please feel free to share any thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below. Enjoy the action.

U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals: A Look Ahead

Photo by ISIphotos.com

By Wednesday night, the U.S. Open Cup field will be narrowed down to four teams.

Only one of the eight remaining teams is a non-MLS competitor, as the Richmond Kickers is the last representative of U.S. Soccer's the lower tiers. They'll have the task of doing something no MLS team has been able to do yet -- beat Sporting Kansas City at Livestrong Sporting Park. The other MLS teams remaining are Chicago, New York, FC Dallas, Real Salt Lake, Los Angeles and Seattle.

With the winner of the tournament guaranteed entry into the 2012-2013 CONCACAF Champions League, there's much on the line when the teams take to the field Tuesday and Wednesday.

Here's a closer look at the four quarterfinal matchups:

RSL leave Rimando, Saborio home ahead of U.S. Open Cup clash with FC Dallas

Real Salt Lake handed FC Dallas a 2-0 defeat in MLS play this past weekend, but will have a weakened squad try to knock off Dallas in U.S. Open Cup action Tuesday.

According to Salt Lake Tribune, RSL has left starting goalkeeper Nick Rimando and striker Alvaro Saborio home ahead of the quarterfinal clash at Pizza Hut Park. Rimando suffered a slight ankle injury in Saturday's match while Saborio appears to be facing punishment for his behavior after being substituted in Saturday's match.

Kyle Reynish will start in goal for Real Salt Lake, while it remains unclear who will get the call at forward against a Dallas side that is very tough to score on at home.

What do you think of this development? Think RSL can win in Dallas without Rimando and Saborio? See FC Dallas winning the rematch?

Share your thoughts below.