The Houston Dynamo will kick off the defense of their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship against Austin Bold FC at BBVA Compass Stadium, U.S. Soccer announced today. The matchup was determined in a draw at Soccer House in Chicago, with results posted live on Twitter through the official Open Cup account, @opencup.
The match will take place on Tuesday, June 11, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. CDT. It will be live streamed exclusively on ESPN+ through a new comprehensive multi-year broadcast and streaming partnership between ESPN and U.S. Soccer.
Houston Dynamo Season Ticket Members will receive tickets for this match as part of their Membership. Information regarding pricing and on-sale date for tickets to the general public will be announced in the near future.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is a single-elimination tournament to determine the champion of American soccer. Teams from every level of soccer are included, from local amateur and semi-pro sides up to Major League Soccer. Each MLS club received a bye until the fourth round of the tournament. Founded in 1914, the Open Cup is the oldest national soccer competition in the United States and the second-oldest team championship in American sports. The 2019 tournament is the 106th edition of the competition.
The Dynamo captured the 2018 U.S. Open Cup, the club’s first title in the tournament, with a 3-0 win over the Philadelphia Union on September 26 at BBVA Compass Stadium. Forward Mauro Manotas bagged a brace in the final, earning him the Golden Boot as the tournament’s top scorer with six goals in five games.
The Open Cup title was the third domestic championship in Dynamo history and first since the club’s back-to-back MLS Cup titles in 2006 and 2007. It was the first title under the leadership of head coach Wilmer Cabrera, who took charge of the team in 2017.
Austin Bold FC advanced to the Fourth Round by defeating FC San Antonio 4-2 at Bold Stadium in Del Valle on Wednesday night. Founded in 2018, Austin Bold FC is competing in its inaugural season in the USL Championship, a Division II sanctioned league in the U.S. Soccer Federation hierarchy comprised 36 teams in the United States and Canada. Led by head coach Marcelo Serrano, the club has a 4-5-3 record in USL Championship play behind the play of veteran Brazilian strikers Kleber and André Lima, who each have three goals on the year. Former Los Angeles FC, Seattle Sounders and Montreal Impact midfielder Calum Mallace and former Dynamo defender Jermaine Taylor are two of many Austin Bold players who have Major League Soccer experience.
