On the Pitch
US Soccer Podcast
Open Cup
On the Pitch
Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 Draw
Draw to be held on April 2 at 9 a.m. ET on CBS Sports Golazo Network’s Morning Footy; the 16 winners from the Second Round will match up against 16 MLS entrants
About the Draw:
Teams will be divided into eight groups based on geography.
If there isn’t a natural geographic fit, random selection (coin toss, etc.) will be utilized to determine which group a team is in prior to the draw.
Groups will be formed to allow two days of rest between league and cup matches for all teams in draw.
Groups will be formed to ensure that there are enough venues to host Round of 32 and Round of 16 matches in all scenarios of the draw and match results.
Loudoun United FC (if advancing) and D.C. United cannot be placed in the same group due to common minority ownership.
Each MLS team entering will be drawn against a team advancing from the Second Round.
Eight MLS teams are seeded at home, and eight MLS teams are seeded to be away.
Home: Charlotte FC, Colorado Rapids, D.C. United, Houston Dynamo FC, New England Revolution, Red Bull New York, San Jose Earthquakes, St. Louis CITY SC
Away: Atlanta United FC, Austin FC, Chicago Fire FC, Columbus Crew, Minnesota United FC, New York City FC, Orlando City SC, Sporting Kansas City
Each group will feature a four-team bracket: Winners of Round of 32 games face off in the Round of 16.
The order in which balls are drawn determines hosting priority order for the Round of 16. Priority order is not a guarantee to host, as some teams will not have venues available for the Round of 16.
