FAYETTEVILLE, Ga. – U.S. Soccer today announced the draw and schedule for the First Qualifying Round of the 2027 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. There will be 27 matches held Sept. 12-13 between amateur clubs from the Open Division across the country, while 101 clubs received a bye directly into October's Second Qualifying Round.
The U.S. Open Cup, U.S. Soccer's national club championship, is entering its 112th edition and is the only U.S. team sport competition in which amateurs have the chance to compete directly against professionals. A record 155 amateur clubs have entered the Qualifying Rounds this year, vying for 16 available slots in the Tournament Proper, which kicks off next spring.
With the goal of minimizing overall total travel distance, matchups and byes for the Qualifying Rounds were determined by a combination of geographical considerations and random selection. Host teams are determined by random selection.
The winners from the First Qualifying Round will enter the 128-team Second Qualifying Round, featuring 64 contests held Oct. 3-4. The Qualifying Rounds will continue Oct. 31-Nov. 1, which will determine the 32 clubs that will advance to the Final Qualifying Round, scheduled for Nov. 21-22. The Final Qualifying Round will determine the 16 teams that earn a spot in the Tournament Proper, where they will face off against professional clubs in April 2027.
- MORE: First Qualifying Round Scores & Schedule
Eight intra-league contests highlight First Qualifying Round action. Northeastern Ohio sides and USL League Two Great Forest Division foes Lorain County Leviathan FC and Akron City FC face off for the third time in club history after posting identical 6-5-1 records and splitting their regular season series over the summer. In the Big Apple, APSL Metropolitan Conference heavyweight and reigning USASA Region I Amateur Cup winners Lansdowne Yonkers FC will look to continue its dominance against New York Athletic Club. Out West, Southwest Premier League side Be Pro FC will make the two hour drive up I-15 from Las Vegas to St. George, Utah where it will take on STG Premier FC.
For the UPSL and its Qualifying Rounds-leading 63 entrants, five of the 27 First Round fixtures will be contested between UPSL sides. The top two finishers in the DMV North Conference—Bowleys Athletic and MSI—will face off in Middle River, Md., the best two teams out of the Virginia North Conference—the Arlington duo of Virginia Dream FC and Arlington SA Pro—will match up after posting identical 8-0-2 records last spring, while Nashville sides Tennessee United SC and Tennessee Tempo FC along with Chicago clubs Chicago Strikers and Ethos United will battle for cross-town bragging rights.
Additional matches to watch include 1975 semifinalist and North Coast Soccer League side Croatia Cleveland taking on USL League Two’s Steel City FC in a rematch of the pair’s Fourth Qualifying Round clash a year ago—a contest that went the way of Steel City. On Long Island, Haitian-American owned Osner’s FC will host the Fighting Tomcats of ASC New York. On the banks of the Ohio River, Louisville, Ky.’s Mockingbird Valley Premier will head across the river to face New Albany, Ind.’s Southern Indiana Guardians FC in one of the First Round’s shortest inter-state treks.
A whopping 32 states and the District of Columbia will be represented in the Open Division Qualifying Rounds. Leading the way is California (23), Florida (20), Texas (14), New York (11) and New Jersey (10). On the opposite end, Nebraska, Kansas, Utah, Kentucky, South Carolina, among other states, will have a shot at the Tournament Proper through their lone Open Division representative.
First Qualifying Round (Host Listed First)
Saturday, September 12 (13 matches)
Buckhead SC (GA / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA) vs. Potros FC (GA / UPSL)
10 a.m. ET | Agnes Scott College; Decatur, Ga.
DC Hyper (DC / UPSL) vs. Oranje FC (MD / DC Premier League / USASA)
4 p.m. ET | Prince George Community College; Largo, Md.
Naples United FC (FL / Sunshine Conference League / USSSA) vs. SWFL SC (FL / UPSL)
5 p.m. ET | Seacrest Country Day School; Naples, Fla.
Florida Island United FC (FL / UPSL) vs. Boca Jrs Miami FC (FL / UPSL)
5:30 p.m. ET | Oak Grove Park; Miami
Croatia Cleveland (OH / North Coast Soccer League / USASA) vs. Steel City FC (PA / USL League Two)
6 p.m. ET | Mentor High School; Mentor, Ohio
Bowleys Athletic (MD / UPSL) vs. MSI (MD / UPSL)
7 p.m. ET | Eastern Regional Park; Middle River, Md.
Florida Badgers FC (FL / UPSL) vs. Red Force FC (FL / Premier Futbol League / USASA)
7 p.m. ET | Broward College; Pembroke Pines, Fla.
Swarm FC (GA / USL League Two) vs. Prima Football Club (GA / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA)
7:30 p.m. ET | Marathon Soccer Park; Austell, Ga.
Lansdowne Yonkers FC (NY / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA) vs. New York Athletic Club (NY / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA)
7:30 p.m. ET | Tibbetts Park; Yonkers, N.Y.
Temecula FC (CA / UPSL) vs. Problems FC (CA / NISA Nation / USASA)
5 p.m. PT | Chaparral High School; Temecula, Calif.
Chicago Strikers (IL / UPSL) vs. Ethos United (IL / UPSL)
7:30 p.m. CT | Marmion Academy; Aurora, Ill.
STG Premier FC (UT / Southwest Premier League / USASA) vs. Be Pro FC (NV / Southwest Premier League / USASA)
7:30 p.m. MT | Snow Canyon High School; St. George, Utah
Sin City Football Club (NV / NISA Nation / USASA) vs. Las Vegas United Football Club (NV / Southwest Premier League / USASA)
8 p.m. PT | Mater Academy East; Las Vegas
Sunday, September 13 (14 matches)
Peachtree FC (GA / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA) vs. Kalonji Pro-Profile (GA / UPSL)
4 p.m. ET | Mount Paran Christian School; Kennesaw, Ga.
Southern Indiana Guardians FC (IN / UPSL) vs. Mockingbird Valley Premier (KY / Ohio Valley Premier League / US Club Soccer)
4 p.m. ET | Woehrle Athletic Complex; Jeffersonville, Ind.
Five Rivers SC (NJ / UPSL) vs. SC Vistula Garfield (NJ / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA)
4:30 p.m. ET | Joseph Medwick Park; Carteret, N.J.
Arlington SA Pro (VA / UPSL) vs. Virginia Dream FC (VA / UPSL)
5 p.m. ET | Thomas Jefferson High School; Alexandria, Va.
Lorain County Leviathan FC (OH / USL League Two) vs. Akron City FC (OH / USL League Two)
5 p.m. ET | ForeFront Field; Avon, Ohio
Doradus FC (VA / UPSL) vs. Nova FC (VA / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA)
6 p.m. ET | West Springfield High School; West Springfield, Va.
Tennessee United Soccer Club (TN / UPSL) vs. Tennessee Tempo FC (TN / UPSL)
6 p.m. CT | Drakes Creek Park; Hendersonville, Tenn.
UFA Lawrenceville (GA / UPSL) vs. Terminus FC (GA / Atlanta District Amateur Soccer League / USASA)
7 p.m. ET | Rhodes Jordan Park; Lawrenceville, Ga.
Timbers SC (CO / Mountain Premier League / USASA) vs. FC Denver (CO / Colorado Premier League / USSSA)
6 p.m. MT | David A. Lorenz Regional Park; Highlands Ranch, Colo.
Osner's FC (NY / UPSL) vs. American Soccer Club New York (NY / NPSL / USASA)
8 p.m. ET | Floyd Bennett Sports Complex; Brooklyn, N.Y.
Yinz United (PA / Super Soccer League / USASA) vs. Patuxent FA (MD / America Prem. Soccer League / USASA)
8 p.m. ET | Langley High School; McLean, Va.
FC Kanks (FL / UPSL) vs. Shark Coast FC (FL / USL League Two)
8:15 p.m. ET | XL Lake Nona; Orlando, Fla.
StrikerZ DFW (TX / Dallas Soccer Alliance / USASA) vs. FORO SC (TX / The League for Clubs / USASA)
8 p.m. CT | McKinney Boyd High School; McKinney, Texas
Peak Eleven FC (CO / Mountain Premier League / USASA) vs. Colorado Rovers (CO / Colorado Premier League / USSSA)
7 p.m. MT | Pinnacle Athletic Complex; Thornton, Colo.
