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Sporting KC II to Play in 2025 US Open Cup

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Today MLS released the criteria for which of their teams will compete in different competitions in 2025, including this year’s CONCACAF Champions Cup, Leagues Cup, US Open Cup, and Canadian Championship. All thirty MLS teams will be competing in at least one of the tournaments. For Sporting Kansas City, that one tournament is the CONCACAF Champions Cup with their first round match up taking place in February against Inter Miami.

MLS’s ten spots in the CONCACAF Champions Cup are set by CONCACAF, with Kansas City qualifying as the runner up in the 2025 US Open Cup as winners Los Angeles FC had already clinched a spot in the competition from being the runners up in the 2024 Leagues Cup. The other eight spots went to the LA Galaxy (MLS Cup champion), Columbus Crew (Leagues Cup champion), Colorado Rapids (3rd place in Leagues Cup), Inter Miami (Supporters’ Shield winners), FC Cincinnati, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders (next three best in Supporters’ Shield standings).

For the Leagues Cup, a change from last year is that only eighteen MLS teams will qualify for the competition. This year’s version of the Leagues Cup will include the nine 2024 playoff teams from each conference qualifying for the competition, with one exception. The Vancouver Whitecaps will not be taking part in the Leagues Cup, instead competing in their country’s domestic cup, the Canadian Championship. Taking Vancouver’s place is expansion side, San Diego FC.

The Canadian Championship will see all three Canadian MLS teams, Vancouver, CF Montreal, and Toronto FC, compete in the tournament.

For the USA’s domestic cup, the US Open Cup, MLS will send sixteen teams to this year’s competition, up from the eight they sent to the 2024 competition. Nine of the sixteen spots are decided by the US based teams who did not qualify for the Champions Cup or Leagues Cup: Austin, Chicago, Dallas, DC, Nashville, New England, Philadelphia, San Jose, and St. Louis. The other seven spots are based on the Supporters’ Shield standings of teams that didn’t qualify for the Champions Cup: Charlotte, Houston, Minnesota, New York City, New York, Orlando, and Portland. Not included in the list is the 2024 champions, LAFC or runners up, and CONCACAF representative for the tournament, Sporting KC.

Those sixteen MLS teams will be joined by ten MLS Next Pro teams, the leagues two independent teams, Chattanooga FC and Carolina Core FC, and the top eight MLS reserve teams whose first team is not competing in the tournament. That list includes the reserve teams of both LAFC and Sporting KC along with the reserve teams from Cincinnati, Columbus, Miami, Salt Lake (Real Monarchs), Seattle (Tacoma Defiance), and LA (Ventura County). Those ten teams will enter the competition in the tournaments first round.

So for the first time in their history, Sporting KC II will officially be in the US Open Cup tournament. The first round of the tournament takes place between March 18th and 20th. According to the team handbook for the tournament, professional teams like Sporting KC II should use their primary venues when possible unless schedule conflicts prevent it. That’d mean games in Swope Park at Children’s Mercy Victory Field. If you’re thinking, hey KC could just loan down more first teamers for the US Open Cup, another rule is that MLS Next Pro teams are only allowed to use first team players that are on the team’s Supplemental Roster, meaning those players taking up spots 21-30 on the roster.

For KC, the competition will fall between home and away games against St. Louis CITY 2. Looking at the other teams that enter in the first round the of the competition geographically, a first round match up against Union Omaha (USL1), the Des Moines Menace (USL2), Tulsa Athletic (UPSL), or Little Rock Rangers (USL2) seem the likely match up, with the first three being the most likely.

This will be the first time since 2010, and the third time overall that Sporting KC has not competed in the US Open Cup proper. In 2010 and 2008 the then Kansas City Wizards lost qualifiers against Real Salt Lake and the Colorado Rapids respectively. The third time was in 1999 when a league game that the Wizards lost against the Rapids doubled as a US Open Cup qualifier.

Of the nine MLS teams competing in the CONCACAF Champions Cup this year, Kansas City is the only one whose first team is not competing in a second competition. That means should KC fail to advance against Miami in the first round of the Champions Cup, they’ll only play MLS league games between March and the end of the regular season in October.

KC will be one of thirteen teams that will be competing in just one tournament this season.

13 #MLS teams will play in only one tournament (CA, CCC, USOC, LC):-Atlanta (LC)-Austin (USOC)-Chicago (USOC)-FC Dallas (USOC)-DC United (USOC)-Nashville (USOC)-NE Revs (USOC)-Philly (USOC)-San Diego (LC)-San Jose (USOC)-Sporting KC (CCC)-St. Louis (USOC)-Toronto (CA)

Mark Fishkin (@markfishkin.bsky.social) 2025-01-28T20:26:09.554Z

What is your opinion on the decision? Disappointed Sporting KC is not competing in the tournament? Are you happy Sporting KC II is getting a chance to compete in the US Open Cup? Will you head out to Swope Park should Sporting KC II host a game?

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KCOutsider

I honestly think this collective plan from MLS is pretty good given the context of what’s possible. It’s a way to balance the load on all teams, it cuts down the League’s Cup to a more manageable size, it makes for some interesting diversity in who plays for what, and it doesn’t punish teams as badly for qualifying (or advancing) in tournaments.

And I have to say I’m quietly happy at the idea of SKC having a season where they focus on just league matches (if they someone go on a magical CCC run, great, but I’m not holding my breath). SKCII in the open cup also sounds kinda fun.

Wizards96

Agreed. Very low expectations for CCC but excited to maybe(?) see Messi at Children’s Mercy?
I’m looking forward a season with less chaos schedule wise and hoping they buckle down and focus on improving and developing the younger talent.

ar_jhawk

I agree it’s probably a good compromise, but I still sucks for tradition and history. They should have just allowed teams to use their 2 teams if they wanted. Then, when SKC gets knocked out by FC Messi, the Senior team can step in and maybe try to advance again.

However, to your 2nd paragraph – yeah.

KCOutsider

I see this as progress in the right direction. MLS is obviously willing to keep tinkering with the schedule, and they’ve clearly heard the complaints, so maybe in another year or two we get an even better approach to USOC.

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