After the Seattle Sounders and Real Salt Lake bought road games from their third-round opponents, MLS teams will do a little less traveling than expected.
Carolina Railhawks Increase Stadium Capacity for Los Angeles Galaxy In US Open Cup
The Railhawks of the second division North American Soccer League eliminated amateur side PSA Elite in the second round to earn the right to host Major League Soccer’s LA Galaxy. Tickets went on sale at noon the next day, and the club sold out all of the available 6,600 within three hours.
In anticipation that the north stand would be completed in time for the match, the Railhawks began taken reservations on those seats. According to an email sent by the club, there are less than 300 seats remaining. This match will break the Railhawks attendance record of 7,339 set in 2007 when the club hosted Mexican side Cruz Azul in a friendly.
Read Article >U.S. Open Cup 2012: Timbers-Sounders Potential Highlight Of Round 4
That would mark the fourth time the two teams have played one another in the Open Cup since 2007, with the Sounders winning the previous three times. The last two of those meetings were after the Sounders had moved up to MLS and the Timbers were still in the second division. Like those two meetings, this one is scheduled to be played at Portland’s Jeld-Wen Field.
Among the other potentially intriguing fourth-round matches is a revival of the SuperClasico at Home Depot Center. The Galaxy would have to beat the Carolina Railhawks, while Chivas would need to take care of the Ventura County Fusion. The Galaxy played Chivas in the 2005 Open Cup and won 5-2 over the then-expansion team.
Read Article >U.S. Open Cup Draw, 2012: MLS Teams Will Do More Traveling
If the Seattle Sounders are to win a fourth straight U.S. Open Cup, they’ll have to do more of it on the road. When the U.S. Open Cup was revamped, the idea was that it would look at least a little more like England’s FA Cup. With Wednesday’s announcement of the full draw, it would appear to be “mission accomplished.”
While MLS teams will have to wait another round before finding out their opponents, there’s a pretty good chance that a lot of them will be starting out on the road against lower-division teams. Of the six NASL teams that are in the tournament, for instance, all but one of them would be guaranteed to host their MLS opponents if they are able to advance to Round 3. Only five MLS teams are guaranteed to host their third-round games.
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