Minnesota United has drawn MLS’ Houston Dynamo as its Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup opponent in the tournament’s Round of 16, the club learned Thursday. This marks the first time the Loons have advanced to the Round of 16 in their history of Open Cup play.
The match will take place on Monday, June 18 at 7:30 p.m. CT at Houston’s BBVA Compass Stadium. It will be the fourth-ever meeting between the two sides and the first-ever in Open Cup competition. MNUFC is 1-1-1 in the previous three matches, including a 2-1 win at TCF Bank Stadium in MLS play earlier this season.
After a scoreless 120 minutes, the Loons advanced with a win over the USL’s FC Cincinnati in penalty kicks on Wednesday, June 6 in Cincinnati.
Founded in 1914, the U.S. Open Cup is the third longest-running soccer competition in the world and the oldest annual tournament for team sports in the United States. It features a total of 94 teams from all levels of American soccer, with eight rounds of single-elimination play until a champion is crowned in September 2018. The winner receives $300,000 in prize money and earns a spot in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League.
The 105th edition of the tournament kicked off on May 9, with amateur clubs from local qualifiers, Premier Development League and National Premier Soccer League teams entering the first round and United Soccer League sides joining in the second round (on May 16) and MLS clubs joining in the fourth round (June 5–6). The winners of the fourth round matches were divided geographically into groups to determine pairings for the Round of 16.
