National Champs vs Wooden Spoon Winners: US Open Cup returns with three New York City area matches

Open Cup Digest #22

The Lamar Hunt US Open Cup is back.

The 111th edition of America's oldest soccer tournament kicks off this week with a slate of 31 games, all pitting amateur teams against professional sides.

Both New York City FC and Red Bull New York will compete for the cup this year. But for now, the two Major League Soccer sides will wait in the wings until the Round of 32 begins in mid-April. Between now and then, we will see two rounds of soccer featuring teams from lower-division professional leagues, amateur leagues, and all the way down to guys who play in Sunday leagues.

But the First Round is still full of intriguing matchups that feature amateur sides from in and around the New York City area. While new teams such as the Cosmos and Brooklyn FC aren't taking part due to a reduced schedule affected by the 2026 FIFA World Cup, there's still plenty to watch — especially in person.

Read on as we take you through each match of local interest in this week’s First Round, before making some iron-clad Open Cup predictions.

If you can’t go to a game yourself, these First Round matches will be broadcast live on YouTube, with some games available on Paramount+, CBS Sports Network, and CBS Sports Golazo.

FC Motown STA vs Hartford Athletic

Wednesday, March 18, 7 pm ET at Lubetkin Field (NJIT), Newark, NJ
Watch on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network

It's the first-ever meeting between these two teams. FC Motown STA are looking to beat only the second professional team they've faced in the tournament, while Hartford Athletic are coming off a trophy season in 2025 and are seeking to continue their Open Cup streak.

A note about the name: Officially, FC Motown is the team competing in the 2026 US Open Cup. However, the team qualified thanks to the work of the reserve side, FC Motown STA, so I'm going to do what's right and refer to them as that.

The 2026 tournament marks Motown's eighth straight year participating in the US Open Cup, and ninth straight qualification (counting the cancelled 2020 tournament). They hold the active record for consecutive qualifications by an Open Division (amateur) team, though they haven't done much in the tournament in recent years. The team has been eliminated in the first round in three straight Open Cups.

Evaluating an amateur team is always tricky, but Motown played the Cosmos in a friendly last month, which gives us some perspective on the team. Rutgers University defensive midfielder Erick Ruiz did well holding back Cosmos legend Sebastián Guenzatti on multiple plays. He'll be joined by another former Red Bull New York academy player in right back Jordan Bailon, who helped beat Motown during the 2023 Open Cup with Manhattan SC. Former Richmond Kicker Rivendi Melvin Pierre-Louis also impressed, creating offensive energy with multiple shots against former USL Championship and USL1 keeper Derrek Chan in the second half.

Motown had a split 2025 across the board. A loss to Westchester SC in the First Round of the Open Cup made way for a difficult season in the amateur National Premier Soccer League. The team finished second in the Keystone East Conference, but lost in the conference semifinals, which broke a six-year conference champion streak. However, Motown STA made waves in USL League Two, the amateur arm of the United Soccer Leagues. Motown STA went undefeated with 11 wins and one draw, winning the Metropolitan Division for the first time in team history. Despite losing to eventual league champions Vermont Green FC in the Eastern Conference semifinals, Motown STA's regular-season performance granted the team a spot in the 2026 Open Cup.

On the other side is a professional team looking to continue changing narratives. Hartford has a perfect record against amateur teams in the USOC, after never losing in four matches across five tournaments. However, they have yet to beat a pro team in the tournament, and will need a win on Wednesday to get a chance to finally do so.

Hartford Athletic's 2025 season saw the team qualify for the USL Championship playoffs for the second time in team history. They finished fifth in the Eastern Conference with a record of 13W-5D-12L. But in the playoffs, the team ended up going one and done, falling to eventual champion Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in the conference quarterfinals.

Athletic did lift silverware, however, winning the 2025 USL Cup over Sacramento Republic FC, 1-0.

This season, Hartford loaded up. The team signed forward Augustine "Augi" Williams, one of the most prolific goal scorers in USL history, who is fresh off a championship season with Pittsburgh. Add to that attacking midfielder Barry Coffey, who joined from Irish second-division side Cobh Ramblers FC, where he scored 26 goals in 35 appearances.

Hartford opened the season with a 3-0 road win over USL Championship expansion side Sporting Club Jacksonville, before following it up this weekend with a scoreless draw versus Birmingham Legion FC.

Prediction: I don't think it's unfair to say this is Hartford's game to lose. For the first time in years, possibly since the team's inaugural season, there are expectations for the Connecticut side. For as much as Motown has star power, they are a side with limited time together against a much more equipped, cohesive unit. Take Hartford to stay perfect against amateurs, 3-1.

SC Vistula Garfield (APSL) vs One Knoxville SC (USL1)

Wednesday, March 18, 7:30 pm ET at Garfield High School, Garfield, NJ
Watch on YouTube

You remember when Tottenham Hotspur played eighth-tier Marine AFC in the 2021 FA Cup? It was a huge match that was a feel-good story for a lower division side getting to host a much bigger club.

Spurs won that game 5-0. Wednesday night in Garfield, NJ, between SC Vistula Garfield and One Knoxville SC will probably be a similar story, just with less fanfare.

SC Vistula Garfield are making their first Modern Era (1995-present) appearance in the US Open Cup after a successful run in the qualifying rounds. Founded in 1952, the Vistula Social Club has been a home away from home for countless Polish immigrants over the decades. In soccer, the team can trace their roots back to the US Open Cup's state rounds in the 1970s and has continued a youth academy to this day.

Vistula have struggled this year in the American Premier Soccer League's Metropolitan Conference, currently sitting in ninth out of 12 teams, with relegation to the New Jersey state league a real possibility.

The team did, however, get a shock win last weekend in APSL play, beating powerhouse New York Pancyprian Freedoms, 2-1, at Belson Stadium on the campus of St. John's University in Queens. Former Red Bull New York reserve player Christopher Karcz scored his fifth goal of the season before forward Emiland Elezaj sunk a free-kick goal early in the second half for the 2-1 win.

Players to watch include: Karcz, who has six goals across league and USOC qualifying; Elezaj (6 goals); former NJIT forward Paul Kondratowicz (4 goals); and former professional keeper Aldo Muñoz, a 23-year-old whose performances in qualifying got Vistula into the tournament.

They will face the defending USL League One regular season and playoff champion: One Knoxville SC, who will be entering their fourth US Open Cup after achieving their best result last year. They now have a third-round appearance and three wins in the tournament to their name.

One Knox Head Coach Ian Fuller finished his first season in Tennessee by not losing a single match at home and crafting a stout defense that gave up a league-low 26 goals across 30 games. That resulted in both the USL Shield and a run to the league title with two shutouts in the playoffs, including one in the USL League One final against Spokane Velocity FC.

They've tried to continue that defense with additions like former New York Red Bulls II center midfielder John Murphy and left back Finn McRobb. The champion tax came calling, however, and One Knox has lost several big names, such as reigning League One Golden Glove winner Sean Lewis, and 10-goal scoring forward Kempes Tekiela.

One Knox opened the 2025 season by splitting the first two games, first beating Westchester SC in their opener 3-2 before losing to Forward Madison FC last Saturday, 2-1 — which ended the team's home winning streak at 21 games.

Prediction: Two teams in very different places in a game that will probably never happen again. The feel-good story of Vistula can't carry against a unit with this much defense, especially against an amateur side that really struggles to score consistently in their own league. Take Knoxville to win, 5-0.

Westchester SC (USL1) vs NY Renegades FC (UPSL)

Thursday, March 19, 7:30 pm ET at Mount Vernon Memorial Field, Mount Vernon, NY
Watch on YouTube

Probably my pick for most interesting game of the First Round, a clash between the defending national champion of the United Premier Soccer League and a USL League One team without an identity.

Westchester SC finished their inaugural USL League One season in 2025 with the Wooden Spoon — five wins in 30 games is what it takes to get Dave Carton and his entire coaching staff fired.

Westchester and new Head Coach George Gjokaj are trying to go young, focusing on talent from the New York City area. They gave forward Daniel Burko his first professional contract after scoring 13 goals at Hofstra University last season and also helping Little Rock Rangers upset Birmingham Legion in the 2025 Open Cup. He's joined by Marist University midfielder Kyle Evans, Iona University defender Tim Timchenko, and Seton Hall University goalkeeper Matias Molina.

They will be without some major players from 2025, such as defending USL1 Golden Boot winner JC Obregon, who took his talents to NYC's South Beach, aka Coney Island. He's now with Brooklyn FC in the USL Championship. He also helped Westchester avoid an embarrassing cupset last year when he slotted a late penalty kick to help the side beat FC Motown in the First Round.

Westchester are winless to open the 2026 season. A 3-2 loss to defending USL League One double holders One Knoxville SC was followed up with a 1-1 draw against Charlotte Independence last weekend. A first-minute goal by Dutch expat Dean Guezen gave Westchester an early lead, but a late stoppage-time goal by 17-year-old Mexican prospect Viggo Ortiz stole two points away from the home side to bookend the scoring.

They face NY Renegades FC, who are back in the Open Cup for a second straight tournament. After last year ended with a crushing loss to Columbus Crew 2 in the first round, Renegades rebounded with a deeper roster and a successful UPSL campaign.

The Renegades finished the 2025 Fall UPSL season with a third-place finish in the Northeast American Conference, North Division. The team went on to run the gauntlet, scoring seven goals and allowing just two across three conference playoff games on route to the conference championship. From there, three wins with four goals each earned the team a spot in the UPSL National Finals in California, where they shut out teams from Miami and Utah to lift their first national championship.

Former professional forward and The Soccer Tournament veteran Junior Rosero scored four goals for the outfit during Open Cup qualifying last fall. Rosero is back with the national champions, a position that will feel familiar after helping New York Pancyprian Freedoms win the 2024 National Amateur Cup.

A Rosero goal for the Pancyprian Freedoms that was worthy of the ESPN Top Ten, by the way.

One final interesting note. On March 7, Renegades played the Cosmos in the latter's final preseason friendly before the USL League One season. The amateurs led the professionals at halftime, 2-0, at Hinchliffe Stadium in Paterson, NJ, before allowing four unanswered goals and losing 4-2.

Prediction: A battle between a national champion and wooden spoon winner in the first round? Perfect for chaos. Westchester is an oddball team, and, on paper, should be able to handle amateurs. Renegades are arguably the top amateur team in the NYC metro area. I'm calling cupset, Renegades win 2-1.