The crows and the Cup

Heard of the US Open Cup? It's the only tournament for which every club or franchise in US soccer can qualify.

I'm not gonna explain that here, read about it on thecup.us

The rules are so convoluted that Minneapolis City were unceremoniously kicked out of last year's tournament because they moved leagues after they'd started the qualification process. In similarly ridiculous fashion they are back in the qualification process, not through their league placement in the NPSL (a league which offers some automatic qualification spots) but through their founder Stegmans Soccer Club, a much harder qualification path.

US Soccer then made it even harder by scheduling them for an away game in Aurora, IL (they won) and now they play in Rochester, this weekend. 

Unfortunately the Rochester in question is upstate NY rather than 'med city' two hours away in MN.

City/Stegmans are the only amateur team to be trying to qualify in the entire state of Minnesota. If they win this, they will become the first amateur team in the state to qualify for the tournament proper in the modern era (1995 onward). I'm conflicted about whether to support a team which is a) a rival and b) not from Fargo. However, their expensive trek through the qualification process deserves a signal boost.

According to the comprehensive records shared, no one has ever qualifed for the Cup from North Dakota. If the Fusion were to become the first, they would need a) to do better than this year and get to the regional final and b) do something they didn't manage this or last year and actually play a game on the west side of the Red in the state of North Dakota, not just the Moorhead, MN side of our border metro.

The cost of playing in ND is greater than it is in Moorhead.

I enjoy the Cup, at least until the MLS franchises are the only teams left in, and then it becomes a glorified MLS Cup 2. Also, the MLS team I follow is Vancouver, so they're never in the Cup anyway.

Enjoy the history, enjoy the #cupset results of what English people call Giant Killing, amateurs beating pros or bullshit pub teams beating national league teams.

Tim