2015 U.S. Open Cup final

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The 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final was played on September 30, 2015, at PPL Park, now known as Talen Energy Stadium, in Chester, Pennsylvania. The match determined the winner of the 2015 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. It was the 102nd edition of the oldest competition in United States soccer.[4] This edition of the final was contested between Sporting Kansas City (SKC) and the Philadelphia Union. The winning club would qualify for the 2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League.

2015 U.S. Open Cup Final
Event2015 U.S. Open Cup
Sporting Kansas City won 7–6 on penalties
DateSeptember 30, 2015
VenuePPL Park, Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Man of the MatchTim Melia[1]
RefereeTed Unkel[2]
Attendance14,463
WeatherRainy, 67 °F (19 °C)[3]
2014
2016

Philadelphia and Kansas City both compete in the top tier of American soccer, Major League Soccer (MLS), and bypassed the initial stages of the tournament with entries into the fourth round of play. At the time of the final, SKC was in contention for the Supporters' Shield while the Union was in the hunt for a berth in the 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs. Philadelphia secured its berth in the final by defeating the Rochester Rhinos, D.C. United, the New York Red Bulls, and Chicago Fire. Kansas City's road to the final involved victories over Saint Louis FC, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, and Real Salt Lake.

The match was broadcast in English on ESPN2 and in Spanish on Univision Deportes Network, making it the first time since 1999 the cup final was aired on one of the ESPN networks. Sporting Kansas City won the game 7–6 on penalties after the game ended 1–1 in regulation and in overtime.[5]

Road to the final

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Philadelphia Union

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Teams from Philadelphia and the surrounding region have had a successful history in the Open Cup: Bethlehem Steel F.C. won five trophies between 1915 and 1926, the Uhrik Truckers won in 1936, and the Philadelphia Ukrainians won four times during the 1960s. The Union's alternative jersey, worn throughout the competition, featured a large letter "B" in the lower left corner to honor Bethlehem.[6][7][8] Previously, the Union made a run to the final of the 2014 edition of the cup, which was the club's first cup final of any competition, but lost in extra time to Seattle Sounders FC.

Sporting Kansas City

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Sporting Kansas City have previously appeared in two US Open Cup finals, winning both the 2004 and 2012 editions, and to date, are the only Kansan club to have ever won the honor. Sporting went into the Final hoping to win their third trophy in four years. To reach the final, SKC hosted all four of their cup fixtures heading to the final, which included wins over Saint Louis FC, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake.

Match details

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Philadelphia Union1–1 (a.e.t.)Sporting Kansas City
Le Toux   23' Report Németh   65'
Penalties
Le Toux  
Nogueira  
Edu  
Barnetta  
Casey  
Lahoud  
Gaddis  
Wenger  
6–7   Feilhaber
  Dwyer
  Németh
  Besler
  Nagamura
  Zusi
  Ellis
  Quintillà
Attendance: 14,463
Referee: Ted Unkel[2]
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Philadelphia Union
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sporting Kansas City
GK 1   Andre Blake   120+1'
DF 33   Fabinho
DF 16   Richie Marquez
DF 8   Maurice Edu (c)
DF 28   Ray Gaddis
MF 13   Michael Lahoud   21'
MF 5   Vincent Nogueira
MF 85   Tranquillo Barnetta   58'
MF 10   Cristian Maidana   77'
MF 9   Sébastien Le Toux
FW 17   C. J. Sapong   90+1'   116'
Substitutes:
GK 55   John McCarthy   120+1'
DF 23   Steven Vitória
DF 2   Warren Creavalle
MF 7   Brian Carroll
MF 14   Eric Ayuk
FW 11   Andrew Wenger   116'
FW 6   Conor Casey   77'
Manager:
Jim Curtin
GK 29   Tim Melia
DF 5   Matt Besler (c)   86'
DF 4   Kevin Ellis   29'
DF 15   Seth Sinovic   34'   78'
DF 7   Chance Myers   106'   112'
MF 93   Soni Mustivar   66'
MF 10   Benny Feilhaber
MF 6   Paulo Nagamura   94'
MF 9   Krisztián Németh
FW 8   Graham Zusi   104'
FW 14   Dom Dwyer
Substitutes:
GK 21   Jon Kempin
DF 17   Saad Abdul-Salaam   78'
DF 2   Erik Palmer-Brown
MF 12   Mikey Lopez
MF 96   Jordi Quintillà   71'   66'
MF 11   Bernardo Añor
FW 37   Jacob Peterson   112'
Manager:
Peter Vermes

Assistant referees:
Ian Anderson[2]
James Conlee[2]
Fourth official:
Chris Penso[2]

Match rules

  • 90 minutes.
  • 30 minutes of extra time if necessary.
  • Penalty shoot-out if scores still level.
  • Seven named substitutes, of which up to three may be used.
  • Maximum five foreign players (all citizens and legal permanent residents are considered domestic, regardless of FIFA country affiliation)[9]

References

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  1. ^ Gartland, Ben; Donakowski, Jough; Bell, Thad; Bradley, Cody; Starritt, James. "The Blue Testament's US Open Cup Final MVP: Tim Melia". thebluetestament.com. The Blue Testament. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e "2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final crew announced". proreferees.com. Professional Referee Organization. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  3. ^ "Sporting Kansas City Sinks Philadelphia Union in Sudden Death PKs to Win 2015 U.S. Open Cup Title". ussoccer.com. US Soccer. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  4. ^ Nelson, Mark (March 28, 2011). "MLS 101: A primer on the 2011 tournament structure". Portland Timbers. Archived from the original on April 1, 2011. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
  5. ^ "US Open Cup final 2015: Philadelphia Union v Sporting Kansas City – as it happened". ESPN. 1 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  6. ^ Zeitlin, Dave (August 16, 2014). "Ghosts of Bethlehem Steel still linger in Philadelphia soccer lore". MLS Soccer. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  7. ^ Clark, Dave (September 15, 2014). "Sounders at Philadelphia Union US Open Cup Final – Four Questions". Sounder At Heart. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  8. ^ Straus, Brian (August 16, 2014). "Philadelphia Union seek their elusive first trophy in U.S. Open Cup final". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 15, 2015.
  9. ^ "2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Handbook (Finalists' Edition)" (PDF). ussoccer.com. US Soccer. March 23, 2015. sec. 203, para. a. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 6, 2015. Retrieved September 30, 2015.