The U.S. Open Cup is an institution of American soccer history, known as one of the pillars of the sport's legacy in the United States.
Yet the competition has recently fallen on hard times, forced to compete with new, more heavily invested tournaments such as the Leagues Cup and failing to put forth a proper challenge.
Still, existing for over a century, many clubs view the U.S. Open Cup as one of the most important competitions on the schedule given its legacy and prestige.
The Sporting News explains where the U.S. Open Cup came from, what the prize money pot is, and how it affords the winner a chance for even further riches.
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U.S. Open Cup prize money
The 2025 U.S. Open Cup was the first edition of the competition to feature a $1 million purse, which more than doubled the $475,000 given out across the 2024 tournament.
The champion of the tournament received $600,000, with a further $250,000 given to the runner-up.
The highest finishers from each lower division (Division II, Division III, and the Open Division) were also given cash prices of $50,000 each to promote lower-league development.
Beyond that, there are no cash prizes for advancing to any particular stage in the competition. Because of this relative lack of investment and incentive, the clubs — particularly MLS sides — have little reason to take the competition seriously.
Do U.S. Open cup winners qualify for CONCACAF Champions Cup?
The real prize for winning the U.S. Open Cup comes in the form of continental qualification.
The winner of the competition qualifies to the first round of the next season's CONCACAF Champions Cup, where the prize money is significantly increased.
In 2024, the CONCACAF Champions Cup dished out $5 million to the tournament winner alone. There is no information on what qualification to other rounds is worth.
The winner of the CONCACAF Champions Cup also earns a spot in the next edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, which comes with exorbitant cash payouts.
How old is the U.S. Open Cup?
The U.S. Open Cup is the oldest knockout cup competition in the United States.
Founded back in 1914 as the "National Challenge Cup," the 2025 tournament was the 110th edition of the competition.
The first tournament was won by Brooklyn Field Club, one of the few soccer clubs in the United States to predate the U.S. Soccer Federation founded in 1913.
No club has won the tournament more than five times, which was done by two teams: Bethlehem Steel and Maccabee Los Angeles. Both clubs have long since been defunct, with the former being revived for some time as a Philadelphia Union affiliate before being converted to Philadelphia Union II.
The most successful active clubs in the U.S. Open Cup are the Chicago Fire, Seattle Sounders, and Sporting KC who have each won the competition four times.