The 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup qualification served as local qualification for the 110th edition of the oldest soccer tournament in the United States. The tournament proper featured both professional and amateur teams in the United States soccer league system.
Qualification for the 2025 tournament included local qualifying matches contested by 114 amateur teams, fighting for 14 local qualifying slots, and took place in 2024. One team also qualified by winning the 2024 National Amateur Cup and one team qualified by winning the 2024 United Premier Soccer League Spring Championships.
Clubs based in the United States that play in a league that is an organization member of U.S. Soccer are generally eligible to compete for the U.S. Open Cup, so long as their league includes at least four teams and has a schedule of at least 10 matches for each club. To be eligible, teams must be members in good standing of their leagues on December 31, 2023, and remain so through the 2024 final. Any team that started its first season of competition in an existing league must have started its new league's schedule no later 30 days prior to the Open Division Entry Deadline.
Starting in 2019, the winner of the previous year's National Amateur Cup automatically qualifies for the U.S. Open Cup. The cup winner enters the tournament proper in the first round with the other local qualifiers. Beginning in 2024, the United Premier Soccer League Spring Champion also earned a direct entry into the first round proper of the tournament. These two teams along with the 14 local qualifiers account for 16 of the 32 amateur teams that qualify for the tournament proper in 2025. The other 16 teams come from the National Premier Soccer League and USL League Two and qualify through national league pathways, which use previous summer season standings to determine who qualifies for the slots.
New York Pancyprian-Freedoms defeated FC Milwaukee Torrent 6âÂÂ0, to win the 2024 National Amateur Cup and qualify for the 2025 U.S. Open Cup.
Soda City FC defeated Inland Empire FC 3âÂÂ2, to win the 2024 UPSL Spring Championships and earning a direct qualification into the 2025 U.S. Open Cup.
U.S. Soccer originally announced that 114 teams would participate in local qualifying. Four rounds of local qualifying matches will result in 14 clubs advancing to the tournament proper. The teams will be organized into 14 regional pools prior to the qualifying round draw
A total of 25 states and the District of Columbia were represented by clubs in the U.S. Open Cup Qualification this year.
On September 18, 2024, USSF completed the draw for the initial qualifying rounds. The 114 entrants were divided into 14 geographical groups with a goal to decrease travel. Match ups, byes and home teams in each geographical group were determined by random selection. In order to reach the 14 teams that will qualify for the tournament proper, only eight matches were planned for the first qualifying round. 92 teams received byes to the second qualifying round and six teams received byes to the third qualifying round. Seven of the qualifying groups held their second round matches on October 5 & 6 completing their qualifying tournament on November 15 & 16, while the other seven groups had first-round games on October 5 & 6, completing their qualifying tournament on December 7 & 8.
The first qualifying round matches were held October 5 & 6. 92 clubs will get first qualifying Round Byes.
Eight groups held their second qualifying round matches on Oct. 5 & 6, and the other eight groups held their second qualifying round matches on October 27 & 28. Six clubs received second qualifying round byes.
Eight groups held their third qualifying round matches on Oct. 26 & 27, and the other eight groups held their third qualifying round matches on November 16 & 17
Seven groups (Northeast A & B combined) held their fourth qualifying round matches on Nov. 17 & 18, and the other six groups (West A & B and Midwest A & B) held their fourth qualifying round matches on December 7 & 8