Can US Open Cup be a game-changing competition for Charlotte FC and Dean Smith?

By Andrew Crowell - @ajc10_11

Photo courtesy of Eastern Visuals/TopBin90

Charlotte FC continues its US Open Cup run with a match against Atlanta United at the Mecklenburg County Sportsplex. The Crown will look to get past the Round of 16 for the first time in its history, as it has crashed out of the US Open Cup at that stage every year since its first appearance in 2022. 

Charlotte’s first match in this year's rendition of the US Open Cup was in the round of 32 on Wednesday, April 15th, against the crosstown USL club Charlotte Independence. Dean Smith’s men won 6-0, with goals coming from Archie Goodwin, Henry Kessler, Nimfasha Birchimas, David Schnegg, Kervin Vargas, and Baye Coulibaly. The starting lineup for the game was a bit different from the usual lineup rolled out during MLS play, with a completely different front 3: Archie Goodwin in the middle, Tyger Smalls on the left, and Rodolfo Aloko on the right. 

One of the best performers in the match, taking home a 9.1 match rating on Fotmob, was 27-year-old left back David Schnegg. The Austrian newcomer to Charlotte netted a goal and an assist in the game. Other standout performers in the US Open Cup this year include Henry Kessler at centerback and Crown Legacy star Rodolfo Aloko, whose play has even earned him starts with the First Team recently. While one might think that Charlotte will rotate, advancing in this tournament could be more important than one might think, as winning the US Open Cup can trigger more momentum and success. The past few USOC winners all used that trophy to help build future success in league play or other tournaments

Last year, Nashville won the USOC and followed it up with a Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final appearance, which starts tomorrow. In 2024, LAFC won and followed it up with a win in the Club World Cup play-in in 2025, boosting their finances with a Club World Cup appearance. In 2023, the Houston Dynamo won the USOC and followed it up with an appearance in the knockout round of the Leagues Cup in 2024. Finally, Orlando won in 2022 and followed it up with a 2nd place finish in the Eastern Conference in 2023. The trend does not lie; a US Open Cup win is a great projection tool for good things to come for the winning team, as the trophy appears to help build momentum.

The Seattle Sounders, who are known for being one of THE perennial winners in MLS, started their trophy cabinet with four USOC trophies before branching out to winning every other trophy an MLS club can win.

This game against Charlotte’s Southern rivals can be used by Smith to help turn the recent league play woes around and prove to the fans that this group is capable of rising to big moments and making deep tournament runs.