SPORTING KC TO FACE PHILADELPHIA UNION TONIGHT IN 2015 LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP FINAL
Sporting Kansas City will take on the Philadelphia Union in the 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final at PPL Park on Wednesday. The midweek match will be nationally televised on ESPN2 and Univision Deportes with coverage beginning at 6 p.m. CT. Fans can also listen to the match locally in Kansas City on Sports Radio 810 WHB.
Sporting KC will welcome 1,000 supporters to PPL Park on Wednesday, and several lucky fans in attendance will receive a signed poster from the 2012 U.S. Open Cup championship team. For those unable to make the trip to Philadelphia, the club’s official watch party will be held at KC Live! in the Power and Light District. The championship match will be shown on the big screen in the courtyard.
Sporting KC has previously hoisted the U.S. Open Cup title in 2004 and 2012, and six players that started in the 2012 final are still on the team’s roster. All but one will be available for selection by Manager Peter Vermes on Wednesday: Chance Myers, Matt Besler, Seth Sinovic, Paulo Nagamura and Graham Zusi. Roger Espinoza remains sidelined with a fractured foot.
The Philadelphia Union are still seeking the club's first major trophy in club history and will host the U.S. Open Cup Final for a second consecutive year. The visiting team has won each of the last two U.S. Open Cup Finals and four of the previous eight, including Philadelphia's loss to Seattle Sounders FC at PPL Park last season.
Now in its 102nd edition, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is the oldest competition in American soccer history. The 2015 tournament included 89 teams, the largest field in the modern era (1995-present). The tournament is open to all amateur/professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. This year's winner will earn $250,000 and a berth in the 2016-17 Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League.
SPORTING KC RETURNS TO MLS ACTION SATURDAY AT PORTLAND TIMBERS
Sporting KC will remain on the road, flying across the country, when the team takes on the Portland Timbers at 9:30 p.m. CT on Saturday at Providence Park. The Western Conference foes are separated by a single point in the standings and currently occupy the final two playoff positions with four regular season games remaining. Saturday's match will be shown live locally on 38 the Spot and across the Midwest on SKCTV with three hours of coverage beginning at 9 p.m. CT.
CONCACAF OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS SET FOR THURSDAY AND SATURDAY AT SPORTING PARK
The 2015 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Championship -- which will send two teams directly to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro -- begins in Kansas City with a pair of international doubleheaders on Thursday and Saturday at Sporting Park as all four teams in Group A, including the United States, will take the field. Tickets for each match day are included in Sporting KC Season Ticket Member packages and can also be purchased online at Ticketmaster.com.
Thursday, Oct. 1
Panama-Cuba at 5:30 p.m. CT | USA-Canada at 8 p.m. CT
Saturday, Oct. 3
Canada-Panama at 1:30 p.m. CT | USA-Cuba at 4 p.m. CT
SPORTING KC'S DEPTH DELIVERS IN 1-1 DRAW WITH SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC
Sporting KC picked up an important point in the Western Conference playoff race with a 1-1 draw against Seattle Sounders FC on Sunday at Sporting Park. Dom Dwyer scored the game-tying goal in the 79th minute, five minutes after coming off the bench, to cancel out Obafemi Martins first-half strike.
Playing the second of four games in an 11-day stretch and the club's final match before the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final on Wednesday in Philadelphia, Manager Peter Vermes showcased his squad's depth against a full-strength Sounders side that won the MLS Supporters' Shield a season ago. Sporting KC fielded all three of the team's Homegrown players -- Jon Kempin, Erik Palmer-Brown and Kevin Ellis -- for the first time in club history while utilizing all eight players on the club's supplemental roster and starting six players 22 years of age or younger.
Twenty-one-year-old midfielder Jordi Quintilla made his first start since arriving last month, while Bernardo Anor made his first start since the season opener.
Jacob Peterson, wearing the captain's armband, and rookie Amadou Dia set up the 79th-minute equalizer as Dia first made an overlapping run and then found Dwyer at the backpost for a sliding finish. Dwyer now has 16 goals across all competition in 2015, most among all Sporting KC players, and 44 goals in his career across all competitions -- breaking a tie with Chris Klein for fourth most in club history.
Both sides remain separated by a single point in the Western Conference standings with Sporting KC sitting one back in fifth place with four games remaining in the regular season. The top six teams in each conference will qualify for the postseason as Sporting KC seeks a fifth straight playoff berth.
SPORTING KC FALLS 1-0 AT HOUSTON DYNAMO
Sporting KC dropped a 1-0 decision at the Houston Dynamo lastWednesday at BBVA Compass Stadium. Will Bruin scored the game's only goal in the 67th minute as the teams met for the fourth time in 2015.
The opening 45 minutes of action failed to produce a single shot on goal for either side, marking only the sixth MLS match of the year for both teams to enter the halftime break without recording an attempt on target. The defensive-minded stalemate carried over into the early stages of the second half before Houston found the front foot
SETH SINOVIC'S UNCORK FOR A CAUSE CHARITY PROGRAM SET FOR OCT. 23
Sporting KC defender Seth Sinovic's 2015 Uncork for a Cause charity program will kick off Oct. 23 with a special event to raise awareness and funding for The Victory Project.
In 2013, Sporting Club – the parent organization of Sporting Kansas City – launched The Victory Project, which unites the team’s supporters, players and staff to make a tangible difference in the lives of children who are battling cancer and all of life’s challenges. These challenges could be related to a child’s health, physical, developmental or socio-economic status.
Fans can join Sinovic, his teammates and special guests from 7-9 p.m. CT on Oct. 23 for the exclusive gathering at The InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza. The event also serves as the release party for Sinovic's very own 2012 Sonoma Reserve Red Wine. Only one barrel of this Cabernet blend was bottled for Sinovic's charity program.
For tickets and additional information about the event, visit UncorkforaCause.com. To learn more about The Victory Project, visit VictoryKC.org.
KC STAYCATION WITH THE MARRIOTT SWEEPSTAKES ENDS TONIGHT
Fans can enter the KC Staycation with the Marriott sweepstakes on SportingKC.com through 11:59 p.m. CT tonight for a chance to win a two-night stay at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown (based on availability), a complimentary dinner for two at the MetropolitanKC, a $25 drink voucher, two tickets to a Sporting KC match with a pre-game tour, two Sporting KC jerseys and two team scarves. Visit SportingKC.com/marriott for more information.
TICKETS ON SALE FOR 2015 BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP AT SWOPE SOCCER VILLAGE
Tickets for the 2015 Big 12 Soccer Championship are now available at Big12Sports.com/buytickets or by calling 888-4KC-GOAL. The Championship will take place Nov. 4, 6 and 8 at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City.
Single day passes are on sale for $10 with three-day championship passes available for $15. A 15-ticket team pack is also available for $120.
Sporting Club and the University of Kansas will again co-host this year’s championship, which will feature the Big 12’s top eight teams competing for the Conference’s postseason title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship.
In conjunction with the Championship, the Kansas City Sports Commission will be hosting a free soccer clinic for boys and girls ages 6-12 on Saturday, November 7. The clinic will be held from 8:30-10:30 a.m. as a part of their youth clinic series at Swope Soccer Village. In addition to a free t-shirt and goodie bag, all clinic participants will receive a voucher for free admission to the Big 12 Championship match on Sunday, November 8. To register for the clinic, visit SportKC.org.
The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of the championship will be streamed live on Big12Sports.com, while the championship match will be broadcast on FOX Sports 1. This year’s championship at Swope Soccer Village will be the third straight hosted in Kansas City.
FOLLOW SPORTING KC ONLINE
Sporting KC fans looking to keep up with the club online have a place to go. The Social Media page on SportingKC.com features Twitter account information for the team, its players and several staff members. Supporters may also take advantage of the Media Recap pagefor all the latest independent news coverage.
