CHICAGO (July 30, 2013) – The winner of the semifinal match between the Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake will host the 2013 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final. The location of the championship match was decided today after a coin flip at the headquarters of the U.S. Soccer Federation in Chicago.
If Portland defeats Salt Lake in its semifinal match on Aug. 7 at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, the Open Cup Final will be played on Sept. 24 at JELD-WEN Field. If Salt Lake wins the semifinal, the championship will be played on Oct. 1 at Rio Tinto Stadium. Portland and Salt Lake have never advanced to an Open Cup Final, which means the championship will be hosted in a location for the first time.
Bill Starshak, a Chicago-based member of U.S. Soccer Supporters Club, was the independent witness and flipped the coin in front of various U.S. Soccer staff in the trophy room of Soccer House.
In the other semifinal on Aug. 7, the four-time Open Cup champion Chicago Fire hosts two-time champion D.C. United. Chicago has a pair of wins over D.C. United in the MLS regular season, a 2-0 win on June 2 and a 4-1 victory on July 20.
Chicago is 6-2 in semifinal appearances while D.C. United is 4-4 in the round. The Fire beat D.C. 3-0 in the semifinals of the 2006 edition of the Open Cup, and would go on to win the tournament.
