The 2015 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup final was played on September 30, 2015, at PPL Park, now known as Talen Energy Stadium, in Chester, Pennsylvania. The match determined the winner of the 2015 U.S. Open Cup, a tournament open to amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. It was the 102nd edition of the oldest competition in United States soccer. This edition of the final was contested between Sporting Kansas City (SKC) and the Philadelphia Union. The winning club would qualify for the 2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League.

Philadelphia and Kansas City both compete in the top tier of American soccer, Major League Soccer (MLS), and bypassed the initial stages of the tournament with entries into the fourth round of play. At the time of the final, SKC was in contention for the Supporters' Shield while the Union was in the hunt for a berth in the 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs. Philadelphia secured its berth in the final by defeating the Rochester Rhinos, D.C. United, the New York Red Bulls, and Chicago Fire. Kansas City's road to the final involved victories over Saint Louis FC, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, and Real Salt Lake.

The match was broadcast in English on ESPN2 and in Spanish on Univision Deportes Network, making it the first time since 1999 the cup final was aired on one of the ESPN networks. Sporting Kansas City won the game 7–6 on penalties after the game ended 1–1 in regulation and in overtime.

Road to the final

Philadelphia Union

Teams from Philadelphia and the surrounding region have had a successful history in the Open Cup: Bethlehem Steel F.C. won five trophies between 1915 and 1926, the Uhrik Truckers won in 1936, and the Philadelphia Ukrainians won four times during the 1960s. The Union's alternative jersey, worn throughout the competition, featured a large letter "B" in the lower left corner to honor Bethlehem. Previously, the Union made a run to the final of the 2014 edition of the cup, which was the club's first cup final of any competition, but lost in extra time to Seattle Sounders FC.

Sporting Kansas City

Sporting Kansas City have previously appeared in two US Open Cup finals, winning both the 2004 and 2012 editions, and to date, are the only Kansan club to have ever won the honor. Sporting went into the Final hoping to win their third trophy in four years. To reach the final, SKC hosted all four of their cup fixtures heading to the final, which included wins over Saint Louis FC, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake.

Match details

GK 1 Andre Blake DF 33 FabinhoDF 16 Richie MarquezDF 8 Maurice Edu (c)DF 28 Ray Gaddis MF 13 Michael Lahoud MF 5 Vincent NogueiraMF 85 Tranquillo Barnetta MF 10 Cristian Maidana MF 9 Sébastien Le TouxFW 17 C. J. Sapong Substitutes:GK 55 John McCarthy DF 23 Steven Vitória DF 2 Warren CreavalleMF 7 Brian CarrollMF 14 Eric AyukFW 11 Andrew Wenger FW 6 Conor Casey Manager:Jim Curtin GK 29 Tim MeliaDF 5 Matt Besler (c) DF 4 Kevin Ellis DF 15 Seth Sinovic DF 7 Chance Myers MF 93 Soni Mustivar MF 10 Benny FeilhaberMF 6 Paulo Nagamura MF 9 Krisztián NémethFW 8 Graham Zusi FW 14 Dom DwyerSubstitutes:GK 21 Jon KempinDF 17 Saad Abdul-Salaam DF 2 Erik Palmer-BrownMF 12 Mikey LopezMF 96 Jordi Quintillà MF 11 Bernardo AñorFW 37 Jacob Peterson Manager:Peter Vermes Assistant referees: Ian Anderson James Conlee Fourth official: Chris PensoMatch rules 90 minutes. 30 minutes of extra time if necessary. Penalty shoot-out if scores still level. Seven named substitutes, of which up to three may be used. Maximum five foreign players (all citizens and legal permanent residents are considered domestic, regardless of FIFA country affiliation)

References