Houston Dynamo FC travel to face Chicago Fire FC for a place in semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

Sep 19, 2023

Wrapping up a three-game road trip, Houston Dynamo FC travel to face Chicago Fire FC at 7:30 p.m. CT on Tuesday, June 6 at SeatGeek Stadium to play for a spot in the semifinals of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

This quarterfinal matchup will be the first time the two sides have faced off in the U.S. Open Cup and are two of three previous tournament winners still alive in the 2023 edition of the competition alongside the LA Galaxy. Houston won the 2018 edition, while Chicago has claimed four titles in 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2006.

Houston reached the quarterfinals after defeating Minnesota United FC 4-0 at Shell Energy Stadium on May 23. Forward Corey Baird recorded his first career hat trick, netting goals in the 33rd, 68th and 89th minutes and set up forward Aliyu Ibrahim's first goal for Houston in the 79th minute. Defender Erik Sviatchenko made his club debut, starting the match and serving as the team's captain as Houston earned its largest margin of victory over an MLS opponent in the U.S. Open Cup.

The Dynamo hold a 12-8-8 (WLD) record versus the Fire in all competitions. Houston won the previous meeting 4-0 at home on June 25, 2022, while the Dynamo's last win at the Fire came on May 20, 2018, when they earned a 3-2 victory. Houston enters this match with a 5-7-3 (WLD) record in MLS play and will look for a bounce back victory after falling 3-0 to St. Louis CITY SC on Saturday.

Chicago advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-0 road victory over Austin FC at Q2 Stadium on May 24. Both defender Rafael Czichos and forward Kacper Przybyłko found the scoresheet, while goalkeeper Spencer Richey kept the clean sheet. Chicago advanced to the quarterfinals of the tournament for the 15th time in Club history, which ranks as the second-most in MLS era (since 1996).

The winner of this quarterfinal matchup will advance to face the winner of the June 7 West Region matchup between Real Salt Lake and LA Galaxy, with the semifinal to be played on August 23.

The Dynamo return to league play on June 10 when they host LAFC at Shell Energy Stadium at 7:30 p.m. CT before travelling to face Los Angeles again the following Wednesday in a match that was rescheduled.