NASHVILLE, TN - Nashville SC are back in the U.S. Open Cup, and BJ Callaghan says the club will go all-in on the historic tournament.
"Our team will take tremendous pride in participating in the U.S. Open Cup," he told media at Nashville's Vanderbilt Health Training Center on Thursday. "The U.S. Open Cup, for me, is one of the great trophies you can win in this country."
Ben Wright
16 of 30 Major League Soccer clubs will participate in the tournament in 2025. The league controversially pulled their clubs from participating in 2024, citing fixture congestion and concerns about the quality of play in the tournament.
The Open Cup, which was started in 1914, is one of the oldest cup competitions in global soccer. While certainly historic, though, the tournament has often been seen as an afterthought by MLS clubs, while others have complained about a lack of prioritization from U.S. Soccer. Their recent announcement of a $1 million prize purse for the 2025 tournament is a welcomed step towards change.
"It's got such history," said Callaghan. "We will take it very seriously. One, because that's the respect that the tournament deserves. Two, we are a club that wants to pursue trophies, and there's only so many trophies as a professional soccer player in America that you can win. Any time there's that on the line, we're going to give it our best shot."
Nashville SC's best run in the Open Cup came in 2022, falling to eventual champions Orlando City in penalty kicks in the quarterfinal round. The club is still in search of their first trophy, coming painfully close during their penalty kick shootout loss to Inter Miami in the 2023 Leagues Cup final.
For Callaghan, the U.S. Open Cup is something of a white whale. As an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Union, Callaghan finished as a runner up in 2014, 2015 and 2018.
"I've had the privilege and opportunity to coach in the U.S. Open Cup and also been there for three finals and have lost in three finals," he said. "From an individual standpoint, a team standpoint, a club standpoint, or also just what it means to the overall soccer ecosystem here in the United States, it's a great opportunity for us and we look forward to playing in it."
Nashville will officially enter the tournament in the Round of 32. They're set to host their opening match, which will be played between May 6-7.
