The Colorado Rapids return to Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup play with an all-important Semifinal match against St. Louis CITY SC on Wednesday, September 16. The Rapids are appearing in the Semifinal round of the annual tournament for the first time since 2004. Kickoff at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park is set for 7:30 p.m. MT, with coverage available on Paramount+, CBS Sports Network, Altitude Sports Radio, ColoradoRapids.com, and the Colorado Rapids app.
To reach the Semifinals of the domestic tournament, the Rapids made their way through top competition over the course of three rounds. Colorado began their cup campaign defeating USL League One side Union Omaha 1-0 in the Round of 32 back in April. Following that match, the Rapids faced off against in-state rivals Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC of the USL Championship in the Round of 16. After a 2-2 draw at the end of regulation and extra time, the Rapids came out on top in penalty kicks 5-4 to advance to the Quarterfinals. Colorado then matched up against their first MLS opponent of the tournament, the San Jose Earthquakes. The Rapids played their most comfortable match of the tournament up to that point, defeating the Earthquakes 2-0 and advancing to the Semifinals for the first time since 2004.
St. Louis had an impressive run of their own to get to this point, defeating multiple MLS sides on the way to the Semifinals. The club started their campaign, against FC Tulsa, defeating the USL Championship side 4-0. St. Louis then defeated Chicago Fire FC on the road 2-1 before topping Houston Dynamo FC in penalties in the Quarterfinals.
The Rapids enter Wednesday's match looking to continue their historic run of form at home as of late. After recording a clean sheet this past weekend, the club extended their shutout streak at home to six, setting a new club record. Colorado also boasts a six-match win streak at home, improving their record at DSGP to 12-2-0 across all competitions this season with nine clean sheets over that span. The club’s nine home wins in MLS play this season marks a tie for the most in the Western Conference and is tied for the second most in all of MLS.
These clubs have faced off twice already this season in MLS play, with St. Louis taking both contests. The club’s most recent matchup came in July in the middle of St. Louis’ 16 match unbeaten streak that is still active heading into Wednesday night.
