The 2024 Lamar Hunt Round of 32 kicks off on Tuesday night as the eight seeded clubs from the USL Championship and eight representatives in this year’s tournament from Major League Soccer complete the field, with each MLS side set to face opposition from the Championship and USL League One over the next two nights.

This year’s tournament has already brought its fair share of thrills and upsets across the first three rounds, but for many there’s nothing like the opportunity to knock off a club from MLS in arguably the most unique event in the American sporting landscape.

What does it take to pull off a “Cupset”? We’re glad you asked.

We spoke with two of the Championship’s top head coaches in Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC’s Bob Lilley and Sacramento Republic FC’s Mark Briggs, both of whom have led sides to notable Open Cup runs in the past two years, about what ingredients need to come together for a side to take victory against top-flight opposition in the historic tournament.

1. BE READY TO BE THE AGGRESSOR

During Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC’s run to the Quarterfinal of the 2023 Open Cup, during which they defeated the New England Revolution on the road and current Concacaf Champions Cup Finalist Columbus Crew SC at home, the Hounds’ were aggressive in and out of possession.

Against New England, 80 percent of the play in the first half was in the Revolution’s defensive third or the middle of the field as the Hounds kept the pressure on their opponents, which led to Danny Griffin’s eventual game-winning goal. The same applied in Pittsburgh’s 1-0 win against the Crew, where only 20 percent of the contest was played in the Hounds’ defensive third despite Columbus having 75 percent of possession at Highmark Stadium.

That was by design. For Lilley, the ability to dictate where the game is played is crucial to success.

LILLEY: “The first thing we always talk about is you’ve got to be willing to go forward. You can’t try to survive, you’ve got to show them that you can create chances. Even the Columbus game [last season], we pressed and tried to show that we’re not going to sit and hope that you’re just going to be bad on the day. We’re actually going to try to win the game. So, I think the mindset has to be that you’re going to look to find weaknesses, you’re going to look to attack, you’re going to look to be aggressive.”

BRIGGS: “I think no matter where you are, what you’re up against, no matter what stadium you’re in, you can't be overawed, you have to be present. And I think that’s something that, if you’re present and you’re in that moment, and you’re playing the game, minute by minute, and you have a collective idea of what you want to do and how you how you can achieve that, that breeds confidence to the players and allows them to have the freedom to perform at the highest level they can.”

2. BE CONFIDENT IN MEETING THE MOMENT

Sacramento Republic FC made making a run in the Open Cup a goal during the 2022 season and set up its sides accordingly. During the club’s run, Head Coach Mark Briggs rotated his squad in Championship regular season games to ensure what he thought was the lineup that could get a result in the Open Cup game that followed was as fresh as it could be.

Beyond that, there was the approach the club took to helping its players envision potential success regardless of opponents, making sure no detail went overlooked in preparation. It helped Republic FC become the first lower-division club to reach the Open Cup Final since 2008 and defeat the San Jose Earthquakes, LA Galaxy and Sporting Kansas City during its run.

BRIGGS: “Myself and General Manager Todd Dunivant, we did a lot of work on the mental side with that group. With individuals, with a leadership group, and then with the group as a collective, essentially instilling belief. No matter who you’re playing against, instilling a collective belief that we could beat [our opposition]. Then, making sure that when we went to for example, the LA Galaxy, just exposing them to what they’re going to experience, from fans to the opposition stadium, making sure that they were aware of what they were going into and understood that whatever happened in the game they could come through it and still be successful.”

3. KNOW THE BUTTONS TO PUSH

There are few games that have more incentive for USL Championship clubs and players than facing MLS opposition in the Open Cup. Union Omaha’s run to the Quarterfinals in 2022 included a road victory against Minnesota United FC that saw Ryen Jiba star for Los Búhos and put him on the radar for an offseason transfer to MNUFC.

At the same time, knowing your squad can add even more juice to a potential lineup, as Lilley and Pittsburgh exploited when they headed to face the New England Revolution last season.

LILLEY: “When we went to New England last year, we had the benefit that Mike DeShields, Trevor Zwetsloot, these guys had played with [the Revolution II]. Danny Griffin’s from that area, Boston sports fan. Dani Rovira played in their academy. We had a number of guys with ties to the northeast, Tola Showunmi went to New Hampshire. All of them were in the starting lineup, I figured I’d get a response from them.”

4. SCORE THE OPENING GOAL

It sounds obvious, but while there are exceptions that show going behind to an opponent from a higher division isn’t insurmountable – for example, Memphis 901 FC’s victory against Atlanta United FC in the Round of 32 a year ago – it’s far more helpful to score the opening goal than to concede to have a chance at advancing.

For Republic FC, that was particularly true. During the side’s run to the Open Cup Final in 2022 it didn’t trail for a minute in its five contests leading up to the Final. In last month’s Third Round, 11 of the 14 games to feature a goal saw the sides that scored first end up advancing.

BRIGGS: “I think when it’s a one-off knockout game, being able to get the first goal and being able to start on the front foot obviously instills that belief a little bit more. But then you have to have the collective identity, the collective belief, the collective willingness to put your body on the line to ensure that goal advantage remains.”

LILLEY: “If you score first, you don't have to chase. You can stay stout defensively, and if they get anxious or leave themselves open you can create more opportunities to get another one. If you fall behind an MLS team, and you have to chase the game a little, I think that’s when you can be in a little more trouble or danger. Obviously, if you like to play a wide-open game and if you’ve got enough weapons, you may want to live in that space a little more than we would, but I think anyone would say scoring the first goal is pretty critical.”