It's U.S. Open Cup Final day! Ahead of the big game, let's take a look at the contest, discuss the USMNT's involvement, and predict how the game could go.
Who's playing? When is the match taking place?
MLS sides Columbus Crew and St. Louis City will be contesting the 2026 edition of the U.S. Open Cup Final; based on the bracket, the final will be hosted by Columbus Crew. The final will take place today at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Columbus Crew will be going for their second title and their first since 2002. With a win, St. Louis would claim their first U.S. Open Cup title and, by extension, their first trophy in club history.
Which USMNT players are set to take part in the final?
Damion Downs is set to be involved in the U.S. Open Cup Final for St. Louis City, having joined the club on loan from Southampton earlier in the season.
While he has yet to see meaningful amounts of minutes and contributions, Downs could see action in the U.S. Open Cup Final if St. Louis opts to rotate their lineup ahead of a massive late-season push. Such is especially true when considering that St. Louis is four back of the Vancouver Whitecaps for the top spot in the Western Conference with four to play. Given that the Whitecaps lost the top spot to San Diego FC during last season's Decision Day, St. Louis should look to get within a win of Vancouver to have the chance to replicate that.
If that's the case, then expect the usual substitutes to gain the opportunity to start, which could mean Downs gets a full 90 minutes to try and prove that he is an option for the club heading into the playoffs.
Another player to watch is going to be U.S. U-20 alumni Taha Habroune, who has scored in each of his last three contests for the Crew. He's found a frequent role as a starter for Columbus this season, and his recent form has proved influential in the latter stages of their resurgence. Will it get him a chance to play for the USMNT in the near future? That is yet to be determined, but a big role against St. Louis City could give Mauricio Pochettino a wild card to play in either the November or December USMNT camps.
What to expect?
Both clubs are entering the contest with massive runs of form. We all know about St. Louis City's record-setting unbeaten run, but is there a chance that the end of that run throws a wrench into the club's preparations for this contest?
While St. Louis City's spot in the MLS Cup Playoffs might have been far closer to being secured a few weeks ago, the Columbus Crew is in a very good position to join them.
With their latest 2-0 win against FC Cincinnati in mind, the club is just one point back of the wild card slots in the Eastern Conference; the eighth- and ninth-place teams in each conference will play a single-elimination contest to decide who joins the first-to-seventh-place teams in the MLS Cup Playoffs. They've also won five of their last six contests, a run that dates back to their Open Cup semifinal win over Orlando City.
While this final might have been more winnable for St. Louis City a few weeks ago, it now seems like much more of an even contest.
The Crew's goalscoring is going to be the deciding factor. I previously introduced the point with my discussion of Habroune, but this is a Columbus team that has started to find an offensive spark in recent times. They've scored at least two goals in each of their last six games, though just one of those games saw the Crew score three or more.
If they can score three or more, they'll be in a good position to match St. Louis City's output. St. Louis City is only a few games removed from a 6-2 win over the LA Galaxy, and they've scored 21 goals over the course of their last seven games, which is good for a three-goals-per-game output. Columbus has just that little bit more momentum, and that should be just enough to earn them their second domestic cup title.
Prediction: Columbus Crew 3, St. Louis City 2
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