Sounders FC to begin U.S. Open Cup defense at home

Tickets to third-round game at Starfire to go on-sale Wednesday at 10am PT.

RENTON, WASH. - Seattle Sounders FC will start its run at a third straight Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship by hosting a third round match on June 28 at Starfire Sports Stadium in Tukwila for a 7 p.m. PT first kick.

Sounders FC face the winner of tonight's second-round game in Bremerton, the Kitsap Pumas who defeated the Real Colorado Foxes, 3-1.

Tickets will go on sale Wednesday, June 22 at 10 a.m. PT and are available at the CenturyLink Field box office or through Ticketmaster. Tickets are general admission and priced at $16 for cover grandstand and $12 for uncovered bleachers.

Kitsap, a member of the USL Premier Development League, advanced to the second round by beating the Chivas El Paso Patriots, 6-5 on penalties following a 0-0 draw, 4-1, last week. Colorado, also a PDL team, defeated California's DV8 Defenders, 5-0.

Sounders FC and the other seven MLS teams enter Open Cup play at the third round stage. Not since New York Greek American (1967-69) has a team won three consecutive titles.

In 2010 Seattle became the first club in 27 years to successfully retain the Open Cup. Sounders FC defeated the Columbus Crew, 2-1, in the 2010 final before a record crowd of 31,311 on the Xbox Pitch at Qwest Field.

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation's National Championship, is an annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. It is the oldest annual team tournament in U.S. sports history and among the oldest soccer tournaments of its type in the world.