Frustration over Leagues Cup still there for Orlando City SC supporters

Some members of Orlando City SC supporter groups attended Leagues Cup matches. But membership largely remains suspicious of the value of emphasizing that competition over the U.S. Open Cup.

Orlando City SC Supporters’ suspicions remain over the value of the Leagues Cup over trying to grow attendance for the U.S. Open Cup. That’s true although not all supporters groups actively boycotted the Leagues Cup in Orlando.

Orlando City supporter groups not only are divided in whether members pledged to attend or boycott Leagues Cup competition matches. They are divided over whether recognized or not by the Orlando City organization.

So far, three groups are recognized by the entire organization: Black Swans Drinking Club, Iron Lion Firm, and The Ruckus. Of those three, Iron Lion Firm committed to the Leagues Cup boycott as an organization. Black Swans focus on supporting Orlando Pride and NWSL – therefore they are out of the Leagues Cup question.

The supporter group Treasure Coast Collective is not recognized by Orlando City SC. But they are active at MLS matches and stayed visibly opposing to Leagues Cup competition on social media.

Yet social media posts showed there was confusion among supporters throughout the competition. Whether this represents growing pains or irredeemable frustration remains to be seen.

Whether by organization or individual members, supporting the U.S. Open Cup is a noble decision. It’s the oldest U.S. soccer competition – more than a century in operation. It pits pro soccer clubs of every level against each other, as well as against amateur squads.

But even when the MLS teams played legendary amateur clubs such as NTX Rayados,  the average U.S. Open Cup match attendance remained around 5,500 by the end of the tournament.

After only a few seasons, Leagues Cup attendance is averaging about 22,150. When MLS suits put their calculators to the competitions, they recommended emphasizing the Leagues Cup. The idea is to see if this competition does more to capture the imagination of the MLS public than the U.S. Open Cup has.

But MLS Commissioner Don Garber won’t permit MLS to abandon the U.S. Open Cup, just reduce participation for now. For 2024, that means eight teams competed.

So at this time, the Leagues Cup gets the emphasis each year, and the U.S. Open Cup maintains a presence including MLS. The league will need to reassure the supporters that they are heard, by Orlando City SC and throughout MLS.