CHICAGO – 2005 FORMAT explained - from http://www.usopencup.com :
(also, I will put in the FILES section here...) ----

A total of 42 teams – 26 professional and 16 amateur – will compete
in the 2005 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup as it kicks off in June. After
40 teams participated in the prestigious tournament in 2004, two
expansion Major League Soccer teams have been added to the fray in
2005, bringing the total number of teams to its highest level since
MLS began participating in the event in 1996. The U.S. Open Cup,
which is recognized as U.S. Soccer's National Championship, is an
annual competition open to all amateur and professional soccer teams
affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The addition of the two expansion
Division I teams has led to the creation of a qualifying round prior
to the first round. In the qualifying round, four amateur teams will
face off as two of the United States Adult Soccer Association's
regional second-place qualifiers will face two second-place teams
from the Premier Development League of the United Soccer Leagues.
The qualifying round will be determined by a random draw after teams
are paired geographically. Qualifying is slated to be completed by
May 30, with the pairings announcement expected on June 1. The
defending champion Kansas City Wizards enter the tournament on Aug.
3 in the fourth round. The semifinals will be played Sept. 14, with
the final being played on Sept. 28. After the Qualifying Round on
June 8, the first round will be played on June 15 with the remaining
12 qualifiers from the USASA and PDL, as well as two USL Second
Division teams joining the qualifying winners. The winners of those
games advance to the second round to face four teams from the USL
Second Division and four from the USL First Division. In the third
round, the four remaining USL First Division teams join the fray
along with four MLS teams. The final eight MLS teams join in the
fourth round. Within the U.S. Open Cup framework, teams compete in
one of the following four categories: professional outdoor Division
I (Major League Soccer), Division II (USL First Division) or
Division III (USL Second Division); or Amateur Division (USL Premier
Development League & U.S. Adult Soccer Association). The U.S. Open
Cup is a single-elimination tournament, with drawn games being
decided by a 30-minute overtime. If neither team scores during the
two overtime halves, the winner is decided on penalty kicks. The
team that advances the furthest from each level except Division I
earns a $10,000 cash prize. The runner-up takes home $50,000, while
the champion collects $100,000. The winner also will have the team's
name engraved on the historic Dewar Cup, the oldest trophy in
American team sports that is housed in the National Soccer Hall of
Fame in Oneonta, N.Y. - 2005 LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP SCHEDULE -
Qualifying Concludes May 30 (Qualifying completed Memorial Day
weekend) Pairings Announcement June 1 Qualifying Round June 8 (2 PDL
vs. 2 USASA Regional Qualifiers) First Round June 15 2 Qualifying
Winners, 6 PDL, 6 USASA, 2 USL Second Division Second Round June 29
1st Round winners vs. 4 USL Second Division, 4 USL First Division)
Third Round July 13 Second Round winners vs. 4 USL First Division, 4
MLS Fourth Round Aug. 3 Third Round winners vs. 8 MLS Quarterfinals
Aug. 24 Fourth Round winners Semifinals Sept. 14 Quarterfinal
winners Final Sept. 28 Semifinal winners Composition of
participating teams: 12 Major League Soccer 8 United Soccer Leagues
First Division 6 United Soccer Leagues Second Division 16 Amateur (8
USL Premier Development League, 8 USASA regional qualifiers) Total
Number of Teams: 42 Total Number of Games: 41 - 2005 U.S. OPEN CUP
QUALIFYING BREAKDOWN - MLS – 12 Teams For the third consecutive
year, every MLS team will enter the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup,
including the expansion teams Real Salt Lake and CD Chivas USA.
Eight MLS teams will enter the fourth round of this year's
tournament based on their 2004 regular season finish in the MLS
standings. The remaining four MLS teams will enter the Open Cup in
the third round. Third Round Teams: Chicago Fire, CD Chivas USA, FC
Dallas, Real Salt Lake Fourth Round Teams: Colorado Rapids, Columbus
Crew, D.C. United, Kansas City Wizards, Los Angeles Galaxy,
MetroStars, New England Revolution, San Jose Earthquakes USL First
Division – 8 Teams All eight U.S. based teams in the USL First
Division will participate in the tournament. Teams will enter the
tournament based on 2004 regular season league results. Second Round
Teams: Charleston Battery, Minnesota Thunder, Seattle Sounders,
Virginia Beach Mariners Third Round Teams: Atlanta Silverbacks,
Portland Timbers, Richmond Kickers, Rochester Raging Rhinos USL
Second Division – 6 Teams (qualifying through May 30) Six of the
nine teams will participate in the tournament. The top six teams,
based on point percentage from games played through May 29, qualify
for the tournament. The top four teams enter in the Second Round
with the bottom two qualifiers entering in the First Round. Eligible
Teams: Charlotte Eagles, Cincinnati, Harrisburg City Islanders, Long
Island Rough Riders, New Hampshire Phantoms, Northern Virginia
Royals, Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Western Mass Pioneers, Wilmington
Hammerheads Premier Development League – 8 Teams (qualifying through
May 30) Eight teams will participate from the PDL. The top two teams
from each conference based on the results of four pre-designated
league games will advance to the tournament. Two of the four second-
place group finishers will be drawn to play in the Qualifying Round
against two USASA regional qualifiers. The remaining six will enter
in the First Round. USL Second Division/PDL Tiebreakers: a) Head-to-
head record based on total points in Open Cup qualifiers b) Total
wins in the Open Cup qualifying games c) Goal difference (PDL: +/- 3
goals maximum for each Open Cup qualifier) d) Goals scored (PDL: +/-
3 goals maximum for each Open Cup qualifier) e) Lottery conducted by
USL U.S. Adult Soccer Association Regional Qualifiers – 8 Teams
(qualifying through May 30) Eight representatives from the U.S.
Adult Soccer Association will also qualify for the 2005 U.S. Open
Cup. Two teams qualify from each of the USASA's four regions (I, II,
III & IV), where qualifying tournaments will be staged on a
statewide and then regional basis. Six of the qualifying teams will
enter the tournament in the first round. Two second-place regional
qualifiers will be geographically paired to second-place qualifiers
from the PDL and will play in the qualifying round.