There’s club history on the line for everyone involved in the 110th U.S. Open Cup Final.
B.J. Callaghan – the 44-year-old former USMNT interim boss and cult hero – aims to bring a first piece of silverware to Nashville SC in his first year at the club. Led by standouts like scoring ace Sam Surridge and former MLS MVP Hany Mukhtar, the Coyotes will fancy their chances.
But Austin FC, guided by wily Spanish tactician Nico Estevez, 45 and also in his debut season in Texas’ capital, are hunting their own fabulous first. After dramatic Quarterfinal and Semifinal wins on the road, fans of Los Verdes are justified in the belief that theirs is a Team of Destiny heading into a first major Final in club history with mighty forces at their back.
Read on to see what both coaches are thinking on the cusp of the October 1 Final from Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas (LIVE on Paramount+ and on air at CBS Sports Network)
It’s never easy to reach a U.S. Open Cup Final – there’s always bumps in the road. Can you talk a bit about the challenges you’ve faced in reaching this 2025 Decider?
B.J. Callaghan (Nashville SC): The first match we played against the Chattanooga [Red Wolves of DIII USL League One] was always going to be a challenge. Teams that you're unfamiliar with, lower division teams especially, you always get their best. We were able to handle it, but Chattanooga did a great job challenging us. Then we had a back-and-forth game against an MLS rival in Orlando City [come-from-behind 3-2 win] and we learned things from that. Against D.C. United in the Quarterfinal [5-2 come-from-behind win] we faced big adversity and showed growth.
Semifinals are always super-competitive. You everything on the field. And against the Philadelphia Union, it’s always a tough game. It was the third time we played them this year, so there's a high level of familiarity and intensity. You had two teams that were really motivated to go toe-to-toe because getting to the Final means so much to their club [3-1 Nashville win, propelled by a Sam Surridge hat-trick].
Nico Estevez (Austin FC): We started against El Paso [Locomotive, DII USL Championship] and we knew right away what the U.S. Open Cup was all about. You have to expect the unexpected. It was a good learning experience. We went into the locker room [down 2-0 to El Paso at the half] and had to say some honest things and see the response of our guys. We made adjustments and the response was really good. I think that [3-2 comeback] win helped set the tone for us to know that this competition is special.
Against Houston [Dynamo, Round of 16] we started really well and scored in the first half…and had a really good 10-minute period in the second half where we scored a second and third goal [in a 3-1 win]. The Quarterfinal in San Jose [Earthquakes] was a very difficult game. We had to come back twice from a goal down and we lost Brandon Vazquez [Austin’s star striker and top scorer] to an injury. Brad [Stuver, All-Star goalkeeper] had an amazing shootout. That game helped us against Minnesota, also on the road, in the Semifinal, where we believed from minute one that we could be the ones to reach the Final [a 2-1 Austin win with a late-late extra-time goal from CJ Fodrey].
The Final will be played in Texas – a home game for Austin FC and an away game for Nashville SC. What kind of impact will the venue have?
BJC: It's a Final, so both teams are going to have the same mindset. Both teams are going to be going through the same emotions. I think once the ball gets rolling, it's two teams competing for the same objective, which is to lift a trophy for the club.
NE: Hosting a Final is huge for Austin FC, as we are a very young club in MLS and in the U.S. Open Cup. We want to have more moments like this in the future and in other competitions. This is one of the most exciting moments in the history of our club and we have to make sure we’re ready for it.
It’s also a reward for the fans. This fan base supports the team a lot. They never stop singing and always support us. A night like this – a major Final – is a big reward for them because it's a special atmosphere, and you can feel it when you're watching a game here [at Q2 Stadium]. I think in the Final, you’ll see even more of that. We just want to deliver a great performance where they [the fans] feel proud of us. And then hopefully we can bring the Cup for them.
History will be made no matter who wins – a first trophy for Austin FC or Nashville SC. How much is that on your mind?
BJC: A lot. I’d even go bigger than what it means specifically to the club. We think about what it means to the whole Greater Nashville Area, the region that we represent. We feel that connection with our fan base. It's a special moment and a first trophy is something no one can ever take away from a group of players when they win it. It would also be a first professional sports trophy for the state of Tennessee. When you align behind things that are much bigger than yourself, I think it brings out the best in a team.
NE: It would be very exciting to win the Cup and to be part of Austin FC history. I'm very proud to be a part of this family and these fans and this project, because it's a new one and a chance to win a first trophy is right here for us to take. It’s very exciting. If you win it, you have to be proud of yourself because It's not an easy journey. I'm just waiting for the day to come.
Can you talk a little bit about your opponent in the Final?
BJC: Nico [Estevez] does a tremendous job with his Austin FC group. They’re really organized with and without the ball. Whenever you come up against a really well-organized team that has clear ideas on how they want to prevent goals and how they want to score goals, you have to be your best that day. They're really a stingy defensive team. When you play teams like that in a Final, there's not going to be a huge amount of chances. You have to take yours.
NE: First of all, congratulations to Nashville SC. They had an amazing run in the Open Cup and they're having a fantastic season in MLS. They're a really good team. They already have played a Final in the Leagues Cup [2023] and it's a club that’s building and developing towards winning trophies. When [Coach] B.J. Callaghan arrived, he did the right things and the club did the right thing in their style of play. We're going to have to be really, really good and at our best to beat them because they’re going to be a really tough opponent.
Can you talk a little bit about what it is that makes your team tick this year – and what’s brought success in this Open Cup run specifically?
BJC: The best way I can say it is that this team is a team. It's the definition of a team. Everybody has a role, a responsibility. They do their job. They contribute. And I think that's what really makes us a difficult team. We've also had a lot of tough experiences this year. We've shown we're a difficult team to play and we've shown we can score goals in a variety of ways – through different phases of play, through transition, through buildup, through attacking set pieces. Defensively we've been pretty difficult to play through too. A lot of those things have to come out if you want to win a trophy.
NE: Everyone thought that when Brandon [Vazquez] got hurt [in the Open Cup Quarterfinal], Austin FC was going to suffer because they're losing one of their DPs and their best goal scorer at the time. But everyone in the team took it as a challenge and he [Vazquez] has been supporting the team every single day. He's in the meetings with us. Everyone saw how he responded after he got injured – and how the next day he was working hard and trying to recover. He helped the team to realise, ‘okay, look at this guy, he just had a bad, bad injury and he's already responding and going, and we have to do the same’. Everyone in the locker room saw it – how you respond is the most important thing.
As a coach, what are the most important things to get right in the days leading up to the Final?
BJC: It’s about making sure that the players are recovered and fresh. Not only physically, but mentally and emotionally. Making sure that the information is as simple and clear as possible and just to double down on our routines and our processes.
NE: The best preparation for any game is to just do the right things every day. Train hard. Keep improving. Keep getting better as a team. And when the Final or the next game arrives, we’ll be ready.
Fontela is editor-in-chief of usopencup.com. Follow him at @jonahfontela on X/Twitter.