Asheville City’s successful run in the 2026 U.S. Open Cup showed growth toward Asheville’s ultimate goals as a club.
“There are a lot of positive indicators towards where our ultimate goal of growth is, and I think those are good indicators, but at the same time, there’s a lot of models to go and a lot of work to be done,” Asheville City SC Chief Operating Officer, Sporting and Club Operations Mathes Mennell said. “I like where we’re headed, and I like the markers that have shown, but we’re gonna need to continue to replicate those over a period of time.”
The U.S. Open Cup run has shown Asheville City the crowds which are possible at Greenwood Field. Asheville City’s supporters turned Greenwood Field into a formidable home field advantage for the Blues during their two Open Cup matches.
“I think it certainly has shown us what’s possible,” Mennell said. “I mean there were a lot of people there, and I think the nice thing is that we proved to ourselves that, okay, we can handle crowds this big.”
Asheville City learned many lessons from their victory against the Greenville Triumph. These lessons are valuable for Asheville City’s future growth.
“I think we were pretty confident going into this Open Cup run, and we knew the kind of roster that we had put together. I think that a lesson learned is we’re on the right track,” Mennell said. “I think for the coaching staff and the technical staff I think that it’s really cool for them to be rewarded.”
Asheville’s success will not change the way they construct their roster for the USL League Two season. Their goals remain the same even with being qualified for the 2027 U.S. Open Cup.
“Scott does a fantastic job of building our roster, but no our roster for the summer will be built in the same way it always is. To bring in the best players possible, and give them a forum to better their play. Then, also to give us a chance to lift us a trophy at the end of the year,” Mennell said.
This U.S. Open Cup run was very beneficial for Asheville City as a club. This run allowed for Asheville City to connect with the community through soccer.
“It was a great event for us to pull off a cupset in the first round, and then to maybe do enough to pull a cupset in the second and we fell a little bit short, but the team played really well. We had two great crowds. Really honored and proud to see the way the community came out and supported the group, and I thought the group put on a really great show,” Mennell said. “Then, to be fortunate enough to win the trophy and to be the lower league highest advancing team and obviously the financial reward that comes with it and then automatic berth into next year’s tournament.”
Success in tournaments can often be advertisements to players looking to play at the highest level. This is no different for Asheville City in this tournament.
“It just reinforces the fact that Asheville City is a fantastic place to play football and it just cements that. For us to continue to push the envelope of what our definition of success is, is a really positive thing,” Mennell said.
Asheville’s success has allowed their players to look for opportunities at a higher level. This allows them to grow their careers to new heights.
“It’s interesting because some of those conversations are ongoing, so I don’t want to jinx them,” Mennell said. “We’re hopeful that a lot of them will, and it’s just a question of them finding the right opportunity and then maximizing the opportunity when it comes, so to be determined, but I’m hopeful it’ll be a pretty high number.”
