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FC Cincinnati set to open CONCACAF Champions Cup play against Cavalier SC
Fletcher Keel
FC Cincinnati set to open CONCACAF Champions Cup play against Cavalier SC
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FC Cincinnati set to open CONCACAF Champions Cup play against Cavalier SC
Fletcher Keel
For the first time in 2024, FC Cincinnati is set to take the pitch and will do so Thursday night as first-time participants in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.FCC’s first round opponent is Cavalier SC, based out of Kingston, Jamaica, where the Orange and Blue will kick their year off.Cavalier comes to the Queen City for the second leg next week. The winner of the two-match first round will advance to face Liga MX’s Monterrey, who boast former FC Cincinnati standout Brandon Vazquez.This year marks Cavalier’s first appearance in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, who finished as runners-up in the 2023 Caribbean Cup. Through 19 games of Jamaica Premier League play, CSC is 13-4-2, having allowed just nine goals this year, boasting a league-best goal differential of 21."We obviously know they’re a good team, they’re in this competition for a reason," Cincinnati defender Matt Miazga said in a press conference Wednesday previewing the match. "It’s going to be a challenge for sure. We know they’re at the top of the league in their own respective league, so they’re definitely accustomed to winning. They’re 18 or 19 games in, so they’re definitely fit and prepared."Dating back to the professionalization of soccer in Jamaica, Cavalier is the 11th winningest club in Jamaica Premier League History and are the eighth-winningest team in the country still in the first division.Cincinnati's inclusion in the Champions Cup is courtesy of their best season since joining MLS: Capturing the Supporter's Shield as the best team throughout the regular season.Pat Noonan, the reigning MLS Coach of the Year, said it was part of the club's goal last year to qualify for the tournament and now they're relishing the chance to take on unfamiliar foes and get the Orange and Blue in front of a truly international audience."It’s great for our club to be now observed in more than just league play and in our cup competitions," Noonan said Wednesday. "We get to challenge ourselves against the best in the region. I think we’re excited about the opportunity, we’ll see tomorrow what that looks like, but I think the group is ready."For the American debutants, four players from their starting XI in the Eastern Conference Finals are no longer with the club: Vazquez, Junior Moreno, Yerson Mosquera and Santiago Arias. Other offseason departures include Ray Gaddis, Dominque Badji and the club is reportedly set to see the departure of Alvaro Barreal, who was widely expected to leave in the January transfer window but didn't.However, with subtraction comes addition: The club not only re-signed Kubo, who spent a majority of the 2023 season as a top club reserve, but also brought in USMNT mainstay Miles Robinson, Kipp Keller, Corey Baird and Pavel Bucha to bolster the Orange and Blue's line up.Despite his having to serve a suspension for the first two games of the MLS season, Miazga will be eligible to take the field Thursday in Champions Cup play.The ball will first roll on FC Cincinnati's season Thursday at 9 p.m. The game will be available on Fox Sports 2.
KINGSTON, St. Andrew Parish —

For the first time in 2024, FC Cincinnati is set to take the pitch and will do so Thursday night as first-time participants in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

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FCC’s first round opponent is Cavalier SC, based out of Kingston, Jamaica, where the Orange and Blue will kick their year off.

Cavalier comes to the Queen City for the second leg next week. The winner of the two-match first round will advance to face Liga MX’s Monterrey, who boast former FC Cincinnati standout Brandon Vazquez.

This year marks Cavalier’s first appearance in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, who finished as runners-up in the 2023 Caribbean Cup. Through 19 games of Jamaica Premier League play, CSC is 13-4-2, having allowed just nine goals this year, boasting a league-best goal differential of 21.

"We obviously know they’re a good team, they’re in this competition for a reason," Cincinnati defender Matt Miazga said in a press conference Wednesday previewing the match. "It’s going to be a challenge for sure. We know they’re at the top of the league in their own respective league, so they’re definitely accustomed to winning. They’re 18 or 19 games in, so they’re definitely fit and prepared."

Dating back to the professionalization of soccer in Jamaica, Cavalier is the 11th winningest club in Jamaica Premier League History and are the eighth-winningest team in the country still in the first division.

Cincinnati's inclusion in the Champions Cup is courtesy of their best season since joining MLS: Capturing the Supporter's Shield as the best team throughout the regular season.

Pat Noonan, the reigning MLS Coach of the Year, said it was part of the club's goal last year to qualify for the tournament and now they're relishing the chance to take on unfamiliar foes and get the Orange and Blue in front of a truly international audience.

"It’s great for our club to be now observed in more than just league play and in our cup competitions," Noonan said Wednesday. "We get to challenge ourselves against the best in the region. I think we’re excited about the opportunity, we’ll see tomorrow what that looks like, but I think the group is ready."

For the American debutants, four players from their starting XI in the Eastern Conference Finals are no longer with the club: Vazquez, Junior Moreno, Yerson Mosquera and Santiago Arias. Other offseason departures include Ray Gaddis, Dominque Badji and the club is reportedly set to see the departure of Alvaro Barreal, who was widely expected to leave in the January transfer window but didn't.

However, with subtraction comes addition: The club not only re-signed Kubo, who spent a majority of the 2023 season as a top club reserve, but also brought in USMNT mainstay Miles Robinson, Kipp Keller, Corey Baird and Pavel Bucha to bolster the Orange and Blue's line up.

Despite his having to serve a suspension for the first two games of the MLS season, Miazga will be eligible to take the field Thursday in Champions Cup play.

The ball will first roll on FC Cincinnati's season Thursday at 9 p.m. The game will be available on Fox Sports 2.