El Farolito: The Burrito Club Beating Pro Teams in Cinderella U.S. Open Cup Run | OneFootball

The U.S. Open Cup might not have the grandeur of England’s FA Cup, but the oldest soccer competition in the United States certainly has some great Cinderella stories––and a burrito shop tie-in.

On Tuesday, El Farolito SC, a mostly amateur side in San Francisco, defeated fully professional Monterey Bay FC, a club playing in the second-division USL Championship, one step below MLS.

El Farolito plays in the National Premier Soccer League, the fourth level on the U.S. Soccer pyramid. That puts them below the two USL professional levels set to adopt promotion and relegation in the coming years.

Edgard Kreye scored in the 83rd minute on Tuesday to give El Farolito the win over their professional counterparts, sending them to the third round of the U.S. Open Cup, one round before some MLS sides join in the Round of 32.

It’s the second straight season El Farolito have made the third round. In 2024, they defeated Real Monarchs and Portland Timbers 2, the professional second teams of MLS sides Real Salt Lake and the Portland Timbers.

This year’s team features 19 returning players looking to bring their story further into the competition.

Who are El Farolito?

Given the previous lack of promotion and relegation in the U.S., the Open Cup and its amateur teams have captured the hearts of American soccer fans for years––even with an MLS side winning every year since 1999, when the Rochester Raging Rhinos captured the title.

El Farolito SC is named after a popular local burrito chain and El Farolito Bar, which started as a Mexican taqueria shop and bar in 1983 in the city’s Mission District, once the epicenter of the Latino community.

While the restaurant business has changed, the original location still exists and remains a cash-only venue, churning out the menu items it has for years. It also features a replica trophy of the 1993 U.S. Open Cup, which El Farolito, then known as CD Mexico, won in a final against the Milwaukee Bavarians, in a gone but not forgotten era of American soccer.

“You try to get your best team out there...If it’s for soccer, or if it's a person that’s going to be working as a cashier or the grill at the taqueria,” Santiago Lopez told U.S. Soccer as the current El Farolito head coach, restaurant manager and son of late founder, Salvador Don Chava Lopez.

“[Don Chava] never thought about the results...“He just did what he thought would be fun and never really wanted any attention.”

Only 16  MLS teams compete in this year’s tournament as the league continues a tentative relationship with the U.S. Open Cup. However, it’s still a competition that unites soccer in the U.S., now in its 111th year of competition.

This year’s El Farolito team featured 19 players who competed on the team that made a run last season and have been able to continue writing history, with the potential of playing more professional teams a possibility as they approach the third round set to be played from April 15-16.

They’ve got the Super Burrito on their menu and seemingly a super team on the pitch too– but how far can this story go? That’s the beauty of soccer; we just have to wait and see.

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