Indy Eleven falls short of UNTHINKABLE U.S. Open Cup miracle (vs Sporting Kansas City)

Outside the stadium this is your soccer zombie Tom Franklin and hey why am I standing in front of this furniture store why was there a 2hour and 45 minute delay to the start of the game and why is this woman looking emotional while holding up a scarf because it's the open [Applause] cup no Dorothy we still are in Kansas we're just outside the Majestic Nebraska Furniture Mart but this isn't a Furniture Vlog this is a soccer Vlog and I'm back across the state of Missouri into Kansas at my rival Stadium once again but St Louis is not playing these guys are Indie 11 from the USL Championship they're taking on Sporting Kansas in the semifinals of the US Open cup how did we even get to this point well it's starting to rain so I could just get rained on right now or I can just tell you through the magic of post production if there is a main From Uncertainty to Underdog: the story of Indy Eleven in 2024 character in lower league soccer in America this season it's the indie1 that's because no other club supporters have gone through a character Arc quite like the Brickyard Battalion the year started with Hope on this patch of dirt near downtown Indianapolis where indie1 officials hope to turn this into this a soccer destination that would rival Indies Rivals to the South South Louisville City a long awaited Home of Their Own but in April all that changed I am today informing Indianapolis that as mayor I will be leading an effort to file a major league soccer application and pursue a club for our city these are from folks who are with the Brickyard Battalion and the other established fan groups they're not happy with you Mr Mayor youve called you have a team it's called the Indie 11 it's utterly classless to throw indie1 under to the bus sold out on a real franchise that spent years developing fans and planting Roots they're Furious it was a home back we have a soul we have a spirit Indie 11 officials were blindsided as were its fans and with the city pulling financial support for the project despite the mayor himself being there and celebrating it in 2023 and MLS commissioner Don Garber throwing a bucket of cold water on the idea during the All-Star Game festivities it's going going to be the end of expansion for a period of time until we're ready to expand again so right now there isn't a specific plan to expand the future of the 11 Park development and Indie 11 itself hangs in the balance a little over a week after the city Zone mayor dropped that MLS bombshell Indie 11 played fellow USL Championship Side San Antonio FC in the fourth round of the US Open cup and despite the club being off to a slow start this season they won 2-n to advance to the round of 16 a stiff test with Detroit City FC awaited a club currently fourth in the Eastern Conference of the USL championship at the time of this video just one spot above Indie Indie was not intimidated and they fired three first half goals to become the first Indiana Club to ever advance to the open cup quarterfinals MLS Giants Atlanta United stood in Indie 11's way a club that had won the open cup 5 years ago not even a year after winning the MLS Cup but luckily for India 11 Atlanta United is going through a bit of turmoil the season themselves and that's set the stage in kennol Georgia 45 Mi Northwest of Atlanta for Indie 11 to upset Atlanta United 2 to one and put themselves not just to win away from the US Open Cup finals but into every Daydream and fairy tale of anyone who has cheered for an underdog and they'll be underdogs once again but it's against another MLS club that isn't having a great year either Sporting Kansas City can Indie 11 go from the BR of Oblivion to the open Cup finals let's Pregame/weather delay antics find out thank you very much Tom from the future and it's really starting to rain here now as you can see so I'm going to put this away real quick but I just want to let you know real quick this is not going to be your typical soccer zombie Vlog this is not an away day review because I've already reviewed Children's Mercy Park you can check out that video uh right up there just click the thing on the uh top right of the corner this is going to focus on the game itself and again it's raining so I better put this away [Music] this game is being delayed weather here is pretty nasty you can probably hear the wind going into my microphone kind of a nasty nasty situation although it does look like it is clearing a little bit off to this direction but over here it is still uh raining and there's been some uh spats of lightning as well so we'll see when this game actually take place so yeah if uh this wasn't ideal it certainly wasn't ideal just about an hour ago when temperatures were close to about 100° they even let people bring in sealed bottles of water which they only do when there is a heat advisory in the area very hot very muggy uh in this part of the country now the temperature actually feels quite nice now uh of course I'm not standing in the rain there's a little bit of coverage above me here but in the concourses there's not a lot of coverage from the rain here which is problematic but uh we'll see how many people actually show up today cuz again the weather today was pretty awful looked like there was a lot of tickets available and this was this is 40 minutes before the game is supposed to start and not exactly kicking down the doors for this one unfortunately I'm so sorry St Louis but I still want one of these these wizard kits these are amazing sporting one of these incredibly awesome wizard kids is uh is Caleb here and uh we're taking shelter here from the rain inside the team store here but uh uh how much have you been looking forward to this match I mean it's uh I mean it is David versus Goliath and you're a fan of Goliath I am I mean we're not doing so great this season so uh this is about all we have yeah you have been playing better of late though you have won your last two so like are you feeling uh confident going into this one or you're I can actually I can read you on your face you're not I mean this game I'm feeling pretty good I don't know about like if we win this game I don't know how the final would go necessarily but we have been better we got some injuries now you just played Saturday and I didn't get the chance to see your lineup or anything like do you think you'll filled a full full strength squad tonight I think so we we uh arrested a couple starters they didn't come in until like later in the game and uh I like our chances so so expect a lot of pedo a lot of Tommy a lot of Russell today you think yeah definitely Tommy for sure he's the man yeah that's your guy right there he's the man you made the Trek you're here in the semifinals of the US Open cup months after the very future of your club was cast into doubt how crazy has this ride been for you it's been an amazing run it's been magical and it's been remarkable quite frankly you know after the bombshell drop with the whole MLS thing with the mayor you know the club went on I think it was 13 matches in a row unbeaten uh including 12 wins out of the 13 and so I mean I I can't even remember the last run of form that was that that was that impressive out of Indie 11 and so we were just you know we didn't know if we would you know ever lose again and on the other hand we didn't know if we'd have a club tomorrow we're just chugging along because our club is in is in the 11 we're in this competition we're we're trying to act as if nothing's wrong and enjoy the run because you know this is remarkable and we're happy to be here and we're we're thrilled to be here truthfully and and and and you know the backstory you know with the everything going on with MLS aside you're in the semifinals potentially one win away from the cona Champions Cup what would a win today mean for Indianapolis and the Indie 11 fans well it would certainly be a it would certainly be a statement to parties that want to to either get rid of or otherwise alter the status quo that we have with USL championship and with Indie 11 in particular but for us I have been a member of the Brickyard Medallion since 2011 I passed out flyers at the State Fair saying racing uh racing in the FC to MLS you know this has been a Grassroots movement since I was 13 years old and I just I don't know if you see lightning I don't know if it's really sunken in yet how impressive this is but when I was in Atlanta for the quarterfinal against Atlanta United I found myself sobbing in about the 89th minute when we were up 2-0 covering my face crying because it was so surreal and to be here today one win away from not only the open Cup final but as you said likely one win away from Kap Champions League that's an international competition a continental competition and we are a second division Club It's A Cinderella Story Beyond any Cinderella story that we've ever been a part of and I'm trying to I'm trying to absorb every moment and I'm trying to enjoy every moment because whether we have MLS problems whether we have MLS success whether we stay in USL Championship we don't know if we're ever getting back to this moment in any capacity with not only IND the 11 but any potential successor Club should something happen to ours but even despite the delay as you just heard Indie 11 fans very happy to be here this is a big game for them the biggest in their club's history assuming it does kick off tonight hopefully it does so it's been roughly an hour since the initial video announcing the weather delay and it's we're still in a weather delay um the clouds up here are not showing any signs of giving away I've been seeing some Thunder still rain has mostly stopped but yeah it's uh it's already 7:20 it's 20 minutes after the game was supposed to start we'll see if this gets going anytime soon I've been walking around this stadium for a little while and I have not seen a Messi Jersey yet starting to get worried hello Messi where are you Lono Messi the goat hello all right you recognize this guy if you saw the Louisville video he has bookended by summer soccer zombie tour he was at Louisville he's here in KC Jake Henry from St Louis and I got to ask you one question Jake are we ever going to play this freaking game no there you go there you have it your second time at Children's Mercy you were here earlier I mean a lot more emptier than it was before oh yeah just a little bit uh definitely not as many slightly less I think we might be the only ones here honestly we may not have soccer but we've got Nebraska Furniture Mart You'll Never sing that although if we're going by the front sign I guess it's just nesca Furniture Mart tonight no bras are for sale at uh nesa Furniture Mark it's a family store I am equal parts impressed and shocked that I still have not found a single lonel Messi Jersey in Children's Mercy park now when I was here a few months ago I didn't find one personally but others told me that there were messy jerseys in the house is KC messy resistant just absolutely unrelenting and still no messy Jersey anywhere like respect to the KC fans they're wearing most see their team colors the way it should be the time is 8:17 about 2 hours after the announcement that there is a weather delay no sign or indication that we'll be playing soccer anytime soon the rain has resumed I've seen the occasional thunder and lightning the lightning not so much Thunder I have and the doldrums have set in this game should be in the second half now but uh summertime weather in the middle of America had other plans I always believed I always believed so yeah Jersey here in Children's Mercy Park looking kind of dicey there for a little bit but we got it so if a messy Jersey can materialize when I want it to the most surely surely we'll have soccer tonight gotta believe like I said believe no you see that white circle there that's us you see all that green red and yellow crap that's the reason why we haven't been playing soccer that is moving away from us believe I'm tired me too actually 9 there is an end in sight finally [Applause] [Applause] we love you we love you we love you and everywhere we'll follow we'll follow we'll follow only in America can you have this kind of dichotomy you have a supporters group for KC right behind me and then you also have the a supporters here we are bored we are bored this is the boring start the this is boring get on with this [Applause] Adventure number 11 sh number 26 The match a 2hour and 45 minute delay has come to an end we have soccer in Kansas we here we go here we go Indie 11 is tagging the other side of the field I thought they were attacking this time but they pulled a little switch of Ru on us I guess but uh I have tickets on the other corter so we'll go there for now but again I'll be back with them in the second half I [Applause] Promise by [Applause] I'm bad y'all I'm bad don't let him back in City Park it's it's over okay that you're forgiven you're forgiven whatever yeah so Casey not messing around uh today that is for sure they started their strongest lineup their strongest attackers and Johnny Russell uh that's what Johnny Russell does it's uh 1 nil Casey really has owned this ball so far in the first 15 minutes and uh yeah it's kind of looking a little offsider already yeah he got [Applause] chopped come on Indie 11 will not get a better chance than the one they just had he had space he had time just fluffed it absolutely fluffed it oh very nice save wow [Music] [Applause] [Applause] like a bad date after the alcohol is worn off it's getting ugly [Applause] I was wrong they got a better chance and just like the first chance they screwed that up too rough day rough day at the office for the indie1 attack all Sporting Kansas City 2-n lead over indie1 Indie 11 looking quite frankly like a lower league team in this one um SKC has had the ball for pretty much almost all the first half you saw those two chances from Indie 11 that they couldn't convert on that's kind of uh that's kind of emblematic of just how things have gone for IND 11 tonight kind of a rough half for your boys what how do you think Quinn hey there's a lot of figh in this squad there's still 45 minutes and maybe a few more in change to go there's fighting this team and I you guys probably didn't hear it from way down here but The Cauldron was chanting you guys aren't singing over there do you have a message for The Cauldron the feeling's mutual we couldn't hear them either we only heard some drums after they scor and you definitely were singing and we definitely were singing everywhere second have it started here at Children's Mery Park we're back with the Brickyard Battalion who have not given up on this [Applause] let's go k [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] come on come on man man they're getting close [Applause] [Applause] lady Victory she for the lady victory victory vict [Applause] vict vict you know I haven't recorded the uh creative chance that Indie 11 has done that would probably get me demonetized on this channel but uh let's just say there's a big difference in USL chance versus MLS chance big [Music] difference oh my Indie 11 are starting to get their chances here it is the 74th minute hopefully not too little too late but they've definitely woken up in the last 10 minutes or so [Applause] oh my oh my gosh [Applause] win I [Applause] don't that's a penalty [Applause] all right a little Ray of [Music] Hope everywhere [Music] love and that's the way we like it we like it we love [Applause] it so tough night for the underdog IND the 11 falling in Children's Mercy Park 2 to nil today in a game that quite frankly KC controlled pretty thoroughly so you have to tip your hat towards KC today they just uh they just outplayed in the 11 they controlled the ball they control they converted on their chances heck of a run for the last USL Championship Club in the open cup and uh definitely uh definitely a good sign for lower league soccer that a team like India Le can make it this deep and they didn't get run out of the building like KC did dominate the game but like you saw at the end Indie 11 did have their chance as well if you enjoy this video please make sure to like And subscribe for more uh if you want to help me get to more games like this in the future please join the supporter section or consider joining the supporter section it's just 99 cents a month helps get me the games like this one and of course this concludes my USL tour of the past month I want to thank Jake Henry for being my co-pilot for the one in Louisville as well as this one here in KC book ending the star and finish of my tour and if you want to see all the other videos that I've done in the past month I got to play this for you right up here just start start digesting start eating it's good eating