USL Jagermeister Cup Final - Sacramento Republic vs Hartford Athletic

Photography by Gabriel Bayona Sapag

The Jägermeister Cup is secure. Went straight into the belly of the beast in Sacramento and pulled off the improbable to claim the club’s first-ever trophy. From the jump, it looked like a titanic endeavor. As we roamed around the pre-game tailgate (and got offered food almost a dozen times), you could tell that this was a special one for the city. There were kids playing soccer all over the lot, their parents chatted nervously with fellow fans to pass the time until kickoff, and there seemed to be an atmosphere that this would be the night for Sac Republic. Their first trophy since that mythical USL Championship win in their inaugural season back in 2014. Some of the kids zooming all over the stadium hadn’t even been born yet!

As soon as the opening whistle blew, a sold-out Heart Health Park roared and clawed throughout the night, seemingly inching their team closer to victory. But Hartford had other plans. What haven’t they been through after all? Molded by years of adversity, this was finally their time for glory. You could argue it made last night that much sweeter. All the times the ball never bounced in their favor was perhaps just all leading up to this. A valiant performance for the ages, and an incredible undefeated run in the Jägermeister Cup that’ll live on forever in the hearts of all those unwavering Hartford fans.