Colorado Rapids Defender Rob Holding Bringing the Magic of the FA Cup to the U.S. Open Cup
A year into his American adventure, the two-time FA Cup winner with Arsenal has his sights set on delivering Colorado its first U.S. Open Cup title
It’s been just over a year since Colorado Rapids defender Rob Holding made the move to America. Born and raised in Stalybridge, England, Holding had spent the entirety of his career in England before signing with the Rapids in August 2025.
“The football part’s the easy part,” Holding explained. “When you’re on the pitch around a team environment playing football, that takes care of itself. It’s more the moving across the world and setting up a new life in a different culture [that can be a challenge]. But I’ve loved every minute of it being here so far. I really love Colorado, settling down here and going out adventuring around Denver and up into the Rockies.”
Supported by his girlfriend Sveindís Jónsdóttir—a forward for NWSL side Angel City FC and the Iceland women’s national team—and his parents, who flew in over the weekend to see Holding play for the Rapids in person for the first time, Holding has adjusted well to his new life in America. Jónsdóttir even packed up and made the move from Europe to the western United States alongside Holding.
On the pitch, the Rapids have enjoyed resurgent MLS and U.S. Open Cup campaigns thus far under the tutelage of first-year head coach Matt Wells. With Holding also entering his first full season with the club, the Rapids currently sit in seventh place in the Western Conference table, on track to qualify for the MLS Cup Playoffs for the third time since topping the Western Conference in 2021. In the Open Cup, the Rapids find themselves just two wins shy of their first tournament title.
“I think it’s been positive. We obviously had the new coach coming in at the start of the year, and there’s always a little bit of [growing pains] going through the season and getting the team into the right system that he wants to play and everyone learning the individual roles within that. I think at the start of the season we had some good performances where we could see the gaffer’s identity coming through, and then as we’veprogressed through the season, you can really start to see that now. We’ve got quite a clear identity on how we play, and it’s [been] proven in recent results, especially at home.”
Colorado has lost only three matches since returning from the FIFA World Cup break in late July. Thanks to some stellar goalkeeping from Nico Hansen and Adam Beaudry plus a stout defensive unit anchored by Holding, the Rapids have tallied six shutout wins during that span.
“I think it’s a high-press, defensive team,” Holding said of the Rapids’ tactical identity. “We like to press and not give the opposition time on the ball, and with the ball we have loads of good angles that we play with, and we attract the opposition to then exploit the spaces behind and build our way through the team.”
That stalwart, defensive identity under Wells shone through specifically in the Rapids’ run to their first Open Cup Semifinal appearance since 1999. The Rapids kicked off their participation with a 1-0 victory against USL League One power Union Omaha, overwhelming the third-division side and limiting the Owls to just two shots on target and 44% possession. In the Round of 16, Colorado again rose to the challenge, answering every goal from I-25 Derby rivals Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC before hanging on to advance on penalties. Finally, in the Quarterfinals, the Rapids shut out a strong San Jose Earthquakes side at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park.
A U.S. Open Cup title has eluded the Colorado Rapids across their 31 years of existence. The Rapids are one of just three active original MLS sides (San Jose Earthquakes, Red Bull New York) that have not capturedthe prestigious prize. With his side heating up at the right time, however, Holding—who is able to draw on previous success in domestic cup competitions—is confident in Colorado’s ability to capture the Open Cup.
Arsenal's Rob Holding celebrates with the trophy during the Emirates FA Cup Final match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on May 27, 2017 in London, England | Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images
“It’s something that we want to be challenging for as a club and winning trophies,” Holding said. “It’s something that the gaffer was very clear when he arrived through the door that he’s all about trophies and winning games of football. So, to get to a Semifinal in his first year is a great achievement, and we’re not satisfied unless we go and lift the trophy ourselves, so there’s definitely two more big games and a huge Semifinal in front of us.”
The 30-year-old defender spent the majority of his career in the English Premier League with Arsenal, also suiting up for Sheffield United and Crystal Palace after starting his professional career with Bolton Wanderers in the English Championship. With Arsenal, Holding won three FA Community Shields and two FA Cups, the latter being England’s closest equivalent to the U.S. Open Cup.
“It’s always magical,” Holding said of the FA Cup. “They always call it the magic of the FA Cup, and the Open Cup has that as well. You have some upsets with smaller teams beating big teams. It’s been fun, even when we played USL teams on this run as well, they gave us really tough games at home, and we’ve had to show our grip and get through those games. Then, when you go to a big club, it’s almost an expectancy that you have to win these games and win these trophies.
“I’ve been privileged enough to have won two FA Cups, and adding a U.S. Open Cup to that would be fantastic. To win the major cup competition in England, and then the major cup competition in America would be great.”
Holding and the Rapids are two wins away from doubling the club’s trophy cabinet. Before they can think ahead to a potential Final, they must first face the hottest team in MLS: a St. Louis CITY SC side riding a club-record 16-match unbeaten run. The second of two U.S. Open Cup Semifinals is set for Wednesday, Sept. 16, at DICK’S Sporting Goods Park (9:30 p.m. ET / Paramount+, CBS Sports Network).