Columbus Crew
The Columbus Crew is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one of the 10 charter clubs of the league. The team is currently operated by an ownership group led by the Haslam family (also owners of the Cleveland Browns and Pilot Corporation) and former team physician Pete Edwards. The Haslam/Edwards group is the third ownership group in club history.
| Full name | Columbus Crew | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Crew The Black and Gold | ||
| Founded | June 15, 1994 | ||
| Stadium | Lower.com Field Columbus, Ohio | ||
| Capacity | 20,371 | ||
| Owners | Dee and Jimmy Haslam JW and Whitney Johnson Pete Edwards | ||
| President | Tim Bezbatchenko | ||
| Head coach | Wilfried Nancy | ||
| League | Major League Soccer | ||
| 2023 | Eastern Conference: 3rd Overall: 3rd Playoffs: Champions | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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The franchise was founded in 1994. Its stadium is Lower.com Field, opened in 2021. From 1999 to 2021, the Crew played home games at Historic Crew Stadium (formerly Mapfre Stadium and Columbus Crew Stadium), the first soccer-specific stadium built for an MLS team, with a seating capacity of 19,968 as of the 2015 season. From 1996 to 1998, the Crew played its home games at Ohio Stadium on the campus of Ohio State University. In 2023, the team set club attendance records for both most cumulative attendance and most sellouts.
The Crew have won seven major trophies: the MLS Cup in 2008, 2020 and 2023; the Supporters' Shield in 2004, 2008, and 2009; and the 2002 U.S. Open Cup. The Crew have qualified for the CONCACAF Champions Cup (or its predecessor, the CONCACAF Champions League) five times, reaching the quarter-finals on the first three occasions. In 2021, the club won their first continental trophy by winning the Campeones Cup.