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Jeff Carlisle, US soccer reporter
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Frankie Hejduk is in his element. The sky is overcast, with a late autumn chill in the air. But on the corner of North High and East Goodale, he stands next to a 1,600-pound, 15-foot-tall replica of the MLS Cup while wearing the colors of his beloved team, the Columbus Crew. In fact, Hejduk was so excited that he more than once jumped off the 5-foot platform on which the trophy replica sits as if he were navigating a half-pipe on a skateboard.
“As a former player, I’m very happy, mate,” Hejduk said. “I’m very proud of the guys and excited for what’s to come.”
What’s about to happen is that Columbus hosts the MLS Cup for the third time in nine seasons, with a match scheduled for Saturday against defending champion Los Angeles FC. The win will mark the third time the Crew have triumphed in the title match, joining the 2008 and 2020 teams, with Hejduk being part of the former, even scoring in that year’s final.
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However, the atmosphere this time around is distinctly different from that of any of the tournament’s teams, or even the 2015 team that fell in the final to the Portland Timbers. It feels like the football city has become complete. This is the club, which in 2017 was on the verge of relocating to Austin, Texas, only for a grassroots movement, Save the Crew, to rally and mobilize local support to the point where the team remained in place and new ownership was established. is found.
Even the 2020 title wasn’t as cathartic as one might expect. It was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and only 1,500 fans were allowed in the stands during the 3-0 win over the Seattle Sounders. Crew players Darlington Nagbe and Pedro Santos were forced to sit out the final after testing positive for COVID-19. Nagbe watched the game outside with his wife in their courtyard before resuming quarantine in his basement. There was no show after that.
“It was a weird day,” Nagbe told ESPN. “Obviously familiar teams are playing and you can’t be a part of them.”
Since then, a new 22,000-seat stadium, Lower.com Field, has been built. First-year director Wilfred Nancy was brought in with a cheerful aesthetic to match. The momentum generated was everything fans had hoped for. On Saturday, the stands will be filled with mostly Crew fans, with a few LAFC fans in the mix.
One example of the warm embrace between club and team is that every Wednesday since the start of the playoffs, there has been a reverse car wash – appropriately sponsored by a local car wash chain – where Crew employees will decorate fans’ cars in Crew colors in black. And gold.
“We’re in a football renaissance in Columbus right now, and everything is going our way,” said David Miller, who handled communications for the Save the Crew movement. “And because the community came out and saved this team and proved that we can keep it going, the future is incredibly bright.
0:30
Steve Cherundolo is non-committal about Carlos Vela’s future
Los Angeles FC coach Steve Cherundolo praises team captain Carlos Vela and hopes the Mexican striker will stay in California next season.
“We have this very talented roster. I’m looking for MLB Cup No. 4 and 5 in the next two years. There’s no reason not to expect that with what we have here.”
When asked to describe the atmosphere around the crew these days, Chris Lamacchia, communications director for the Nordiques Supporters Group, put it succinctly. “It’s much higher.”
As far as the lead-up to the election goes, things haven’t been all light and sweet in Ohio’s capital. On Monday, Crew season ticket holders were supposed to have access to a window where they could purchase tickets for Saturday’s final. But the access code for sponsors to purchase tickets was leaked on social media, and tickets were quickly snapped up before the season ticket holder window even opened. This included the Nordique Zone, the part of the stadium where most of the team’s fans reside.
“I logged in and [almost] The entire stadium was grey. “There were some blue spots, but nothing at the Nordics,” said Luke Johnston, a member of the Nordic Brass Group, a group of eight fans who bring their horns to the stadium and play alongside the drum line. “My heart just dropped because it was like if I had to get a ticket somewhere else and I couldn’t get into the Nordiques, this wasn’t going to work. I could bring my trumpet and play in another part of the stadium, but it’s not the same.”
Panic broke out among supporters and the crew organization. They were facing the prospect of reaching the MLS Cup Final without the atmosphere that helped make Lower.com Field a fortress during the season, where the Crews went 12-1-4 at home. There will be no Nordics. They don’t repeat. There is no drum line. No Nordic Brass. No tifo.
“We have a piece of art that’s 40 feet by 60 feet and we’re going to lift it up. You can’t do it with just one person,” Lamacchia said. “It takes a small army to bring the match-day atmosphere to a normal home game, and here we were looking to do it with five or 10 people.”
The crew’s front office reached out to MLS, which reached out to Ticketmaster. Ultimately, transactions purchased using the leaked access code were cancelled. However, some damage has been done. LaMacchia noted how one fan bought a $1,200 “edge seat” — already one of the pricier seats in the stadium — when it looked as if he wouldn’t get into the stadium at all. But on Tuesday, another purchasing window opened, and season ticket holders were able to get their tickets.
“It’s been stressful — more stressful than anything I’ve ever experienced as a leader of an advocacy group, simply because of all the uncertainty,” LaMacchia said. “People tend to panic and lash out. I think I’ve been called every name in the book this week somewhere on Twitter or Reddit, but I mean that comes with the territory. A lot of it is due to the uncertainty of Monday and Tuesday of ‘Are we going to get tickets?’
1:55
Nagbe talks about the Columbus Crew’s journey to the MLS Cup Final
Columbus Crew captain Darlington Nagbe talks about what it means to reach the MLS Cup Final.
Almost lost in the shuffle is the fact that LAFC is trying to join some select companies. A win on Saturday would make Steve Cherundolo’s team only the fourth in league history to win back-to-back MLS Cups. This would also serve as another way to beat rivals LA Galaxy, given that the Galaxy are the most recent team to win back-to-back titles, having done so in 2011 and 2012.
To celebrate the occasion, LAFC ownership is chartering two flights, including all employees, players’ family members and special guests. (However, Olly the Falcon will not make the trip.) With about 500 members of the 3,252 supporter group heading to Columbus, LAFC will be well represented.
In the context of the 2023 season, Cherundolo told ESPN that the campaign was “boring” and “hard work.” There were some bright moments, but also the blows of losing in the CONCACAF Champions League final to Lyon, and the Championship Cup to Tigres. However, he considers the season a success and does not feel any additional pressure.
“I don’t think we’re preoccupied with this moment at all. I think we’re just focused on trying to win another game and not a lot of what this or that means,” Cherundolo said. “I think we look at this game as one game and we will try to win this game.”
LAFC has made its way through the playoffs, featuring the opposite approach to that of the Crew. While Columbus had everything and had a clear combination, Los Angeles took counterattacking to the extreme, winning the Western Conference Final against the Houston Dynamo with just 30.9% possession. It makes sense given Denis Bouanga and Carlos Vela’s dynamism in the open field, but the contrast in styles is still shocking. Cherundolo once told ESPN that “there are a lot of different ways to win a football game,” and he seems determined to prove that adage true.
“I still stand by these words, and this is the way I coach the teams I coach,” Cherundolo said in an exclusive interview. “And for me, it’s great to have a style of play, but it’s more important to have solutions at every stage. And for me, I don’t need it. The players need it. So my job is to give the players tools to win matches, to defend the goal if necessary, But also to score goals if the team is in a lower block.
“I think what separated us from everyone else last year is that I think we were the more complete team, and I think we showed this year that we are also capable of winning games in any way or fashion. And that for me, if you want to put in a situation my style is going to be to be able to Winning in every way, with the ball and without the ball.”
1:30
Crepeau: Special for returning to the MLS Cup after breaking his leg in last year’s final
LAFC’s Maxime Crepeau looks back on breaking his leg in last year’s MLS Cup and previews the showdown against Columbus.
LAFC has its own version of Nagbe, at least emotionally. Goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau broke his leg in last year’s MLS Cup final and therefore missed the celebration held when the Black and Gold won the subsequent shootout.
Crépeau returned this season to play a big role in LAFC’s path to the final, especially in the conference semifinals against Seattle. He says he had a “big smile” on his face all week and is enjoying his football again. The question is then asked of how difficult it is to find that joy when every match is filled with pressure and knowing that setbacks can pile up.
“It’s very easy because when you have a certain amount of time away from the game – it took me nine or 10 months – you tend to forget how much fun it is to be with your teammates on the field, to give them more fun.” It’s just, how fun it is to win. You miss those feelings. So when I say that, it’s just about being able to [surround] “I’m with the players around me and my teammates and I’m really winning games.”
However, the crew is determined to have their moment not only in regards to Saturday but also because of where the team has been. And what could it be. Among them is Hejduk, the team’s number one fan. He says more than once that he has 30,000 friends in the stadium. Given the man’s charm and charisma, one is inclined to believe him.
“My friend, what I’ve always wanted here in Columbus is for this to be a soccer town, and these fans have made that happen,” he said. “I hope we make them proud as players who do the same thing. And I think the players you’ll see on Saturday are just following in our footsteps, man. We’re making the city proud and they’re making the city.” Proud and kind of a big family.”
