Columbus Crew 2
Full nameColumbus Crew 2
Nickname(s)Crew 2, Capybaras[1][2]
FoundedDecember 6, 2021; 2 years ago (2021-12-06)
StadiumHistoric Crew Stadium
Capacity19,968
OwnerColumbus Crew
General managerCorey Wray
Head coachVacant
LeagueMLS Next Pro
20233rd, Eastern Conference
1st, Central Division
Playoffs: Runner-up
WebsiteClub website
Current season

Columbus Crew 2 is a professional soccer team based in Columbus, Ohio that competes in the MLS Next Pro league, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew. The team plays home matches at Historic Crew Stadium. The team was announced as a member of MLS Next Pro on December 6, 2021.[3]

History

On December 6, 2021, the Columbus Crew announced the formation of a reserve team in MLS Next Pro that would begin play in the 2022 season and that they would play at Historic Crew Stadium (the parent club's former home venue) in Columbus, Ohio.[4] At the same time, the club announced its first manager, Corey Wrey, who is the Crew's current Assistant General Manager, a position he will continue to hold.[5] The Crew 2 will be one of 21 teams that play in the newly formed league.[6] On January 28, 2022, the Crew announced that Laurent Courtois would serve as the team's first head coach.[7]

The club played their first match on March 26, 2022, which ended in a 0–2 loss to Inter Miami CF II at DRV PNK Stadium.[8] The first win came the following week with a 1–0 victory over Chicago Fire FC II.[9]

Crew 2 won the first ever MLS Next Pro Cup title, defeating St. Louis City SC 2 4-1 on October 8, 2022.[10]

The following year, the team once again qualified for the playoffs and made it to the Cup Final. They were defeated 1–3 by Austin FC II.[11]

Players and staff

Current roster

As of November 20, 2023[12]
No. Pos. Player Nation
7 MF Ariel Mbumba  DR Congo
17 FW Jordan Knight  Canada
18 FW Gibran Rayo  United States
34 DF Diego Almeida  Ecuador
49 MF Cole Mrowka  United States
52 FW Taha Habroune  United States
60 GK Stanislav Lapkes  Belarus
— MF Giorgio De Libera  United States
— MF Terron Williams  United States

Staff

As of September 7, 2023[13]
Front office
Investor-operators Dee and Jimmy Haslam
JW and Whitney Johnson
Dr. Pete Edwards
President Tim Bezbatchenko
General Manager Corey Wray
Director of Player Development Dan Lock
Coaching staff
Head coach Vacant
Assistant coach Kobie Johnson
Goalkeeper coach Alex Blackburn
Performance coach Ahmad Salamah
Additional staff
Manager of Soccer Operations Elena Lemus
Head Athletic Therapist Sara Kusner
Equipment Manager Mike Peters

Last updated: 14:20, September 7, 2023 (UTC)
Source: [1]

Team records

Season-by-season

As of September 24, 2023
Season MLS Next Pro Playoffs Top Scorer
P W D L GF GA GD Pts Div. Conf. Overall Player Goals
2022 24 16 5 3 62 22 +40 55 1st 1st 1st Champions Canada Jacen Russell-Rowe 21
2023 28 16 3 9 58 46 +12 54 1st 3rd 5th Runner-up United States Gibran Rayo 11

Head coaches record

As of October 22, 2023
Name Nationality From To P W D L GF GA Win%
Laurent Courtois  France January 28, 2022 January 8, 2024 59 38 8 13 137 77 064.41

Honors

National
Competitions Titles Seasons
MLS Next Pro Cup 1 2022
MLS Next Pro Regular Season 1 2022
Eastern Conference 1 2022
Eastern Conference (Playoffs) 2 2022, 2023
Eastern Conference Central Division 2 2022, 2023

Monthly Awards

Player of the Month

Goalkeeper of the Month

Annual Awards

MLS Next Pro Most Valuable Player

Golden Boot

Goalkeeper of the Year

Coach of the Year

MLS Next Pro Cup MVP


See also

References

  1. ^ Asta, Diana (July 10, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2 visits the zoo to celebrate Capybara appreciation day". WSYX. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  2. ^ Snipes, Tyler (September 24, 2022). "Capybaras in Columbus? The story behind Crew 2's unexpected identity". MLSNextPro.com. Retrieved September 24, 2022.
  3. ^ "Crew 2". ColumbusCrew.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  4. ^ Benatar, Orri (December 6, 2021). "Columbus Crew launches development team, Crew 2". NBC4 WCMH-TV. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  5. ^ Murphy, Pat (December 6, 2021). "Columbus Crew announces the creation of Crew 2". Massive Report. Archived from the original on December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  6. ^ MLSsoccer staff (December 6, 2021). "MLS NEXT Pro unveils 21 clubs for inaugural season starting March 2022". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  7. ^ Crew Communications (January 28, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2 appoints Laurent Courtois as first Head Coach". ColumbusCrew.com. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  8. ^ mlsnextpro. "Rodriguez brace powers Inter Miami II over Columbus Crew 2 | MLSSoccer.com". mlsnextpro. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
  9. ^ devinweisbarth (April 10, 2022). "Crew 2 looks to keep momentum following first win in team history". Massive Report. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  10. ^ Tellitud, Jesus (October 8, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2 hoist MLS NEXT Pro Cup with 4-1 win over St Louis CITY2". MLS Next Pro. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  11. ^ mlsnextpro. "CLBvsATX 10-22-2023 | MLSNEXTPro.com". mlsnextpro. Retrieved October 23, 2023.
  12. ^ "Columbus Crew 2 announces 2023 end-of-year roster decisions". ColumbusCrew.com. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  13. ^ "Crew 2 Technical Staff". ColumbusCrew.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  14. ^ mlsnextpro. "MLS NEXT Pro Monthly Awards: May | MLSNEXTPro.com". mlsnextpro. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  15. ^ mlsnextpro. "MLS NEXT Pro Monthly Awards: June | MLSNEXTPro.com". mlsnextpro. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  16. ^ mlsnextpro. "MLS NEXT Pro Monthly Awards: August | MLSNEXTPro.com". mlsnextpro. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  17. ^ "MLS NEXT Pro names Jacen Russell-Rowe first-ever Most Valuable Player". MLSnextpro.com. MLS Next Pro. October 7, 2022. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
  18. ^ "Columbus Crew 2's Jacen Russell-Rowe wins 2022 MLS NEXT PRO Golden Boot with the most goals". MLSnextpro.com. MLS Next Pro. September 18, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  19. ^ Schneider, Jacob (September 23, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2 goalkeeper Patrick Schulte named MLS NEXT Pro Goalkeeper of the Year". MLSnextpro.com. MLS Next Pro. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
  20. ^ Schneider, Jacob (September 23, 2022). "Columbus Crew 2's Laurent Courtois named MLS NEXT Pro Coach of the year". MLSnextpro.com. MLS Next Pro. Retrieved September 23, 2022.

External links

Columbus Crew
MLS Next Pro
Soccer in the United States
Sports teams based in Ohio
Categories