COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Columbus Crew announced today that it will play host to the MLS-rival Los Angeles Galaxy on Tuesday, April 24, at 7:30 p.m., at Crew Stadium, in a U.S. Open Cup qualifying match. The game will be included in all full season-ticket packages, as "Special Game A," and tickets will go on sale to the general public this Saturday, March 10, at 9 a.m. - along with single-game tickets for all 15 regular-season home games in 2007 - at the Crew Stadium Box Office and all central Ohio Ticketmaster retail locations, via Ticketmaster phone at 614-431-3600 and on-line at TheCrew.com and Ticketmaster.com. Tickets will be priced the same as those for regular-season matches.
With the busiest summer in the history of soccer in the United States approaching for both professional clubs and the U.S. National Teams, the number of Major League Soccer teams that will enter the tournament proper has been reduced to eight. However, every U.S.-based MLS squad will participate in the tournament either in qualifying rounds or in the tournament proper.
It marks the first time since 2002 - when the Crew won the tournament - that all eligible MLS teams will not participate in the U.S. Open Cup tournament proper, due to that schedule congestion, but each will have the chance to qualify for the tournament. The top six MLS teams from the 2006 standings are being placed in the tournament proper, while the six remaining teams will play qualifying matches. The Crew vs. Galaxy and Kansas City Wizards vs. Real Salt Lake will make up the first qualifying round, with the winners facing the New York Red Bulls and Colorado Rapids, respectively, for a chance to qualify for the tournament.
The U.S. Open Cup is an annual, single-elimination tournament open to all amateur and professional soccer teams affiliated with U.S. Soccer. The tournament has crowned a champion for 93 consecutive years dating back to 1914. The runner-up takes home a $50,000 cash prize, while the champion collects $100,000. The winner also will have the team's name engraved on the historic Dewar Challenge Trophy, the oldest trophy in American team sports that is housed in the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, N.Y.
Fans can still become Crew Soccer Nation members, as well, by purchasing full-season ticket packages or partial plans. Group tickets are also available for all 15 home games. All ticket packages and plans are available by calling 614-447-CREW and at TheCrew.com.
Complete 2007 Columbus Crew Schedule >
OUGHTON, NGWENYA RECEIVE GREEN CARDS
Midfielders Duncan Oughton and Joseph Ngwenya have been granted "green cards," or Lawful Permanent Residency, by the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Having attained that status, they will no longer be classified as Senior Internationals by Major League Soccer and won't count against the league's roster limit of four per team. Oughton, the Crew's longest tenured player (2001), is a native of New Zealand, while Ngwenya hails from Zimbabwe.
BUSCH SELECTED BY TORONTO FC IN WAIVER DRAFT
Former Crew goalkeeper Jon Busch was selected by Toronto FC Monday in the 2007 MLS Waiver Draft that was held via conference call from New York. Busch, 30, was one of four players waived by the Crew last Friday in order to comply with the league's roster requirements. Season-ending injuries in each of the last two seasons limited Busch to a total of 17 games in 2005-06. He was originally drafted by the Crew No. 23 overall in the 2002 MLS SuperDraft and holds most of the club's career goalkeeping records.
UPCOMING PRESEASON SCHEDULE
The Crew will be in town training at the SuperKick/TeamZone facility in Lewis Center (409 Orangepointe Drive) through Thursday (March 8). The current schedule follows, but it is subject to change, so please contact Dave Stephany or Jason Smith to confirm in advance. The team leaves for Dallas on Friday (March 9), where it will face FC Dallas in the inaugural Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup Sunday, March 11, at 6 p.m. (ET). The game will be televised live on Fox Soccer Channel. A week in California follows, during which the Crew will play games against defending NCAA-champion UC-Santa Barbara, UC-Irvine and the Los Angeles Galaxy.
MARCH
7 9:30 a.m. - Training
8 9:30 a.m. - Training
9 Depart for Dallas
10 Training in Dallas
11 6 p.m. (ET) - vs. Dallas in Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup (Live on Fox Soccer Channel)
12 Depart for California
13 AM Training
14 AM Training
15 AM Training; 10 p.m. (ET) - Exhibition at UC-Santa Barbara
16 AM Training; 10 p.m. (ET) - Exhibition at UC-Irvine
17 Clinic at Irvine and Valencia
18 8 p.m. (ET) - Exhibition vs. L.A. Galaxy at Santa Clarita
19 Return to Columbus
