COLUMBUS, Ohio - Columbus Crew SC may have only changed their crest and tweaked their name, but Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber sees the change as symbolic of a new direction for the club, thanks to owner Anthony Precourt.
"This is a new beginning for the Crew," Garber said at the team's rebrand event Wednesday. "It started when Anthony Precourt came in, and now they’ve been able to execute on Anthony’s vision, which is to be a bigger part of this city, to capture the new energy in the town and relaunch the brand and try to build on all the history that’s here. He’s done a wonderful job."
The new crest, he said, helps harken to Columbus' important stature among MLS cities and franchises.
"I don’t think you can succeed in sports without a true identity, and the Crew have always had that," he said. "They’re a founding team; Lamar Hunt [club's first owner] was a founder of our league, coming to Columbus, putting a stake in the ground and building the first stadium; the first draft pick in Brian McBride, who really was the first great American national team player in our generation … and it really is the home ground for the US national team. So when you think of all that, trying to reflect that in a badge is really important."
Columbus may be one of the smaller markets in MLS, but Garber said he sees each city – including Columbus – as an important part of how MLS will grow.
"You have to make it in every market," he said. "You have to make it in big markets and small markets, and I think the Crew reflects what motivates us in Major League Soccer. (Columbus) is a place that, before we came here, wasn’t a soccer town. Now it’s a place where rabid fans from all over America come to represent their national team."
And as the league grows, Garber can see the market for Crew SC soccer expanding.
"If we don’t have teams that are in close proximity, it could own this region," he said. "This is a town that has 100,000-plus people supporting their football team every Saturday during the college football season, so we know this is a big sports town."
But Garber made it clear that while he's happy with the new direction in Columbus, the club still has work to do in the community, including a "deeper connection" with corporate companies in the city. To achieve that goal, Garber said he's spent as much time in Columbus as in any of the other MLS cities over the past two years.
"I think they’ve rallied the fans, they’re doing better with season ticket sales, but there are a lot of big companies in Columbus and we want those companies to start really getting engaged, like Barbasol has in supporting this team," he said. "The Columbus partnership has been terrific, they love the fact that the Crew are here, but we need more. I think if we can get naming rights on (Crew Stadium) we’ll feel really good about the support we have in town."
Andrew King covers the Columbus Crew for MLSsoccer.com.
