Columbus Crew Interim General Manager Mark McCullers announced today that The Crew will open its 2005 MLS season at Crew Stadium on Saturday, April 2, at 7:30 p.m. vs. the Los Angeles Galaxy.
"The whole Crew organization is anxiously anticipating the 10th MLS Season," said McCullers. "It's hard to believe that the season opener is just over three months away, but our staff has been working diligently on the 2005 season since the summer and we are extremely excited for the start of our 10th MLS season and the seventh season in Crew Stadium. We have made some improvements and upgrades to our season ticket packages and are looking forward to providing our fans a first-class experience both on and off the field."
Currently, the only way to get tickets to The Crew home opener is to purchase a season-ticket package, which start as low as $49. Interested parties can call 614-447-Crew, visit The Crew Stadium Box Office or visit the official website at TheCrew.Com for details and pricing. Please note that The Crew offices will be closed from Dec. 24 to Jan. 3 for the Holidays and any calls placed will be returned as soon as possible.
The 2005 Crew season will feature a 32-game schedule, including 16 home games and 16 road games. The regular season begins in April and will run through mid-October with the playoffs beginning in mid-to-late October. MLS Cup is set for Sunday, November 13, at the Frisco (Texas) Soccer & Entertainment Center, which will be the new home of FC Dallas. The full season schedule is expected to be released in January.
Major League Soccer's 12 clubs continue their preparations ahead of the 2005 MLS SuperDraft, which will take place in Baltimore, Maryland on Friday, January 14 in conjunction with the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention at the Baltimore Convention Center.
The other match-ups scheduled for the opening weekend include the first-ever games for the expansion clubs Club Deportivo Chivas USA and Real Salt Lake. First Kick 2005 will be the highly anticipated first game in the history of Chivas USA as they play host to MLS Cup champion D.C. United at The Home Depot Center in a match to be broadcast live on ABC Sports (3:00 p.m. ET). The listing of the full slate of matches on opening weekend follows below:
SATURDAY - APRIL 2, 2005
D.C. United @ CD Chivas USA (ABC Sports, 3:00 p.m. ET)
Real Salt Lake @ MetroStars (7:00 p.m. ET)
Los Angeles Galaxy @ Columbus Crew (7:30 p.m. ET)
Colorado Rapids @ Kansas City Wizards (8:00 p.m. ET)
FC Dallas @ Chicago Fire (8:30 p.m. ET)
New England Revolution @ San Jose Earthquakes (10:00 p.m. ET)
