Crew fans ready for championship celebration

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The Columbus Crew won its third MLS Cup a couple of days ago, but some fans are still replaying the incredible moments from Saturday night in their heads.

“When you came in you just felt the stadium nearly shaking with the chants from the crew fans," Darby Schaaf said.

Schaaf was in the stands at Lower.com Field Saturday night to see the Crew win 2-1 over LAFC and raise the cup. Fans were on their feet the entire game.

“There was nothing like it, I was constantly high-fiving strangers and hugging everybody I saw, jumping up and down, my Fitbit was going crazy, it thought I was doing two hours of cardio during the game," Schaaf said.

Schaff is a former board member of Save The Crew, the effort that kept the team from being moved out of town. The Crew won the MLS Cup in 2020, but because of the pandemic, Schaaf and many others with Save The Crew could not see it in person. He said that made what they witnessed on Saturday even more meaningful.

“I don't know if we’ll ever be able to repeat this again, I'd like to do it again next year, but I think this first full in-person experience after the pandemic and after saving the team, you can't repeat this," he said. 

There will be a championship parade on Tuesday starting at noon. The team is encouraging fans to reserve parking ahead of time.

“I want to see the streets lined with just thousands of people. New fans, old fans of all shapes and sizes coming together to celebrate this team because this is what we worked for," Schaaf said.