The Columbus Crew have played the first couple months of the 2025 MLS season as they’ve done the past few years — selling out Lower.com Field and sitting near the top of the league standings as a true MLS Cup threat. Fans like Morgan Hughes, one of the notable leaders of the Save the Crew movement in 2017 and 2018, have been through all the ups and downs of Crew fandom over the years but are savoring every moment of this historic run in one of best stadiums in the league.

We spoke with Hughes ahead of the home leg of this year’s “Hell is Real” rivalry against in-state foe FC Cincinnati to understand more about why the Crew has made an indelible mark on him and Columbus.
 

Q: When did your Crew fandom begin?
A: I was born in Columbus. I was raised in Columbus. I will die in Columbus. I love sports, and the intersection of those two things is something I’m passionate about. There will never be a team in Columbus that I won’t love and support.

Q: But there was something about the Crew that captivated you. What was it?
A: I think the story of the Columbus Crew is a lesson in the power of community. It’s intoxicating to build these memories with the people you love and cherish and meet more people along the way.I met my wife at a Crew game. My family wouldn’t exist if not for the Columbus Crew. That’s powerful. It’s something you can never walk away from.

Q: It’s been almost four years since Lower.com Field opened. It was a long dream of a lot of fans to have a stadium on this very site. Has this stadium been everything you thought it would be?
A: Yes, and more. I remember driving down (Interstate) 670 in the early 2000s and literally looking at this plot of land and going, ‘Man, if the Columbus Crew and the Columbus Clippers could ever play here…’ Then fast forward to now, all our teams are here. It’s magic. It’s pure, unadulterated magic. It’s truly a special place. Again, it’s a testament to the power of this community to will this stadium into existence.

Q: What are some great memories you’ve had at this stadium so far?
A: Any good memory, any good story — it involves people. I think about wins and losses and trophies and heartbreaks and elation on the field. But it’s the people around you that make that memorable. There’s a reason you come to the games and don’t watch them on TV. It’s because of the people. So when I think of the massive moments in Crew history, it’s really just a memory of my friends and family around me celebrating. When I think of this stadium, I think of the people that fill it.
 

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Q: You’ve supported the Crew on the road several times. What are some venues, or places you’ve been that you’d recommend?
A: My favorite away trip is Montreal. It’s like going to Europe but staying on the same continent. It’s a former Olympic village. It’s really unique. Houston is a blast. Portland is weird — it’s an old baseball stadium from the early 1900s that they play soccer in. It’s cool in its weirdness. Just travel and go see the Crew. It’s a good reason to get out of town, see something you love, and experience something different along the way.

Q: What does it say about the imprint of this team on Columbus that you can have a great experience with fans at games in another city?
A: It’s the story of a powerful city that has a great team and is also on the rise. When you’re outside Columbus and wearing something that says Columbus, your chest puffs out a little further and you walk a little taller. That’s the power of this city and the power of this fanbase. It’s in you, and when you’re away from home, you want other people to feel it.

Q: We’re coming up on the first “Hell is Real” match of the season against rival FC Cincinnati. What’s your pitch to fans of our other great Columbus teams, who haven’t been to a game or have only been to a few, to really dive into being a Crew fan?
A: It is truly the people’s club. That doesn’t happen everywhere — that doesn’t happen anywhere. I don’t have to make a sales pitch for the Columbus Crew — it sells itself. Come experience the first night of the rest of your life.

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