Sports stats



MLS Columbus Crew SC

Crew Unveils 2003 Schedule

January 7, 2003 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Columbus Crew SC News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - Major League Soccer today released the schedule for its eighth season. The 30-game Columbus Crew and 150-game MLS schedule will kick off with a "MLS Opening Day" in America's Soccer Capital -- Columbus, Ohio -- on Saturday, April 5.

The 2002 U.S. Open Cup Champion Crew will play host to defending MLS Cup Champion and Open Cup runner-up Los Angeles on Saturday, April 5 at 4 p.m. at Columbus Crew Stadium in the only game played that day. The game will be televised nationally on ABC Sports. The League returns to a single-game opening day for the first time since the 1996 and 1997 seasons.

The Crew's 15-game MLS regular-season home schedule will be played in Columbus Crew Stadium, the club's fifth season in the world-renown soccer-specific venue. Two of the popular Wednesday Buck-a-Brat Nights join 12 Saturday dates and one Sunday date to make up the home portion of the schedule. Eighty-Nine percent of the League's game are played on weekends or holidays, the highest percentage in MLS history.

Ten of the Saturday games and both Wednesday matches are currently slated for 7:30 p.m. starts, with one Saturday at 4 p.m. and the remaining Saturday and Sunday game still to be determined. Times may change when the national television schedule is released in the near future.

The Crew is in the five team Eastern Conference along with fierce rivals Chicago and D.C United, both of which Columbus will face four times - twice at home and twice on the road. The Crew will also face Eastern Conference foes New England and NY/NJ four times (twice at home and twice on the road).

The Crew will face four of the five Western Conference opponents three times (two of them at home twice and once on the road once, and two on the road twice and once at home). The only Western Conference foe that The Crew will play just twice is Colorado, who they play once at home and once away. The remaining four games against the Western Conference (two home, two away), were determined based on competitive seeding, according to 2002 regular-season performances.

"With two of our famous Wednesday Buck-a-Brat Nights added to 12 Saturday matches and one Sunday matinee, I am very excited about the makeup of our 2003 home schedule," Crew President/General Manager Jim Smith said. "It is very favorable from the standpoint of what our fans have told us they want. We also start later in the spring and extend further into the fall, allowing us to be in season at the same time as many of our youth and high school soccer constituencies for longer than before, which I think is a real positive."

The eight remaining MLS teams will open their seasons during the weekend of April 12-13, while the Galaxy christen their new soccer-specific stadium, the much-anticipated Home Depot Center on June 7.

The Galaxy's new home, a 27,000-seat, state-of-the-art jewel on the campus of Cal State - Dominguez Hills, will also host Major League Soccer's two marquee events: the 2003 Pepsi MLS All-Star Game (date TBD) and MLS Cup 2003. The eighth MLS title game will be played on Sunday, November 23, at 3:30 p.m. ET and televised live on ABC Sports.

Major League Soccer's 2003 SuperDraft takes place on Friday, January 17 in conjunction with the NSCAA convention in Kansas City, Missouri.

Currently, the only way to acquire tickets for The Crew home games is to purchase a season-ticket package. Interested parties can call 614-447-Crew or visit TheCrew.Com for details and pricing.

Highlights of the 2003 season include:

· 30-game regular season adds two games to regular-season slate and maximizes weekend dates.

· MLS Soccer Saturday's "appointment viewing" at 4 p.m. ET continues on ABC and ESPN2.

· Eighth regular season concludes on Sunday, October 26, with the 2003 MLS Cup Playoffs commencing on the weekend of November 1.

· Eight teams advance to postseason (top four teams from each Conference).

· Conference Semifinal series conducted under a home-and-home, aggregate goal format; one-game Conference Championships determine MLS Cup Finalists.

· If Conference Semifinal series or a Conference Championship Game is tied, then 30-minute golden-goal overtime and penalty kicks, if necessary, are employed to determine who advances to MLS Cup 2003.

· MLS Cup 2003 on Sunday, November 23 at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles.

· 2003 Pepsi MLS All-Star Game is also at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles (date TBD).

- The Crew's 2003 Season Schedule Follows -

Date Day Opponent Time (ET) TV
4/5 Sat. LOS ANGELES GALAXY 4 p.m. ABC (National)
4/12 Sat. at MetroStars*
4/19 Sat. at New England Revolution*
4/26 Sat. METROSTARS* TBD
5/3 Sat. at Kansas City Wizards
5/10 Sat. COLORADO RAPIDS 7:30 p.m.
5/17 Sat. at San Jose Earthquakes
5/24 Sat. NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION* 7:30 p.m.
5/31 Sat. METROSTARS* 7:30 p.m.
6/7 Sat. SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES 7:30 p.m.
6/14 Sat. at D.C. United*
6/21 Sat. at San Jose Earthquakes
6/28 Sat. D.C. UNITED* 7:30 p.m.
7/5 Sat. DALLAS BURN 7:30 p.m.
7/19 Sat. KANSAS CITY WIZARDS 7:30 p.m.
7/23 Sat. NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION* 7:30 p.m.
TBD 2003 MLS All-Star Game at L.A. TBD ABC (National)
8/9 Sat. at Los Angeles Galaxy
8/13 Wed. CHICAGO FIRE* 7:30 p.m.
8/16 Sat. at Colorado Rapids
8/23 Sat. at Dallas Burn
8/30 Sat. KANSAS CITY WIZARDS 7:30 p.m.
9/3 Wed. at Los Angeles Galaxy
9/7 Sun. at Chicago Fire*
9/13 Sat. DALLAS BURN 7:30 p.m.
9/20 Sat. at MetroStars*
9/27 Sat. at New England Revolution*
10/4 Sat. D.C. UNITED* 7:30 p.m.
10/11 Sat. at Chicago Fire*
10/18 Sat. at D.C. United*
10/26 Sun. CHICAGO FIRE* TBD
11/23 Sun. MLS Cup 2003 at L.A. 3:30 p.m. ABC (National)

HOME GAMES IN BOLD CAPS
* Eastern Conference Opponent
- Eastern Times listed, Schedule is Tentative and Subject to Change -

Check out the Columbus Crew SC Statistics

• Discuss this story on the Major League Soccer message board...

Major League Soccer Stories from January 7, 2003


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central