It’s ring season for the Columbus Crew.
Players and staff members from the 2020 MLS Cup champions received their championship rings Thursday, commemorating last year’s 3-0 win over the Seattle Sounders. The match, played Dec. 12 at Historic Crew Stadium, was highlighted by two goals and one assist from midfielder Lucas Zelarayan, who earned MLS Cup MVP presented by Audi honors for his virtuoso performance.
Last year’s triumph was Columbus’ second MLS Cup victory, with the other arriving in 2008, a 3-1 match against the New York Red Bulls. They also made the 2015 final, though dropped a 2-1 result against the Portland Timbers.
The Crew have been on an upward trajectory in recent years, with head coach Caleb Porter and president and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko joining the club ahead of the 2019 season and new ownership taking over. Zelarayan, midfielder Darlington Nagbe, attacker Kevin Molino and goalkeeper Eloy Room are among those who have been brought into the squad, joining the likes of forward Gyasi Zardes and center back Jonathan Mensah as cornerstones.
Columbus have off-field momentum as well, with New Crew Stadium set to open June 3 with a match against the New England Revolution. It’ll be the league’s third new soccer-specific stadium debuting in 2021, alongside TQL Stadium (FC Cincinnati) and Q2 Stadium (Austin FC). Earlier this week, the Crew also moved into OhioHealth Performance Center, a state-of-the-art training facility for their academy sides through the first team.
The rings, crafted by renowned jeweler Baron, are 10 kt yellow and white gold and 2.15 total carat diamonds, featuring approximately 142 round brilliant diamonds ranging from 1-2 mm, as well as one black stone and one yellow stone that are approximately 1.75 mm each. The entire ring is wrapped in a layer of diamond stones.
The top of the ring displays an engraved club logo in yellow gold in the center, surrounded by diamonds with the words ‘MLS Cup Champions’ and two gold stars representing the two championships by the Crew. The left side of the ring features Historic Crew Stadium as the background, with each player’s name and respective number in the middle, above a ‘2020’ marking. The right side of the ring has an engraved MLS Cup logo in the middle, with a star in yellow gold as well as black and yellow stones, flanked on either side by the club name.
The shank of the ring features ‘Wise Men Say’ song lyrics, a nod to the song proudly sung by the Club’s supporters’ group, The Nordecke. Finally, the inside of the ring is engraved with the Crew’s 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs journey, displaying the scorelines and the championship date.
Check out more of the ring presentation below. Full highlights of last year's MLS Cup can be watched here.
