"Save the Crew" is taking on a whole different meaning. What was once a mantra (and a hashtag) to galvanize support to keep the Columbus Crew from relocating to Austin, Texas, the phrase may now need to be revived in order to save the Crew nickname itself.
The Columbus organization announced Monday that it is dropping the word Crew as part of its official team name and replacing it with the utterly generic Columbus SC. The news has been met with immense anger within the most die-hard elements of the Crew -- make that Columbus -- fan base, which organized a protest at Crew Stadium on Monday, but the club pushed ahead anyway.
"The current direction of our Club and our city provides a natural time to examine our identity going forward," said Crew president and general manager Tim Bezbatchenko in a statement. "Our identity and brand evolution includes a shift in our mindset to be consistent contenders on the pitch, but also includes evolving our look both in the community and across competitions. With the upcoming completion of our new, modern, dynamic stadium, our world-class OhioHealth Performance Center and coming off an MLS Cup championship, our marks are aligned with where we are headed as a city and as an organization. We are proud to represent Columbus on the global stage of soccer and aspire to help elevate the city and honor it for what it has done for the Club. We are Columbus Soccer Club, we are The Crew, and we will always be the Black & Gold."
So let's dive into this news by asking three key questions: Why is the team doing this, why are the fans mad and why is the Crew name sacred?
Why is the team doing this?
To hear the Columbus organization describe it, the move is about "elevating Columbus" to a grander stage, as in the city itself. The timing is also meant to coincide with the opening of the team's new $313.9 million stadium set to happen later this summer, the better to position the organization "locally and globally." The rebrand is being pitched as an evolution rather than a complete overhaul.
But that explanation only invites more questions, the biggest being: Couldn't the organization do all of those things and still keep the Crew as the official nickname? The Columbus organization contends that it isn't dropping the name completely. The term "Crew" will be visible in and around the stadium. The official store will be named "Crew Shop," while the food and beverage stands in the venue will be called "Crew Kitchen." While Crew will no longer be on the team's jerseys, the organization will continue to sell hats and T-shirts with the Crew name on them in addition to the now Crew-less logo.
"[The Crew name] isn't going anywhere," Bezbatchenko said in an exclusive interview with ESPN. "If anything it's more prevalent."
That is open to interpretation, though Bezbatchenko told ESPN that the rebranding effort wasn't done in a vacuum, with a focus group of 2,500 people involved that included fans and non-fans. What was driven home was the importance of the black and gold colors and keeping the word "Crew" as part of what the team is doing.
The team is quick to compare its approach to that of other clubs around the world. Liga MX side Monterrey's official name is "CF Monterrey," while its nickname is "Rayados." One club source also pointed out that what Columbus is doing is different than say, Montreal, which abandoned its longtime nickname "Impact" and now goes by Club de Foot Montreal.
None of that really addresses the need to drop the "Crew" as the team's nickname. Certainly there is a school of thought that emphasizing Columbus will help with international appeal. But the presence of a nickname hasn't stopped teams in other American sports from becoming international brands.
Bezbatchenko countered that the terms "The Crew" and "Columbus SC" are interchangeable, and reiterated the desire to highlight the name of the city.
"When you had Columbus Crew SC, people really ignored Columbus," Bezbatchenko said. "They talked about Crew SC. Everything was Crew, and that was only part of our identity and what we want to be about going forward."
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Why are the fans mad?
There are two aspects to this: One is about process, the other is about history. Let's tackle the process first.
Bezbatchenko told ESPN that the impetus for the rebrand was the change in ownership in which the Haslam and Edwards families purchased the team from previous owner Anthony Precourt. Bezbatchenko contends that a task force comprising (in part) Save The Crew members, "Day One" fans, as well as two members of the Nordecke supporters group leadership, was informed about where this was heading. But the Columbus organization required them to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) preventing them from sharing the direction with other stakeholders. The news still leaked.
Of course, there is a difference between informing people about what is going to happen and allowing them to collaborate in the process. To hear the Nordecke describe it, the former scenario is what took place. In a statement posted on social media, the Nordecke said that "neither the Nordecke nor any Crew Supporters Group was involved at any time with the conception, development, or design of the rebrand. The Board was only shown the rebrand in the last few days, and it was presented to us as a completed product with no chance for input."
Earlier this year, Nordecke board members Charles Campisano and Jeff Barger were made aware of the proposed changes and submitted a report -- a copy of which has been obtained by ESPN -- to the Columbus organization, warning the team of what they could expect in terms of fan reaction if they went ahead with the proposed rebranding without sufficient input from fans. With respect to the name change, the report warned that the likely response to dropping "Crew" moniker would be "negative to catastrophic."