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In the 62-year history of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, very few MLS teams have made it to the competition’s showpiece final.
Over the decades the competition has been dominated by the Mexican giants but Columbus Crew will be the eighth American team to contest the final when they take on Pachuca on Saturday. If they come out on top at Estadio Hidalgo, Wilfried Nancy’s team will become just the fourth MLS team to be crowned continental champions.
The previous three MLS teams to lift the trophy were DC United (1998), LA Galaxy (2000) and Seattle Sounders (2022). And although two of those three wins came a quarter of a century ago, there is reason to believe that the MLS is rising force in CONCACAF competition.
Who are the CONCACAF Champions Cup holders?
Three of the last four CONCACAF finals have included an MLS team, all of whom took on one of the Liga MX giants. LAFC were beaten by UANL in 2020 and the Sounders beat UNAM Pumas two years later.
Most recently, in last year’s competition the 2022 MLS Cup winners LAFC took on Club León in the final. Steve Cherundolo’s side were narrowly beaten in each leg and León lifted the trophy, their first-ever CONCACAF triumph.
Columbus will be hoping to go one better than LAFC and strike another blow for the MLS in the cross-border rivalry. There is reason to believe that the Crew, who have already knocked out Monterrey and Tigres UANL, can claim another Liga MX scalp.
Wilfried Nancy’s team boast an impressive mix of exciting youth and battle-hardened experience in their ranks, and look to have concentrated their efforts on this tournament in recent months. Star striker Cucho Hernandez is back in training and looks set to lead the line for the Crew on Saturday.
Most importantly, however, is the sense of togetherness that Nancy has imbued in this team during his 18 months in charge. To take them from one of the league’s most underachieving rosters to it’s strongest team in just one season is no mean feat and captain Darlington Nagbe paid tribute to that transformation ahead of Saturday’s final.
“Going to Tigres and Monterrey, you can’t get a tougher environment than that, but I think the way we bonded together to go down and win those games, you set yourself up for the final and build a lot of confidence from those two games knowing you’ve experienced almost everything you can experience,” Nagbe explained. “Looking forward to going to Pachuca.”
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