Columbus Crew get White House reception for MLS Cup 2023 win

WASHINGTON – The Columbus Crew turned the White House gold on Friday morning, meeting U.S. President Joe Biden and touring the historic halls of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW as they were officially honored for their MLS Cup 2023 presented by Audi championship in memorable fashion.

“You grow up watching professional teams win championships,” Crew striker Christian Ramírez told MLSsoccer.com, “and be able to have this privilege, to be able to be one of the small percentage of people to win a championship and to be here at the White House is really special.”

Fitting in the visit one day before their road match vs. D.C. United at Audi Field Saturday night (7:30 pm ET | MLS Season Pass), the reigning champs were treated to an audience with the Commander-in-Chief before a formal ceremony in which Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff paid tribute to their achievements before a gathering that included Columbus ownership, MLS Commissioner Don Garber and a band of diehard Crew supporters.

“Through your work and dedication you have made the central Ohio community and our entire nation incredibly proud,” said Emhoff, who noted with a grin that he was an avid referee during his own childrens’ youth soccer experiences. “Part of why I personally love sports so much is, sports brings us together, sports unifies us. And as we all know, we actually have way more in common than what divides us.

“There may be a lot of hate and division out there at this moment, but sports brings people, and our country, together. And that’s what you all do each and every day. You inspire people across our nation, you lift them up with a sense of joy and community. You show them what true leadership actually looks like.”

The spouse of Vice President and current presidential candidate Kamala Harris was gifted his own customized authentic Crew jersey from head coach Wilfried Nancy and captain Darlington Nagbe, and afterwards players and staff were treated to a tour of the Oval Office, Cabinet Room and other spots in the iconic West Wing.

Awe-inspiring moment

It marks another memorable chapter in the remarkable saga of a founding MLS club that represents a model organization on and off the field.

“This is amazing. I’m really grateful, and it's an honor and a privilege, because when we came in the White House and we saw, we smell and we felt the history behind everything,” said Nancy. “Yes, we won a trophy. But again, this is part of the journey, and for me, this is the most important. I’m really, really proud, and I was emotional because, again, I’ve traveled a lot, and you know my background, and to be able to to be here at 47 years old in the White House, and because of the sport that we do every day, wow, this is nice. This is really nice.”

Nancy deployed the soaring inspirational rhetoric that’s become his trademark, first in his prepared remarks at the ceremony and later in a conversation with MLSsoccer.com.

“It's difficult to describe,” he added, “because I took the time to walk and to look at everything, and the details, you know? About the wall, the details about the table, the details about the windows. It's unbelievable, we can see all the images, obviously all the presidents we can see, this is amazing. And we had the possibility also to go in the office of the president – wow, this is, I cannot describe. This is in my soul. What a moment, what a moment.

“Today, all my players understood the meaning of being here. And we come from different cultures – and that's why this is amazing, because the culture that we want to put, that we have in place in Columbus, this is the reflection of what they did today,” he added. “I don't know, there was a kind of power, a pride that we did only sports, but we brought emotions, but at the same time now the reward is we are in the White House with all the players and all the people who participate to that, and they felt it. I saw their eyes. I saw the way they were speechless about everything.”

Soaking it all in

This was both a magical collective experience for the Crew and a deeply emotional milestone on their own individual life journeys. Ramírez is the son of Colombian immigrants; his father Juan set aside his own soccer career to set out for California in search of opportunity. Nagbe’s family escaped war-torn Liberia in his childhood years, eventually finding security and community in Lakewood, Ohio.

“I think that's the biggest moment for me,” reflected Nagbe. “Obviously, we're here celebrating the championship, not being individuals, but just my personal story, things I've been through, my family moving here to have a better life. So now I get the chance to do something I never thought I’d be able to do, which is be in the White House and meet the President, things like that. It's just definitely a special moment for me personally.”

Walking that hallowed ground was a pinch-me moment for all involved, mindful that a range of factors over the years - from scheduling complications to health and security restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic – have often interrupted the POTUS tradition of welcoming distinguished sports champions to the Executive Residence. Nagbe has won four MLS Cups in his career, but this was his first White House visit.

“It's just being in the presence of all the history that is around us right now, just trying to soak everything in and live in this present moment, because you don't know if it'll ever happen again,” said Ramírez. “For example, Darlington’s won four championships and this is his first time here. So, yeah, it's special to just soak all this in.”

Playoff boost?

Friday’s excursion gave the Crew a welcome chance to turn the page on their narrow Campeones Cup loss to Club América on Wednesday night and refocus their energy and will for the final stages of their title defense.

“This is a good little break to get our mind away from this hectic calendar year so far, and just remind us of who we are and what we did last year,” said Ramírez. “It's special to have this right now, at this time of the year, to break up what has been a congested season. So yeah, this came at the right time.”

It’s been a long, demanding year for Columbus, both physically and emotionally. With the stretch run peaking and the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs just around the corner, celebrating last season’s achievements may help them remember that, to use Nancy’s memorable phrase, impossible is an opinion.

“I think that this is going to be a good boost,” said the coach.