Columbus Crew Stadium hosted the 2001 MLS Cup Championship not because the Crew was playing, but because the stadium is only one of two stadiums in the United States built specifically for professional soccer. Like the NFL's Super Bowl, the sites of the MLS Championships are predetermined well in advance of the season.

Every other team in the U.S. must play in a stadium designed for other sports, generally football sized. This poses a problem for MLS in that the sizes of the fields are not standardized throughout the league. Crew stadium was nearly filled, with an attendance of 21,626. The teams competing for the 2001 MLS Cup, San Jose and Los Angeles and many of their fans, traveled from the West Coast to Columbus, Ohio for the "Super Bowl" of professional soccer. 

San Jose is the first MLS team to go from worst (in 2000) to first in winning the 2001 MLS Championship 2-1 against the Los Angeles Galaxy. 

Chicago Fire fans were vocal during 
the 2001 MLS Cup in Columbus, Ohio.

"We need a stadium like this for all of the (MLS) teams, or else I don't know if the league will survive", remarked a fan at the match. His statement is indicative of just how fledgling the sport of professional soccer is in the United States. 

Even as MLS finalizes renewing a five-year television deal with ABC and ESPN, the League has put a halt on any future growth through the year 2003, possibly longer. This will allow the league to concentrate on building their fan base. 

"We need a national footprint," said billionaire Lamar Hunt, who owns the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs and two Major League Soccer teams, the Kansas City Wizards and Columbus Crew.

Many Crew fans attended the game, most in support of San Jose, some just to see another soccer game. "We didn't even know who was playing in the championship until we got here," said Columbus native and Crew fan Greg Schmidt. "We just came for the sake of the sport." 

During the post-game press conference, rising star Landon Donovan of the San Jose Earthquakes, who scored San Jose's first goal, had nothing but positives to say about the stadium and the fans. "I feel that the Crew fans probably wanted us to win, and Columbus - what a great stadium!" he said. "The people here are awesome and they cheer for their team very emphatically and they're very good supporters. We were glad to have them on our side today".

The loudest fans in the stadium were not from Columbus, San Jose or Los Angeles, but from Chicago. The Fire fans filled the southeast end of the stadium bleachers, donning their teams' colors and shouting some of their own cheers, but fully supporting the Earthquakes. The Fire was eliminated last Wednesday by Los Angeles and their fans were happy to see any team but the Galaxy win the championship. 

Chicago faces an unsure future regarding their own home field, as they are in need of a place to play while Soldier Field is being renovated by the Chicago Bears of the NFL. "We need a stadium like this in Chicago because we have the best fans!" said one Fire fan.