FC Cincinnati vs Columbus Crew SC, MLS 2026 REGULAR SEASON
Overview
Match Preview
FC Cincinnati vs Columbus Crew SC — MLS at Nippert Stadium.
- FC Cincinnati 18 games · 26 pts (2026/26)
- Columbus Crew SC 18 games · 20 pts (2026/26)
Match Details
- Referee Robert Sibiga
- Referee Ted Unkel
- Referee Hilario Grajeda
- Referee Cory Richardson
- Referee
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nashville SC | 18 | 40 |
| 2 | Internacional CF Miami | 18 | 38 |
| 3 | New England Revolution | 18 | 30 |
| 4 | Chicago Fire FC | 17 | 29 |
| 5 | New York City FC | 18 | 26 |
| 6 | FC Cincinnati | 18 | 26 |
| 7 | Charlotte FC | 18 | 25 |
| 8 | New York Red Bulls | 18 | 25 |
| 9 | D.C. United SC | 18 | 23 |
| 10 | Columbus Crew SC | 18 | 20 |
| 11 | Orlando City SC | 18 | 20 |
| 12 | Toronto FC | 18 | 17 |
| 13 | Philadelphia Union | 18 | 16 |
| 14 | Montreal Impact FC | 18 | 16 |
| 15 | Atlanta United FC | 18 | 12 |
| 16 | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 17 | 34 |
| 17 | Los Angeles FC | 19 | 34 |
| 18 | San Jose Earthquakes | 18 | 33 |
| 19 | Houston Dynamo | 18 | 32 |
| 20 | FC Dallas | 18 | 27 |
| 21 | Real Salt Lake | 17 | 27 |
| 22 | St. Louis City | 18 | 26 |
| 23 | Portland Timbers | 18 | 24 |
| 24 | Seattle Sounders FC | 17 | 24 |
| 25 | Minnesota United FC | 18 | 24 |
| 26 | Colorado Rapids SC | 18 | 22 |
| 27 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 19 | 22 |
| 28 | San Diego FC | 18 | 21 |
| 29 | Austin FC | 18 | 17 |
| 30 | Sporting Kansas City | 18 | 14 |
Head-to-Head
Recent Form
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Aug | Columbus Crew SC | H | 0–0 | D |
| 25 Aug | Chicago Fire FC | A | 0–3 | L |
| 21 Aug | D.C. United SC | H | 0–0 | D |
| 29 Jul | Portland Timbers | A | 1–1 | D |
| 23 Jul | New York Red Bulls | H | 2–0 | W |
| 16 Jul | Atlanta United FC | A | 1–0 | W |
| Date | Opponent | H/A | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Aug | FC Cincinnati | A | 0–0 | D |
| 24 Aug | New York City FC | A | 0–1 | L |
| 20 Aug | Chicago Fire FC | H | 3–0 | W |
| 29 Jul | Minnesota United FC | H | 1–1 | D |
| 22 Jul | Atlanta United FC | A | 1–0 | W |
| 17 Jul | New York Red Bulls | H | 2–0 | W |
Season Stats
| FC Cincinnati | Columbus Crew SC | |
|---|---|---|
| #6 | Position | #10 |
| 26 | Points | 20 |
| 18 | Played | 18 |
| 7 / 5 / 6 | W / D / L | 5 / 5 / 8 |
| 45 | Scored | 26 |
| 44 | Conceded | 28 |
| +1 | GD | -2 |
| 1.44 | PPG | 1.11 |
| 39% | Win % | 28% |
Key Stats
65%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (17 games)
H2H (17 games)
76%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
21%
Clean Sheets
FC Cincinnati this season
FC Cincinnati this season
21%
Clean Sheets
Columbus Crew SC this season
Columbus Crew SC this season
FC Cincinnati are 6th (26 pts). Columbus Crew SC are 10th (20 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
FC Cincinnati
0-15
3/2
16-30
4/7
31-45
9/5
46-60
4/7
61-75
2/1
76+
11/3
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Columbus Crew SC
0-15
2/6
16-30
2/2
31-45
6/2
46-60
3/2
61-75
1/4
76+
2/2
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
FC Cincinnati
| Evander | 10 G | 4 A |
| Kevin Denkey | 10 G | 1 A |
| Tom Barlow | 5 G |
Columbus Crew SC
| Diego Rossi | 6 G | 1 A |
| Wessam Abou Ali | 5 G | 1 A |
Events
Match Events
- 0' The match kicks off with home fans waiting with anticipation for FC Cincinnati to score. At the same time, Columbus Crew SC does not seem to pull back! Let’s get it on!
- 4' Controversy at the stadium! Maikel van der Werff argues furiously but the Yellow card stands.
- 9' France international Mathieu Deplagne has been a key figure this campaign — 0 goals and 0 assists in the Array this season.
- 11' A meaty challenge results in booking for Joe Gyau on 11.
- 16' Columbus Crew SC is showing some good football. However, Columbus Crew SC are ready to play back every minute. It might result in some problems for the home side. The game will hardly remain goalless.
- 21' Lucas Zelarayan is a natural and has been asked to do a very specific job for Columbus Crew SC tonight.
- 26' named a earlier, and opted for a in response. A fascinating tactical duel is developing.
- 31' Columbus Crew SC looks like a favorite considering 1 games won in last 1 matches with its main striker Jamal Thiare scoring 1 goals.
- 36' Youness Mokhtar is putting in a real shift tonight. He has covered more ground than anyone else for FC Cincinnati so far.
- 41' The Array continues to deliver drama. Both FC Cincinnati and Columbus Crew SC are desperate not to drop points on matchday .
- 43' The referee does not hesitate — a Yellow card for Artur on 43 minutes.
- 48' The home supporters are growing impatient. FC Cincinnati must find a spark to ignite this game.
- 53' With 0 assists to his name this season, Fatai Alashe is clearly more than just a goal scorer for FC Cincinnati.
- 55' Another substitution for Columbus Crew SC to replace Youness Mokhtar by Derrick Etienne on 55 minute.
- 60' A moment of individual brilliance could settle this. Both teams are waiting for that decisive action.
- 65' Although teams showed high tempo form the start, they seem to slow down a bit. Both sides really need to catch a fire. Otherwise, we have another goalless match.
- 67' Time for substitution for Columbus Crew SC. Pedro Santos is replaced by Ema Boateng.
- 72' It is a substitution in FC Cincinnati team. Siem de Jong is replaced by Haris Medunjanin on 72 minute.
- 74' Poor challenge from Joshua Williams. The referee spots it immediately and shows the Yellow card.
- 79' Darlington Nagbe has been disciplined this evening — perhaps mindful of those 0 cards already picked up this season.
- 81' The supporters are chanting for Fanendo Adi. He replaces Gyasi Zardes on 81 minute.
- 86' Columbus Crew SC has dominated the recent head-to-head record, winning 1 of the last 1 meetings.
- 89' Yuya Kubo catches the referee's attention in entirely the wrong way. Yellow card on 89.
- 89' FC Cincinnati ring the changes. Yuya Kubo has done his job and it is now time for Caleb Stanko to step up.
- The referee brings this contest to a close. take all three points.
Lineups
FC Cincinnati Lineups
Starting XI
- 10
- 23
- 17
-
7
Yuya Kubo ↓ Caleb Stanko 89'
- 36
- 22
-
11
Siem de Jong ↓ Haris Medunjanin 72'
- 2
- 9
- 24
- 96
Bench
-
33
Caleb Stanko ↑ 89'
-
6
Haris Medunjanin ↑ 72'
- 14
- 8
- 19
- 4
- 12
- 1
- 3
Coach
Jaap Stam
Columbus Crew SC Lineups
Starting XI
- 1
- 19
- 4
- 25
-
11
Gyasi Zardes ↓ Fanendo Adi 81'
-
7
Pedro Santos ↓ Ema Boateng 67'
- 8
- 3
- 6
- 34
-
10
Lucas Zelarayan ↓ Fatai Alashe 67'
Bench
-
20
Ema Boateng ↑ 67'
- 13
-
22
Derrick Etienne ↑ 55'
- 2
- 16
-
26
Fatai Alashe ↑ 67'
-
9
Fanendo Adi ↑ 81'
- 30
- 18
Coach
Caleb Porter
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Gyasi Zardes | 7 |
| Lucas Zelarayan | 5 |
| Luciano Acosta | 4 |
| Pedro Santos | 3 |
| Miguel Berry | 3 |
| Kevin Denkey | 2 |
| Isaac Atanga | 2 |
| Max Arfsten | 2 |
Head to Head
FC Cincinnati Form
Columbus Crew SC Form
2020-08-29
FC Cincinnati
0–0
Columbus Crew SC
D
2020-08-24
New York City FC
1–0
Columbus Crew SC
L
2020-08-20
Columbus Crew SC
3–0
Chicago Fire FC
W
2020-07-29
Columbus Crew SC
1–1
Minnesota United FC
D
2020-07-22
Atlanta United FC
0–1
Columbus Crew SC
W
2020-07-17
Columbus Crew SC
2–0
New York Red Bulls
W
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
1 / 4
1.68
FC Cincinnati xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.54
Columbus Crew SC xG
I would bet for:
FC Cincinnati or Columbus Crew SC 73% + Both teams to score 64%
Match Result
✗ WrongActual: Draw
Both Teams to Score
✗ Wrong
Avg goals/match: 3.22
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✗ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 94% |
|
6% |
| ± 1.5 | 83% |
|
17% |
| ± 2.5 | 61% |
|
39% |
| ± 3.5 | 40% |
|
60% |
| ± 4.5 | 23% |
|
77% |
Double Chance
FC Cincinnati or Draw
66%
Draw or Columbus Crew SC
60%
FC Cincinnati or Columbus Crew SC
73%
Half-Time Result
✓ CorrectActual: Draw at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
11.3%
2 – 1
8.4%
1 – 2
7.7%
2 – 2
6.4%
1 – 0
6%
2 – 0
5.6%
0 – 0
Actual
0 – 1
5.4%
0 – 2
4.8%
3 – 1
4.7%
1 – 3
3.9%
3 – 2
3.6%
Asian Handicap — FC Cincinnati
| Handicap | FC Cincinnati covers | Push | Columbus Crew SC covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 9% | — | 91% |
| -2 | 9% | 12% | 79% |
| -1.5 | 21% | — | 79% |
| -1 | 21% | 19% | 60% |
| -0.5 | 40% | — | 60% |
| +0.5 | 66% | — | 34% |
| +1 | 66% | 17% | 17% |
| +1.5 | 83% | — | 17% |
| +2 | 83% | 10% | 7% |
| +2.5 | 93% | — | 7% |
Clean Sheet
FC Cincinnati keeps clean sheet
22%
✗
Columbus Crew SC keeps clean sheet
20%
✗
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.