Crew announce OhioHealth Performance Center on MAPFRE Stadium site

Columbus Crew SC announced on Tuesday as part of the club’s annual media day that OhioHealth will be the naming partner for the team’s new training center to be built on the site of MAPFRE Stadium, the OhioHealth Performance Center.

Ohio Health has been a partner with the Crew since 1997 and has been the training kit sponsor since 2018. It will now be the presenting sponsor of the team’s training facility and a “Founding Partner” of the club.

The new facility will be built on the west side of MAPFRE stadium and will break ground this summer during the 2020 season with the goal of opening in the summer 2021. The facility will feature world-class amenities for the senior team, including a locker room, film room, weight room, player lounge, recovery room and hydrotherapy room. The full-service kitchen will be available to the senior team and Academy players. In addition, the Academy teams will now have locker rooms, lounges, as well as training and equipment rooms.

“We are proud to announce the continued partnership and now the historic naming rights to the OhioHealth Performance Center as both the Club and OhioHealth look to take Columbus Crew SC to new heights,” Crew Executive Vice President & Chief Business Officer Steve Lyons said. “On behalf of the Haslam and Edwards Families, Crew SC President/GM Tim Bezbatchenko and the entire Crew SC organization, we are thrilled to continue to partner with a leader in the community like OhioHealth, as our official healthcare provider. We are aligned in our goals of unifying and giving back to our community while representing Columbus with great pride in all that we do. We look forward to many more years together as partners and eagerly await the opening of the OhioHealth Performance Center.”

A fact sheet presented by the team referenced that the facility would also have a locker room for a future USL reserve team and office space for soccer operations.

At the OhioHealth Performance Center, there will be three grass fields for use by the first team and the Academy. The facility fits within the site master plan, sitting north of the additional soccer fields for city’s community sports park that is still in planning stages.

The state of the art facility is a significant upgrade over the team’s current training grounds in Obetz, Ohio. The quality and depth of amenities should help the team attract top talent according to Crew president Tim Bezbatchenko.

Dr. Steve Markovich, OhioHealth CEO noted the lengthy history in his remarks, “We are proud to continue our partnership with this wonderful sports organization through a multi-year agreement.”

The facility confirms the reuse of the MAPFRE Stadium site that was originally announced in December of 2018. The team, city and state have been working to an agreement over the fairgrounds. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine confirmed in August of 2019 a deal would get done.

OhioHealth’s network of health care facilities cover sites across Central and Southern Ohio. The non-profit network manages 12 hospitals in addition to urgent care and specialty sites in 47 Ohio counties.