Columbus Crew fans give team homefield advantage despite difficulties getting in MLS Cup

To get to the MLS Cup Final, the Crew had to beat Atlanta United and MLS assist leader Thiago Almada, who recorded 19 helpers this year. Then they had to get past No. 2 seed Orlando on the road. Next came Supporter's Shield winner FC Cincinnati with MLS MVP Luciano 'Lucho' Acosta.

And yet, it may be Crew fans who had a harder time making it into the championship game, which Columbus won 2-1 over visiting Los Angeles FC.

"I'm 66 years old, and I don't think I've ever gone through anything like this," said Rich Zumpony.

Jorge Ulloa and 21,746 other fans attended the 2015 title game, which the Crew lost 2-1 to the Portland Timbers at Mapfre Stadium. "This one was very hard to get the tickets," he said. In 2015, he maintained, it "was pretty easy."

Anthony Ulloa explained it this way: "I've probably spent three to four hours (every day) trying to buy."

They had been unsuccessful but were still trying a half hour before Saturday's 4 p.m. start. They were hoping prices would come down to the $320 they were willing to pay closer to kickoff. But they good-humoredly admitted their best chance might be to hope for another big season from the Crew in 2024 when the Ulloa family has season tickets.

One difference between the 2015 game that the Ulloas did manage to attend and the 2023 match is that this week a promo code allowing sponsors to purchase seats early was leaked. According to a statement by the Crew, "a number of" what they called "unauthorized parties" bought those, leading to the purchases being canceled.

Zumpony believes he bought one such canceled ticket once it reached the secondary market on SeatGeek.

"Seventy-two hours of hell," the 16-year season ticket holder said. "I actually went online Thursday night and filed a report with the Ohio attorney general."

But in the end, even without the attorney general's intervention, he was one of the lucky ones. Through repeated efforts, he was eventually able to join the Lower.com Field-record crowd of 20,802.

So was David Maki – eventually.

"The first day, I spent, like, three hours just trying to get a ticket," he said, "because I was determined to get here. And we're here! That's all that matters. That's all that matters."

Friends who won a lottery held by the Crew's supporters group, the Nordecke, helped Maki out.

Chris Eberheart was not so fortunate. About two hours before kickoff, he was sitting outside the southwest side of Lower.com Field hoping to score a seat.

"Met up with friends," he said. From there it was, "Refresh ticket resale sites, refresh ticket resale sites, refresh ticket resale sites."

Beside him, Josh Dodge was also repeatedly hitting refresh. He was just hoping to find something he wouldn't be "paying off for the next two years."

That's exactly why John and Denise Farley quickly decided they weren't even going to try.

"I just saw they were going for upwards of 300 dollars and decided I was not paying that," John said.

But still wanting to be in the area, they came down to the Arena District to enjoy the vibe.

"Everyone is so excited," Denise said. "It's nice to see all the yellow and black. We're having a good time. Super fun. It's a big game."

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Crew fans: MLS Cup Final tickets 'very hard to get'