Dec 1, 2023 - Culture

Columbus, Cincinnati meet in rare Ohio sports clash

It's all come down to this: Two Ohio teams battling for a shot in the MLS Cup.

State of play: The Eastern Conference final at 6pm Saturday will feature the league's first club against one of its newest expansion teams.

If you're not headed to Cincinnati, send the team off this afternoon at 2:30pm as players board the bus from Historic Crew Stadium.
Or watch the game on the big screen at Grandview Theater & Drafthouse's free watch party Saturday. Doors open at 5:30pm.

The big picture: The Crew may be the "big brother" in this growing rivalry, but Cincinnati is turning into a legit powerhouse.

Cincy recorded the best record in the MLS this regular season and is favored tomorrow as the home club.

The intrigue: We needed some help to find another example of Ohio pro teams facing off in the postseason.

The Reds and Guardians haven't in baseball; the Bengals and Browns haven't in football; neither did the Cavaliers and Cincinnati Royals when they briefly appeared together in the NBA.
The early NFL years featured numerous Ohio franchises, but most of these teams were gone by the league's first playoff game in 1933.

Zoom in: Tyler turned to reporter and friend Vince Guerrieri, who literally wrote the book on Ohio sports trivia.

Guerreri quickly found several postseason matchups between the Cincinnati Mohawks and Toledo Mercurys of the International Hockey League, including the 1956 championship series.

The bottom line: This is a rare moment, Crew fans, so enjoy it.

Catch Saturday's game broadcast via MLS Season Pass or listen on FM radio stations 97.1 The Fan/La Mega 103.1.
😎 And remember: After the final whistle, we're all still Ohioans.

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