The New York Red Bulls head to Ohio to take on Columbus Crew SC in Round One of the Audi 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs on Saturday, November 21 at 3 PM ET.
New York and Columbus met only once this season, with Crew SC taking a 2-0 victory at the MLS Is Back Tournament in Florida on July 16. Gyasi Zardes and Lucas Zelarayán scored in each half for Columbus.
Columbus finished the 2020 regular season with a 12-6-5 record and a +15 goal differential, while New York ended the campaign with a 9-9-5 record and a -2 goal differential.
Crew SC have only dropped one game out of ten at home, going 9-1-0, while the Red Bulls are 3-3-4 on the road this season.
Crew SC are back in the postseason after missing out in 2019. Their last appearance ended in a 3-1 aggregate loss to the Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2018. New York trailed 1-0 following Leg One, but won 3-0, behind a Danny Royer brace, at Red Bull Arena to advance.
The Red Bulls have qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs for the 21st time in 25 seasons – the most of any club in MLS history. The Red Bulls this year extended their streak of consecutive playoff appearances to 11 years, second only to Seattle Sounders FC (12 in a row) in MLS history.
Crew SC have a six-game undefeated streak in the series in league play. The Red Bulls have not won in Columbus since March 28, 2015, a span of five games; Crew SC have won two of those, with three draws. The Crew have won the last two meetings in Harrison.
The teams have met four times in all in the MLS Cup Playoffs, last in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2018. It was the first series win for the Red Bulls vs. Crew SC, who won MLS Cup 2008 when the teams met.
