Columbus Crew relief Henrik Rydström of head coaching duties
COLUMBUS – The Columbus Crew and General Manager Issa Tall introduced right this moment that Henrik Rydström has been relieved of his duties as head coach. Laurent Courtois has been named the Black & Gold’s interim head coach.
“We unfortunately have not capitalized on opportunities or produced the results that our Club and supporters deserve. We are confident that we have the talent on our roster to consistently compete for championships, and we believe this change best positions us to achieve that goal with the number of matches we have left this season,” mentioned Tall. “We thank Henrik for his commitment to the Crew, and we expect a successful transition based on Laurent’s familiarity with our Club, players and league.”
After Rydström was employed because the Crew’s ninth full-time head coach on Dec. 31, 2025, the group began the 2026 season with a 3-7-4 report (13 factors) and at present sits in thirteenth place within the Eastern Conference and twenty sixth within the MLS Supporters’ Shield standings. The Crew have 20 MLS common season matches remaining this 12 months and stand solely 4 factors outdoors of playoff place.
Courtois – who holds each a US Soccer Federation Pro and UEFA ‘A’ coaching license – returned to the Crew on Jan. 13 as First Team Assistant Coach. He beforehand served as head coach of CF Montréal in 2024, main the aspect to its first playoff berth since 2022. After initially becoming a member of the Crew in 2019 as Under-17 Academy head coach, Courtois was promoted to Crew 2 head coach in 2022 and earned the inaugural MLS NEXT Pro Coach of the Year award after main the aspect to a league title and back-to-back MLS NEXT Pro Cup appearances.
A former skilled participant, Courtois performed for Spain’s Levante UD; France’s AC Ajaccio, Toulouse FC, FC Istres and Grenoble Foot 38; England’s West Ham United FC and Chivas USA and the LA Galaxy. He additionally served as a participant/coach for LA Galaxy II throughout its inaugural 2014 season.
The Crew have additionally parted methods with Assistant Coach Theodor Olsson and Analyst Mak Pakhei.
Columbus returns to ScottsMiracle-Gro Field for 2 matches this week. The Crew first face New York City FC on Wednesday (May 20) within the 2026 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Quarterfinals [7:30 p.m. ET / Paramount+ / Alt 105.7 FM (English)]. The Club hosts Atlanta United FC on Sunday [5:00 p.m. ET / Apple TV / Alt 105.7 FM / iHeartRadio app (English); La Mega 103.1 FM, 107.1 FM / La Mega app (Spanish)] for its last match earlier than MLS pauses play for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
