For the 23rd time in what has become the biggest rivalry in American soccer, FC Cincinnati will face their in-state rivals, the Columbus Crew, in the Hell is Real Derby this Sunday afternoon at TQL Stadium. This time, the matchup pits two sides against each other, both desperate for a playoff spot and needing three points to push them there.
FC Cincinnati currently sit in the final playoff spot, with 36 points and a game in hand over the rest of the league. But as always, whenever these two teams meet, the stakes are higher. Columbus, outside the playoff picture entering this match, has won four of its last five games and is surging up the table after sitting in last place earlier this year. A win for either side would go a long way to securing a spot in the 2026 postseason.
“We will anticipate their best, which was what we saw in the last couple games and a team that's really hitting their stride,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said at his prematch press conference on Friday. “I think their performances have been strong. Charlotte, Orlando, even with the result, when you watch the game you know, Miami. This is a much better version of what we've seen from their group now with (Head Coach) Laurent [Courtois].”
The Hell is Real derby has been a back-and-forth in results over the years, with FC Cincinnati getting the better of their Ohio rivals last year in the 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs, winning the series 2-1 to advance out of Round One. But in the regular season earlier this year, the Crew won at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field after FC Cincinnati took a 1-0 lead early.
Now, with the matchup at home, FC Cincinnati is looking to use and reward the home-field advantage their supporters give them and earn a result in what will likely be the final game of this series in 2026.
“Every time that we've played in this game (the supporters) have been incredible, and what I said even before the New England game is, we have to give them a reason to have more life because of our play,” Noonan said of his view on Sunday’s match. “That's our responsibility. I'm not concerned with the impact that our fans will have on Sunday, and so it's our job to make sure that they feel good about the team that's out there performing, and that's despite everything that's led to this period because the support's been there. Our performances have not consistently been so. We appreciate what they bring to the game day experience, as always, and we know that it'll be elevated on Sunday.”
FC Cincinnati and Columbus Crew kick off the Hell is Real Derby at 5 p.m. for Sunday Night Soccer on Apple TV. After Hell is Real, FC Cincinnati host D.C. United at TQL Stadium on Wednesday, October 21,, for their next match, making up the game postponed earlier this year.
FC Cincinnati vs Columbus Crew – Sunday, October 18, 2026 – 5 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
Watch/Stream (English/Spanish): Apple TV
English Local Radio: ESPN 1530
Spanish Local Radio: La Mega 101.5 FM
History in Hell is Real
Sunday marks the 23rd all-time meeting in all competitions between Ohio in-state rivals. FC Cincinnati and the Columbus Crew in the Hell is Real derby. The Crew mark Cincinnati’s most-faced opponent since the Orange and Blue’s inception in the 2016 USL season.
FC Cincinnati seek a first regular season home win over the Crew since 2023 after a score-less draw at TQL Stadium in 2024 and a loss last July, when the Crew came-from-behind to earn a road win. That said, FC Cincinnati have won two-straight at home against the Crew after winning Games 1 and 3 last year in the MLS Cup Playoffs Round One Best-of-3 series.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
(Courtesy of FC Cincinnati Communications)
An Epic Series – One year to the date Sunday, October 18, 2025, marked Decision Day 2025 as FC Cincinnati defeated CF Montréal, 3-0, to secure the Eastern Conference No. 2 seed and draw No. 7 Columbus Crew in the Round One Best-of-3. Cincy won Game 1, 1-0, with Kévin Denkey’s 78th minute goal serving as the difference. The Crew took Game 2, 4-0, before the late, dramatic comeback win in Game 3 for FC Cincinnati capped by a pair of goals from Brenner in the 67th and 86th minutes.
Records to Get – With six MLS Regular Season matches to go, FC Cincinnati have already set an all-time record for goals scored in all competitions in a single season (83). With 60 of those scored in MLS play, FCC are just four goals shy of the club record for goals scored in an MLS season, set in 2022 (64).
Kévin’s on Fire – FC Cincinnati forward Kévin Denkey has scored six goals in his last four appearances for the Orange and Blue to shoot up the club record books. He is just one goal shy of matching the all-time club records for goals scored in all competitions (22 - Evander, 2025) and in MLS play (18 - Brandon Vazquez & Brenner, 2022; Evander, 2025).
With at least one goal in four-consecutive games, Denkey would tie the club record Sunday with a goal in five-straight MLS matches (5 - Evander, June 25-July 16, 2025).
The Cincy Kid – Cincinnati native Nick Hagglund’s next appearance for FC Cincinnati will be his 179th in all competitions for the club, which will level him with Yuya Kubo for the most in club history. He is two appearances away from standing alone at 180 appearances and the all-time club games played record. Hagglund is the only player to have been on the FCC roster for all eight MLS seasons dating to the club’s first in MLS in 2019.
Scouting Columbus Crew (9-15-5, 32 Points, 13th in the Eastern Conference, W-L-W-W-W)
The Columbus Crew have had a difficult season so far, but they're in the middle of a late-season run that could either A.) lead to a playoff appearance or B.) prove the concept for the 2027 Sprint Season and beyond. With wins in four of their last five games, the Crew have climbed the Eastern Conference table and are now within striking distance of a playoff spot with five games left to play.
The surge has been led by interim Head Coach Laurent Courtois, who returned to Columbus at the start of the season as an assistant after being dismissed by CF Montréal as their head coach. Courtois managed Columbus Crew 2 before his appointment in Montréal, and he was an assistant to Henrik Rydström when he returned; after Rydström was dismissed after just five months, Courtois took over.
Under Courtois, Columbus has played in a 4-4-2 formation and have made the US Open Cup Final, which will be played Wednesday night against St. Louis City SC. That match could factor into how Courtois selects his lineup for Sunday night given the short rest.
Another key new piece for the Crew in 2026 is DP midfielder Brias Méndez, who joined during the summer transfer window and effectively replaced Diego Rossi after his move to Liga MX. Méndez, 29, has made 12 appearances and nine starts for the side in MLS and has scored five goals and recorded three assists in those appearances. The Spanish native came to Columbus from La Liga side Real Sociedad.
"He's a very impactful player. I think, as far as the fit to how they play and somebody that is under pressure, excellent. How he moves with the game off the ball, excellent vision, set piece delivery, you know, him and [Anass] Zaroury, who's a new addition too. Those are two pieces that we haven't seen outside of video, but they've had a huge impact on you know the recent look and success of the team,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said Friday ahead of this match.
The other player Noonan mentions there, Anass Zaroury, is a newcomer this summer on loan from Greek club Panathinaikos FC. A winger, the Moroccan international has played on the right side of the midfield for Columbus and scored his first goal for the club in their most recent game: a 3-1 win over Charlotte FC. Zaroury, 25, has appeared in four games for Columbus.
“Unfortunately, there won't be honing in on one player because there's so much talent,” Noonan continued on the Crew’s new personnel. “But (Méndez is) one of those pieces when you talk about Carles Gil in New England. Yeah, there's just certain players that you can't let impact the game with time and space because they can make you pay with their production or how they can open up space and moments for their teammates. So he's somebody that will have to do a good job defending against if he's on the field."
The more familiar faces to the Hell is Real rivalry for Columbus are in the defensive unit, as all of the backline, which includes Sean Zawadski, Steven Moreira, Mo Farsi, Malte Amundsen and goalkeeper Patrick Schulte, are all veterans of this derby and have been factors for the Crew for multiple years now.
The third addition this summer window who could impact this game is a familiar face in MLS. Santiago Rodriguez, an attacking midfielder from Uruguay who previously played for NYCFC as a DP from 2021 to 2025, signed as a DP with the Columbus Crew this window. The MLS Cup champion moved from NYCFC to Brazilian club Botafogo but quickly returned. With New York City, Rodriguez combined for 56 goal contributions in 116 appearances over four seasons, and since joining the Crew, he has made seven appearances (all starts) and has two goals and three assists.
In Major League Soccer this season, Columbus ranks 18th in goals scored (10th in the Eastern Conference), but ranks 16th (9th in the East) in xG generated. On the defensive side, the Crew has conceded 47 goals, good for 15th best in MLS and 9th in the East, while allowing just 37.6 xG against, ranking 3rd best in MLS and 2nd best in the East behind only Supporters’ Shield-leading Nashville SC.
