COLUMBUS – The Columbus Crew today announced their annual Club award winners, highlighting standout contributions from players on and off the pitch.
Most Valuable Player: Darlington Nagbe
Golden Boot: Diego Rossi
Defensive Player of the Year: Sean Zawadzki
Humanitarian of the Year: Evan Bush
Kirk Urso Heart Award: Steven Moreira
DARLINGTON NAGBE – MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Captain and Midfielder Darlington Nagbe is the Crew’s MVP for the second season (2002 and 2025) during his tenure with the Club. Nagbe started all 30 matches played in the regular season, logging 2,601 minutes and one assist. He became one of five players in MLS history to register at least one assist in each of his 15 seasons, joining Dax McCarty, Kyle Beckerman, Kei Kamara and Brad Davis. Additionally, Nagbe led the league in passing accuracy in 2025 (95.8 percent, 1,549 passes completed).
The Lakewood, Ohio, native appeared in three matches during the Crew’s Leagues Cup 2025 campaign, recording a team-best 90.7 passing accuracy percentage (98 passes completed). He also played every minute of the Crew’s Round One Best-of-3 Series against FC Cincinnati, the final matches of his illustrious career.
Nagbe, who announced his retirement on Oct. 7, finished his 15-year career as a four-time MLS Cup champion and three-time MLS All-Star Game selection. Nagbe served as the Black & Gold’s leader on and off the pitch since 2020 after tenures with the Portland Timbers (2011-2017) and Atlanta United FC (2018-2019). He helped inspire the Crew’s journey to winning two MLS Cups (2020 and 2023), Leagues Cup 2024 and the 2021 Campeones Cup, as well as guided the organization to its first Concacaf Champions Cup Final appearance in 2024.
DIEGO ROSSI – GOLDEN BOOT
Forward Diego Rossi earned his first Columbus Crew Golden Boot award after leading the team with 16 goals in the regular season, tying his career best (2019 with LAFC). In Leagues Cup 2025, the Montevideo, Uruguay native posted three goal contributions (two goals, one assist) across three appearances. He started all three of the Black & Gold’s tilts against FC Cincinnati in the Round One Best-of-3 Series of the Audi 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs, providing the assist on midfielder Max Arfsten’s opening goal of Game 2. The forward registered a team-high nine shots across the three postseason matches.
Rossi registered a hat trick in the first 39 minutes against Atlanta United FC on Sept. 13 – his first with the Crew and 10th multi-goal game in MLS. He has posted 51 goal contributions (37 goals, 14 assists) in his last 68 matches across all competitions.
This year, Rossi earned his fourth MLS All-Star selection (2019, 2021, 2024 and 2025) and assisted Philadelphia Union’s Tai Baribo in the 2025 MLS All-Star Game against the Liga MX All-Stars on July 23. It was his second consecutive All-Star Game with an assist, becoming the first to do so in back-to-back years since Landon Donovan and Shalrie Joseph in 2004–05.
SEAN ZAWADZKI – DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Zawadzki – a first-time recipient of the Crew Defensive Player of the Year honor – started all 27 of his regular season appearances this year, logging 2,430 minutes and two goals, highlighted by the equalizer against the Philadelphia Union on May 10 in the 90+3’ minute of the contest. The Olmsted Falls, Ohio, native owned a 92.6 passing accuracy percentage during the regular season after recording 1,768 successful passes, the fourth most for the team this season. Zawadzki helped the backline earn seven clean sheets across all competitions (five in regular season; one in postseason; and one in Leagues Cup). Per FBRef, the 25-year-old tallied 31 tackles won in regular season play, the third most for the Black & Gold this season.
During Leagues Cup 2025, Zawadzki played a full 90 minutes in all three fixtures and recorded an 84.7 percent passing accuracy (116 completed passes). In playoff action, he started all three contests against FC Cincinnati, completing 191 passes (91.8 passing accuracy percentage).
Since joining the Crew as a Homegrown Player on Jan. 13, 2022, Zawadzki possesses 89 regular season appearances (66 starts), seven goals and two assists.
EVAN BUSH – HUMANITARIAN OF THE YEAR
Goalkeeper Evan Bush continued to be a standout ambassador of the Columbus Crew’s community efforts throughout 2025, including his consistent advocacy for Type 1 diabetes awareness and support. Inspired by his immediate family’s connection to the important cause, the 14-year MLS veteran has channeled his passion into raising funds and awareness for the Type 1 diabetes community and elevating organizations like BreakthroughT1D.
In January 2025, Bush once again planned, executed and hosted an annual fundraiser, “Kicking for a Cause,” benefiting local nonprofits BreakthroughT1D, PREP4Gold and NC4K. The event, held at Historic Crew Stadium, unites hundreds of families for an evening filled with soccer clinics, contests and memorable experiences. Bush rallied the support of Crew teammates, coaches and alumni, as well as local collegiate soccer players, to lead small-group clinics and raise more than $7,000 for the three local non-profits.
During the summer, Bush joined a Crew Youth Player Pro Series event, where he interacted with young soccer players from around the Ohio region. In September, the goalkeeper also took part in the NC4K Fashion Show, a family-friendly community event that raised funds and spread awareness for families fighting childhood cancer in Ohio. His philanthropic efforts exemplify his commitment to making a lasting impact on the community of Columbus, his home state of Ohio and the global game.
STEVEN MOREIRA – KIRK URSO HEART AWARD
Defender Steven Moreira is the 12th Crew player to receive the award after Kirk Urso was posthumously honored in the accolade’s inaugural year in 2012. Moreira was chosen as the player who best represented the qualities in a teammate and became “the heart” in the Black & Gold locker room this season.
In his fourth full season with the Crew, Moreira made 30 appearances (29 starts) during the regular season campaign, registering one goal and three assists in 2,462 minutes played. He started all three of the Club’s Leagues Cup 2025 contests, posting a 79.7 percent passing accuracy (110 completed passes). The defender started all three postseason games, logging 261 minutes. Since joining the Black & Gold in 2021, the 31-year-old has registered 23 assists in regular season play, the 14th most in Crew history.
With Cape Verde’s 3-0 win against Eswatini on Oct. 13, Moreira helped the island nation qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, their first-ever qualification for the tournament. Cape Verde are the third-smallest nation to reach the FIFA World Cup (Curacao, 2026; Iceland, 2018).
