Nationwide to buy Columbus Crew stake at US$900m valuation
Nationwide is set to buy a 37% stake in MLS club Columbus Crew at a reported US$900m valuation, deepening its role in the club beyond sponsorship.
Nationwide has agreed to acquire a minority stake in Major League Soccer’s Columbus Crew, in a deal that would take the Columbus-based insurer beyond brand partnership into club ownership.Multiple reports said Nationwide is buying 37% of the Crew at a valuation of about US$900m, with the stake split between the Haslam Sports Group and the Edwards family.The transaction is expected to see 30% sold by the Haslams and 7% sold by the Edwards family, leaving the Haslams with a 40% holding and control of the club.The deal is subject to MLS approval, with sign-off required from the league’s board of governors before the transaction can be completed.Financial terms were not disclosed, and the parties have not publicly detailed any governance rights attached to the stake.Strategically, the move locks a major local corporate brand into the ownership structure of one of MLS’s established markets, while giving Nationwide a deeper platform for customer acquisition, community positioning and B2B hospitality.Nationwide has already been a prominent commercial partner of the Crew, including as a jersey and insurance partner, and the shift into equity aligns the insurer with a wider trend of sponsors taking ownership positions to secure long-term marketing and asset exposure.For the Haslams, the sale provides additional capital and portfolio flexibility while maintaining control of the franchise, in a US sports landscape where partial stake sales have become a common route to recycle capital without relinquishing majority rights.The stake sale also strengthens the local ownership ecosystem around Columbus football, with Nationwide and the Edwards family already involved alongside the Haslams in securing an NWSL expansion club for the city that is due to begin play in 2028.At a reported US$900m valuation, the Crew deal sits above several recent benchmark transactions in North American football, underlining how scarcity value and league-wide revenue growth continue to lift MLS franchise pricing.The expected next step is formal MLS approval, after which the transaction can close and Nationwide’s role can transition from commercial partner to shareholder as the league continues to professionalise club governance and institutional ownership profiles.