MLS Cup 2008
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| Date | 23 November 2008 | ||||||
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| Venue | Home Depot Center, Carson, California | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Columbus Crew) | ||||||
| Referee | Baldomero Toledo | ||||||
| Attendance | 27,000 | ||||||
| Weather | Clear 68 °F (20 °C) | ||||||
MLS Cup 2008 was the final match of the 2008 Major League Soccer season, and the 13th championship awarded by MLS. The match took place on Sunday, 23 November 2008, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, between the Columbus Crew and New York Red Bulls. MLS Cup 2008 was the only final in which two Eastern Conference teams met, and the first time since 1996 that both teams made their MLS Cup final debut in the same match. Columbus won the game by a score of 3–1 with goals from Alejandro Moreno, Chad Marshall, and Frankie Hejduk — all assisted by Guillermo Barros Schelotto. Schelotto was named man of the match, adding to his MVP award from the regular season. The Crew became the fourth club to win both MLS Cup and the Supporters' Shield in the same season, following D.C. United (1997, 1999), Sporting Kansas City (2000), and Los Angeles Galaxy (2002).
Both the participants qualified for the 2009-10 CONCACAF Champions League, with winners Columbus Crew being seeded directly into the group stage and runners-up New York Red Bulls entering at the preliminary round.
The Home Depot Center in Carson, California was chosen as the venue of the 2008 MLS Cup final.
The home stadium of Los Angeles Galaxy and the now-defunct Chivas USA, it previously hosted the 2003 MLS All-Star Game and MLS Cup final in 2003 and 2004. The stadium and its surrounding training fields were built in 2003 and frequently host the United States Men's and Women's national teams due to the quality of the facilities and favorable weather throughout the year. Most notably, the Home Depot Center hosted the final of the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup.
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