#crewacademy

Columbus Crew 2 has officially signed two standout products from the Crew Academy—Gianmarco Di Noto and Prince Forfor—to MLS NEXT Pro contracts running through the end of the 2026 season. Both teens have already made inroads in professional play, and these deals mark a formal step into their pro careers with the club’s reserve side.

From Academy Roots to Professional Stage

Di Noto and Forfor join a growing list of Academy alumni who have progressed to Columbus Crew 2, including Chase Adams, Brent Adu-Gyamfi, Anthony Alaouieh, Giorgio De Libera, Quinton Elliot, Nicolas Rincón, and Chris Rogers. (Crew club statement)

Gianmarco Di Noto is a 16-year-old defender born March 27, 2009. He made his Crew 2 debut in March 2025 against Orlando City B and has started 10 matches, accumulating 801 minutes in MLS NEXT Pro competition. He’s also featured in the club’s 2025 U.S. Open Cup run, appearing in two matches. Di Noto joined the Crew Academy in March 2023, coming from Liverpool FC International Academy Michigan, and has been involved in U.S. Youth National Team camps (U-15, U-16). (Crew report)

Prince Forfor, also 16 (born March 14, 2009), is a forward who joined Columbus Academy from FC United DSM in January 2024. In 2025, he made four appearances for Crew 2, including one start, totaling 216 minutes. His 2025 debut came against Inter Miami II, playing 89 minutes. Forfor has also received U.S. youth national team call-ups (U-16), played in friendlies abroad, and earned MVP honors in the 2025 MLS NEXT All-Star Game, where he scored the go-ahead goal. He was also named to the U-16 Generation adidas Cup Best XI after scoring four goals during the tournament run. (Crew report)

What These Signings Mean for Crew & the Academy

These contract signings reflect the Crew Academy’s mission: to develop talent from youth levels into professionals capable of contributing to the club’s broader ecosystem. As Academy Director Brian Bliss stated, the signings “highlight the Academy’s success in developing top talent and the impact of its efforts in identifying and preparing players to compete at the next level with Crew 2.” (Crew announcement)

For the young players, the transition means more than just formal contracts—they now have a clearer path to competitive minutes in a professional environment, access to high-level training, and the potential to break into the first team if they perform well.

This move also reinforces the “One Club” philosophy many American clubs aspire to: a seamless player pathway from youth ranks to adult competition, with fewer gaps or barriers between levels.

Strengths, Challenges & Key Developments Ahead

The early performance of both players provides insight into their potential and the adjustments ahead:

Di Noto has been reliable—starting matches, logging significant minutes, and showing defensive maturity beyond his years. His involvement in national youth setups adds credibility to his long-term upside.

Forfor shows flashes of attacking promise—the All-Star MVP and GA Cup honors suggest he has goal instincts. Integrating into a professional attacking setup will test him further.

Challenges ahead for both include adapting to the physicality and consistency of pro play, maintaining growth under pressure, and carving roles against more experienced teammates. How they navigate that transition will be closely watched.

With their full pro deals confirmed, expectations are higher. Forfor and Di Noto now carry the banner for future Academy graduates, and their success—or struggles—may shape how the Club approaches youth development in coming seasons.

We are very, very excited.

Our new ex-homeless recruits from our first ever Crew Academy have been going out to work on some of London’s major global events, such as the Rugby World Cup and London Film Festival.

So, what is Crew Academy and why are we doing it?

We are a social enterprise. We provide employment opportunities for work-ready ex-homeless people. We have been doing this for just about 10 years now but we want to make more of a difference to the growing issue of homelessness.

Until now, ex-homeless crew members were recruited through ongoing referrals from our primary partner and founding charity Connection at St Martins. But - inspired and guided by the success of the Pret Foundation Trust’s and House of St Barnabas’s own employment academies for the ex-homeless - we’ve decided to pilot our own programme, and have partnered up with Crisis to do so.

In a nut-shell, Crew Academy is a crewing industry training and work experience programme dedicated to those who have experienced homelessness, to provide them with a viable opportunity for a fresh start in life, and potentially whole new a career.

Crew Academy truly began ahead of the 10 week programme at the Crisis Employment Platform on the 1st October – a job fair for Crisis’ referrals where they had the opportunity to network with 31 companies and put themselves forward for opportunities. We gave potential applicants an insight into the industry and delivered interview skills workshops. Successful applicants were invited to join the Connection Crew Big Build Day, a taster session where the basics of crewing were introduced through the build of a mock event.

We took on four guys from the Big Build Day – Michael Crevier, Mario Hoti, Modou Lamini and Steve Summers. Once they completed two weeks of intensive training, including on-the-job experience to integrate them into the workforce, they entered the current phase – eight weeks of real paid crewing supported by a mentor from our established crew.  

While only a few ex-homeless may be offered a permanent role after graduating from the programme, approximately 30 ex-homeless have benefited from their interaction with the programme as a whole.

This is what, Charlie Dorman, Director of Connection Crew said about it:

“We’re doing this, to support more ex-homeless people, but also to provide quality for our clients. That might be an unexpected outcome to many, but our social agenda creates a supportive and positive working culture that is better for everybody; better for clients, better for crew, and better for those who are looking for a way out of the cycle of homelessness.”