Facing a pair of Japanese opponents, Crew SC were defeated by Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo in the semifinals, but bounced back with a victory over Iwaki FC in the consolation game.

The match against Dallas ended in a scoreless draw, with Columbus retaining the cup based on the head-to-head goals tiebreaker.

Just as in 2017, Crew SC was victorious in a penalty shootout on the road in the knockout round, this time advancing past D.C. United with goalkeeper Zack Steffen making two saves.

In the U.S. Open Cup, Crew SC were eliminated in the fourth round by Chicago Fire, with the tie coming down to a penalty shootout.

Two days after the 2018 regular season began, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and the City of Columbus filed a lawsuit against Precourt, citing a 1996 state law that prevents sports teams that benefited from public facilities or financial assistance from relocating to another city without a six-month notice and attempting to sell the team to a local ownership group.

On October 12, 2018, with two games remaining in the regular season, the owner of the Cleveland Browns (Jimmy Haslam) released a statement stating he, along with other local groups, was in the process of buying the Crew.

[3] MLS later released a statement stating their willingness to keep the Crew in Columbus, and that Precourt would get the rights to start a team in Austin if the deal went through.

Federico Higuaín entered the season sitting fifth in club history for most goals, needing three to pass Edson Buddle for fourth all-time.

[13] At the end of the year, Meram still sat fifth in appearances (with 225) and sixth in goals (with 43), but had taken sole possession of seventh in assists (with 36).

Wil Trapp began the season having appeared 144 times in all competitions for Crew SC, needing to play in 27 games to crack the all-time top ten.