The Crew is searching for a new company to slap its brand and image across the chest of the club’s yellow and black jerseys. A deal with Acura that expired at the end of 2019 will not be renewed.

Acura signed a three-year deal in 2017 with the Crew’s previous ownership to replace Barbasol as the primary jersey sponsor. The team and the car manufacturer decided not to renew the deal during the 2019 season.

“Our company is proud to have strongly supported Columbus Crew SC during a pivotal moment in the club’s history,” Acura spokesman Matt Sloustcher said. “Over the past three seasons, Columbus Crew SC has succeeded on the field and secured the future of Major League Soccer in central Ohio. We look forward to passing the torch to the club’s next jersey partner, and to cheering the club on this season.”

The Crew is targeting local businesses to be the next jersey sponsor, and spokesman Tim Miller said the team expects to have an announcement closer to the first game March 1. Major League Soccer is unveiling the kits for all 26 teams Feb. 5 as part of an event for the league’s 25th season.

Neither the Crew nor Acura disclosed how much Acura paid during its three years of the partnership. At the time of the deal, former club president of business operations Andy Loughnane said it was the club’s largest annual commercial deal.

Loughnane was among those in the Crew front office who followed former owner Anthony Precourt to Austin, Texas, where Precourt was granted an expansion franchise after first attempting to move the Crew there and ultimately selling the team.

Honda, Acura’s parent company, employs roughly 15,000 people in Ohio, including at the Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville.

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