Adam Cairns / Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY Network / Imagn Images
Toulouse FC is finalizing a deal to sign Canada international forward Jacen Russell-Rowe from the Columbus Crew, sources briefed on the situation tell The Athletic.
Toulouse will pay a fee of around $2.5 million plus add-ons, sources add. The Crew will retain a sell-on clause for Russell-Rowe, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the year. He wanted the move to the Ligue 1 side, and will surely hope that the move to Europe will increase his chances of making Jesse Marsch’s World Cup squad. Russell-Rowe has eight caps for Canada, one of the 2026 World Cup cohosts.
Russell-Rowe, 23, had nine goals and two assists in just under 2,000 regular season and postseason minutes in 2025, but Columbus has depth in the attack for new coach Henrik Rydstrøm between Palestine international forward Wessam Abou Ali, Diego Rossi and Daniel Gazdag.
Toulouse currently sits in eighth place in Ligue 1, but just three points out of fifth through 19 matches.
It’s not the first time that Toulouse has come calling for a Crew standout, with the club having a a bid for U.S. international wingback Max Arfsten rejected last summer. At Toulouse, Russell-Rowe will team with USMNT center back Mark McKenzie.