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St. Louis City SC Club Preview

This is more of a review of the Club than the City SC 2023 season. St. Louis was awarded a MLS franchise in the 2018 season. Unlike others who have jumped into the league using existing infrastructure and hoping a good stadium deal comes along (see all sorts of existing MLS clubs) the City SC ownership group decided to build their perfect stadium in a perfect spot in Midtown, build their academy up and start slowly last season with MLS Next Pro St. Louis City SC2. The patience to get it right rather than diving in and hoping it all works out its going to pay dividends in the long run for owner Carolyn Kindle, the City and the fans.

It would've been easy for St. Louis, a soccer crazy market who has been waiting years for a top flight soccer club to have started in the 2020-22 seasons and play in The Dome at America's Center (formerly known as the Edward Jones Dome). The group had the capital and knew the soccer specific stadium would come even if they jumped in, but instead rightfully decided to build a solid foundation for the franchise before jumping into MLS. 

Assembling the coaching staff and giving them and the sporting side time to work together to prepare for the 2023 season is a decision I believe will pay off sooner rather than later. City has already signed their first home grown player Miguel Perez to a first team contract this past week. 

That is the key that could separate this franchise from almost every other club in the league; homegrown talent. St. Louis has a long history of producing National Team quality players. In the 2022 World Cup alone Tim Ream and Josh Sargent, both St. Louis area natives started and played significant roles for the USMNT. Going back further Brian McBride played at SLU, Taylor Twellman is a St. Louis native and SLU High School alum. Will Bruin, Pat McBride, the list goes on and on. That's not to mention the incredibly successful college soccer squads in Missouri of Missouri State University and Saint Louis University. If City SC can scout, develop and sign these players and get them onto the team for whatever amount of time they can before they likely head to Europe it will be massive for the Club. 

The Supporters are going to be there through the thick and thin. Fifty thousand plus attended Rams games during a decade that was the worst 10 consecutive seasons in NFL history. The St. Louligans already have a strong base and I'm sure you'll see the away supports section full every road game this season. 

So while I'd say the results of 2023 are still very up in the air, the club has a world class stadium, a great talent base locally, a dedicated fan base and an owner with the patience and resources to do things the right way. If I were a betting man I would say there is likely silverware in the decade ahead for St. Louis City SC.

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