Notable Moments in St. Louis Soccer History
1886
St. Louis League
One of the first organized soccer leagues in America is founded.
1903
Association Football League
The first major soccer league in St. Louis is founded.
1907
St. Louis Soccer League
The first fully professional soccer league in the United States is founded.
1920
1st US Open Cup Championship
Ben Millers defeats Fore River (MA) 2-1 in front of 12,000 spectators on May 9th at Handlan’s Park, St. Louis.
1922
2nd US Open Cup Championship
Scullen Steel defeats Todd Shipyards (NY) 3-2 on March 19th.
1933
3rd US Open Cup Championship
Stix, Baer and Fuller defeats New York Americans 3-1 (agg) on April 23rd.
1934
4th US Open Cup Championship
Stix, Baer and Fuller goes back-to-back, defeating the Pawtucket Rangers 11-5 (agg) on April 16th.
1935
5th US Open Cup Championship
New name, same result – St. Louis Central Breweries (formerly Stix, Baer and Fuller) wins their 3rd straight USOC, 7-6 (agg) over Pawtucket on May 12th.
1948
6th US Open Cup Championship
St. Louis Simpkins-Ford defeats Brookhattan-Galicia (NY) 3-2 on October 17th.
1950
The Women’s League
The first Women’s soccer league in the United States, the Craig League, is founded in St. Louis, featuring 4 teams of approximately 70 women.
1950
7th US Open Cup Championship
St. Louis Simpkins-Ford defeats Ponta Delgada SC (MA) 3-1 (agg) on May 7th.
1950
The Boys From the Hill
The US Men’s National Team, featuring 5 starting players from St. Louis, defeat England 1-0 in the 1950 World Cup, the biggest upset in the history of the tournament on June 29th.
1957
8th US Open Cup Championship
St. Louis Kutis SC tops Ponta Delgada SC (MA) 3-1 (agg) on May 7th.
1959
SLU Wins Their 1st NCAA Title
1960
SLU Goes Back-to-Back
SLU wins a second consecutive NCAA title, 3-2 over Maryland on November 26th.
1962
SLU Reclaims the Title
SLU wins their third NCAA title in 4 seasons by topping Maryland 4-3 on November 24th at Francis Field in St. Louis.
1963
SLU Goes Back-to-Back Again
SLU’s dynasty continues with another NCAA Championship, this time 3-0 over Navy at Rutgers Stadium in New Jersey.
1965
SLU Grabs #5
SLU tops Michigan State 1-0 on December 4th at Francis Field to win their 5th NCAA Championship.
1967
The Stars Come Out
The St. Louis Stars, featuring a number of St. Louis locals including Pat McBride, begin play in the NASL
1967
A Co-Title For the Billikens
SLU and Michigan State are declared co-champions after inclement weather cancels the national title match on December 2nd.
1969
SLU Begins Another Dynasty
SLU beats San Francisco 4-0 at Spartan Stadium in San Jose on December 8th for title number seven.
1970
Back-to-Back for #8
Playing on their archrival SIUE’s home field on December 5th, SLU defeats UCLA 1-0 to win their 8th championship.
1971
The Hall of Fame
The St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame is established, recognizing St. Louis area players, coaches and those instrumental in the growth and promotion of the game in our area.
1972
SIUE Tops DII
SIUE wins their first NCAA title, defeating Oneonta State in the Division II final on December 9th.
1972
3 out of 4 for SLU
SLU grabs another NCAA title, their 3rd in 4 years, downing UCLA 4-2 in Miami on December 29th.
1973
SLU Hits Double Digits
SLU outlasts UCLA 2-1 in overtime in another National Championship match to win their 10th NCAA crown.
1973
UMSL Stakes Their Claim
UMSL joins the ranks of St. Louis area champions, winning the Division II title 3-0 over Cal-State Fullerton on December 8th.
1979
SIUE Grabs Divison I Glory
SIUE clinches their first NCAA Division I Championship, beating Clemson 3-2 in Tampa on December 9th.
1979
Indoor Madness
The St. Louis Steamers begin play in the Major Indoor Soccer League, regularly outdrawing their St. Louis Arena cohabitants, the NHL’s St. Louis Blues.
1985
USMNT at Busch
The US Men’s National team plays a CONCACAF Championship at Busch Stadium II against Trinidad & Tobago on May 16th.
1986
9th US Open Cup Championship
St. Louis Kutis SC beats San Pedro Yugoslavs 1-0 at Soccer Park in Fenton.
1988
10th US Open Cup Championship
St. Louis Busch Seniors downs Greek-American AC (CA) on June 25th.
1989
Storm Warning
The folding of the Steamers in 1988 left a indoor soccer ball sized hole in the hearts of St. Louisans, which the St. Louis Storm attempted to fill, joining the MISL in ’89.
1992
The Ambush Era Begins
The St. Louis Ambush begin play, making the playoffs in all but one year during their run from 1992-2000 and winning the NPSL title in 1995.
1998
Steamers 2.0
Same name, different team, different leagues – the second iteration of the Steamers begin play in 1998 in the WISL before it merged into the MISL in 2003.
2009
Athletica and the Rise of Women’s Soccer
St. Louis joins the growing women’s pro soccer scene with St. Louis Athletica, which lasted just one season and called Soccer Park home.
2010
AC St. Louis
AC St. Louis joins the NASL Division II Pro League, lasting one season but spawning the St. Louligans, the biggest soccer Supporters Group in the area.
2013
EPL at Busch
An friendly match between Premier League titans Chelsea and Manchester United draws a sellout crowd of 48,263 to Busch Stadium II.
2013
Soccer at the Dome
The largest crowd to ever see a soccer match in St. Louis, 54,184, watch Real Madrid and Inter Milan battle in a friendly at the Edward Jones Dome.
2015
Saint Louis FC
Saint Louis FC joins the USL Championship and begins play on April 11th in front of a sellout crowd at Soccer Park.
2018
MLS2THELOU
A majority female ownership group, led by Carolyn Kindle, annouce their bid for a MLS expansion team on October 8th.
2018
World Cup Qualifiers
The US Men’s National Team plays in a 2018 World Cup qualifier at Busch Stadium III, winning 6-1 over St. Vincent and the Grenadines in front of 43,333 spectators.
2019
The Long Wait Ends
On August 20th, MLS announces that St. Louis had been awarded an expansion team, ending decades of frustration and failed attempts to secure a top level soccer team for the city.
2020
CITY, Red?
The team is officially announced as St. Louis CITY SC and reveals their trademark red/pink “CITY Red” primary color scheme on August 13th.
2022
CITYPARK Opens
CITYPARK, the new home of CITY SC, located in the Downtown West district of St. Louis, hosts its first match November 16 on a frigid, but memorable, night. CITY2 falls to Bundesliga giants Bayer 04 Leverkusen 3-0.
2023
Our CITY, Our Team
After a yearlong delay in starting MLS play in which they swapped start dates with Charlotte FC, CITY finally ushers in the MLS era to St. Louis with a 3-2 victory over Austin FC in Texas on February 25th.
2023
CONCACAF Gold Cup
CITYPARK, the spectacular new home of St. Louis CITY SC, hosts two Gold Cup matches featuring Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the US Men’s National Team on June 28th.
2023
MLS History
CITY finishes their inaugural season on October 21st with a 17-5-12 record, good for 56 points, becoming the first expansion franchise to win a regular season conference title.
2023
Bürki Makes History
CITY Captain Roman Bürki wins MLS Goalkeeper of the Year award, the first individual award in club history. Bürki finishes 2023 with a 74.5% save percentage over 33 MLS starts.
2024
Carnell Departs
Citing declining performance over the end of 2023 and into 2024, CITY parts ways with Bradley Carnell, the first manager in club history. He departs with a 22W-15D-25L record over 62 matches.
