Soccer has an established history at both the professional and amateur levels in Greater St. Louis for more than a century. In 2007, St. Louis was considered a possible relocation candidate for Real Salt Lake after the club founder announced he would sell the club if a new stadium was not built. The potential ownership group in St. Louis was led by Jeff Cooper, a local lawyer. From 2008 to 2009, Cooper attempted to bring an MLS expansion team to Greater St. Louis, only to have the bids turned down in favor of other cities. Despite approved stadium plans to build the $600 million Collinsville Soccer Complex, MLS was not impressed with the bid's financial backing and suggested Cooper expand his group of investors. Cooper instead launched a second division men's club and a Women's Professional Soccer franchise. AC St. Louis played only one season in Division 2 before folding in 2011 and the Saint Louis Athletica folded midway through its second season in 2010. In late 2014, the city announced plans for a new stadium to host both American football and soccer. MLS Commissioner Don Garber stated in January 2015 that: "St. Louis has gota lot of activity going on with a stadium that they’re trying to get done for the NFLRams. There's a big soccer community out there and we'd love to see a soccer stadium downtown like they're thinking about a football stadium." In May 2015, Garber visited St. Louis to talk about a possible new multi-purpose stadium that would be capable of holding soccer games. Garber cautioned that any possible expansion to St. Louis would occur after 2020. On January 12, 2016, the NFL's Rams relocated to Los Angeles after playing in St. Louis for twenty years. The Rams relocation initially accelerated the talks of an MLS expansion team. In 2017, MLS began to consider adding a team in St. Louis, beginning in 2020. The proposed ownership group sought public funds to help build a $200 million soccer-specific stadium next to Union Station in downtown St. Louis. On January 26, 2017, a funding plan was approved by the city's Aldermanic Ways and Means Committee, and later by the entire Board of Aldermen, that would have directed $60 million in city tax revenue to the new stadium. Voters however rejected the plan in an April 4, 2017 referendum, leaving the city's MLS future in doubt.
2018–present: Successful MLS expansion bid
In September 2018, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported on a meeting between officials with the Missouri Department of Economic Development and MLS representatives regarding a stadium proposal; St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson later confirmed that a new group was trying to bring a team to St. Louis. St. Louis's MLS bid was effectively re-launched on October 9 of that year, with Carolyn Kindle Betz and other heirs to the Enterprise Rent-A-Car fortune as the primary investors. The stadium location remained the same as in the original 2016 location, near Union Station. The ownership group of the bid will be the first majority female-owned franchise in the league if admitted. The bid is not seeking public funding through taxes or from the city, so there will not be a vote from the public on the stadium. On November 28, 2018, the Board of Aldermen's Housing, Urban Development, and Zoning Committee unanimously voted 8-0 to approve the stadium plan. On April 18, 2019, the MLS announced plans to expand to 30 teams, up from the previous plan of 28. The league, currently at 27 teams, advised the Commissioner's office to advance the discussions with the Sacramento Republic and St. Louis bids. Furthermore, both bids were asked to make presentations to the MLS Expansion Committee to "address each bid's final stadium plan, corporate commitments, the composition of the respective ownership groups, detailed economics on funding, strategic plans for fan development, commitments on player development and details on community programs." On April 20, 2019, two days after the MLS made the announcement to advance discussions with the Sacramento and St. Louis bids, the St. Louis bid released renderings and more information about their proposed stadium. The stadium's design was produced by a collaboration between HOK and Snow Kreilich Architects and is planned to seat 22,500 fans. The bid also promised that every seat would be within 120 feet of the field and that a canopy would cover the stadium. On August 20, 2019, MLS announced it had approved St. Louis as the league's 28th franchise and is expected to join in the 2022 season. The ownership group consists of Enterprise Holdings Foundation president Carolyn Kindle Betz and female members of the Taylor family, and is the first female majority-owned team in MLS. In the announcement, Don Garber stated, "St. Louis is a city with a rich soccer tradition, and it is a market we have considered since the league's inception. Our league becomes stronger today with the addition of the city's deeply dedicated soccer fans, and the committed and innovative local ownership group led by Carolyn Kindle Betz, the Taylor family, and Jim Kavanaugh." On October 19, 2019, the ownership group released new plans for the planned soccer-specific stadium. The area was extended to encompass a plan and would likely exceed the original $200 million cost estimate. The ownership group agreed to purchase and own the land along with the stadium and will not seek tax revenue or public financing. On December 17, 2019, the state of Missouri informed the ownership group that the $30 million dollars previously promised by the state will no longer be provided. However, on March 18, 2020, the Missouri Development Finance Board unanimously approved a package of incentives worth $5.7 million in tax credits to help with construction of the $458 million stadium and surrounding area. On March 25, the ownership group released a statement regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Site preparation for the stadium will continue as planned but will adhere to all health advice from public health officials and the local, state, and national government. Site preparation includes clearing all land where the stadium will sit and demolishing the old on and off ramps located on the site.
Stadium
The team will play in a 22,500-seat soccer-specific stadium located in downtown St. Louis that is expected to be the anchor of a development area that will include team offices, training facilities, and commercial districts. This stadium is intended to revitalize Downtown West St. Louis by providing an urban hub open year round. The stadium is situated to connect Forest Park with the Gateway Arch and is intended to field 17-23 soccer games a year along with serving as a venue for concerts, high school sports, and much more. Updated renderings for the planned stadium were released on March 5, 2020. The design of the stadium is intended to connect the surrounding area and the downtown area together while blending with the neighborhood.
