St. Louis awarded MLS expansion team

It’s long been rumored, but now it’s official. Today, Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber was on hand to formally announce that St. Louis had been awarded an expansion team. The team will join in 2022 and become the 28th team in the top division in the United States.

The club made history with the announcement, becoming the first female majority-owned club in MLS history. Carolyn Kindle Betz and 6 female members of the Taylor family lead the ownership group along with Jim Kavanaugh. “St. Louis is a city with a rich soccer tradition, and it is a market we have considered since the league’s inception,” commissioner Garber stated in a statement. “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.”

St. Louis will begin play in a 22,500-seat stadium in 2022. The official team name, crest, colors, and uniforms will come at a later date. The MLS bid is not connected to the current St. Louis FC club that operates in the USL Championship, and the fate of that club beyond 2021 has yet to be determined.

Thoughts on St. Louis becoming the 28th franchise in MLS?