(Photo Credit – @ImTheMandziara and Saint Louis FC)
FENTON, MO– In the latest attendance polls courtesy of the USL (United Soccer League) Saint Louis FC ranks #5 overall in attendance. They are members of the Eastern Conference within the USL, and have all home games at World Wide Technology Soccer Park inside Marshall Wireless Stadium.
This is Saint Louis FC’s first year in existence after being awarded a Franchise in early spring of 2014. They are competing with much bigger markets such as: Sacramento, Rochester, Austin, Seattle, Los Angles, New York, and Pittsburgh.
Some might not be surprised that Saint Louis is ahead of ALL of the previous cities mentioned in attendance. They are averaging over 4,800 fans a game, according to kenn.com/blog.
But Saint Louis can’t support an MLS team right? Some will definitely disagree with that statement. With much bigger cities trailing in attendance that are attempting to sway the MLS to come to their city, this is outstanding news for the soccer community in Saint Louis. Not to bring up old news, but a stadium plan in downtown Saint Louis MUST get done before any more discussions can proceed regarding an MLS team coming here.
Despite the horrendous weather the month of May has brought to our fine city, loyal soccer fans remain steadfast in their longing to see their hometown team succeed. Countless tweets and interviews from members of Saint Louis FC commend the always boisterous fan section, the @StLouligans.
All home games combined, Saint Louis FC has hosted over 24,000 fans so far. My hope is that number reaches upwards of 80,000 for the season, since there are still four months remaining.
No matter how you look at it, Saint Louis is making a very strong case for a future MLS team. Don Garber, MLS commissioner, did say that in the best case scenario, Saint Louis would receive an MLS team in 2020. That case remains to be seen.
