Centene Stadium, the home of St. Louis CITY SC, will host its first official match when St Louis CITY2 take on Sporting KC II in MLS NEXT Pro action on Sunday, September 18. The match will kick off at 6 p.m. CST, with only the lower bowl of the stadium being opened to season ticket members as an early preview of Centene Stadium.
“A CITY2 vs. Sporting KC II game will be a great introduction to our stadium in what will be a long list of events before next year,” said President and Chief Executive Office Carolyn Kindle. “This match will give our CITY2 players the opportunity to play in our world-class stadium and our current season ticket members a first look inside the stadium as we build toward our historic 2023 inaugural season.”
CITY2 has had a strong run of form in their first year of existence, both as a club and in MLS Next Pro, sitting tops in the league at 15-4-2 (48 points). CITY2 has the league’s best road record at 8-1-1 and are Top-6 in Goal Differential (+20, 3rd), Goals For (49, T-2nd) and Goals Against (29, 6th). CITY’s seven clean sheets are tied for third best in the league and have four players among the Top-11 in the major offensive categories (goals/assists) as Josh Dolling sits tied-for 11th in goals with eight, Akil Watts is tied for fifth in assists with six and both Wan Kuzain and Célio Pompeu are tied for eighth with five assists.
“I am proud of the work that all of the CITY2 players and staff have put in so far,” said Sporting Director Lutz Pfannenstiel. “It’s amazing for all of us to close the regular season at Centene Stadium. We hope to put on a great game for the fans, friends and ownership at the stadium ahead of the playoffs and build upon a healthy rivalry with Sporting Kansas City and SKC2.”
The MLS NEXT Pro match will be a closed event for season ticket members as the operations and fan experience teams are putting the finishing touches on the stadium as part of this “soft” opening. The main concourse and in-stadium team store will be open with limited food and beverage concessions.
Designed to be a place where the passion of sport intersects with comprehensive regional excellence, Centene Stadium has always been about more than building a 30+ acre world-class soccer stadium and district for a Major League Soccer (MLS) team in Downtown West. The club’s vision is to build something that serves as the heartbeat of the region and showcase what a sports-loving city like St. Louis has to offer.
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