The city of St. Louis and the sport of soccer has been inextricably linked for nearly a century. However, not since the 1970s and the North American Soccer League’s St Louis Stars has the city and its fans anticipated a reunion with the sport so beloved by many.

But what an exciting return to the Gateway City it was for the newest Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise and the fans in attendance at the sold-out CITY Park for its first-ever home match against another recent MLS expansion club, Charlotte FC. And, we had a front-row seat!

Building off the success of our continued work with Orlando City, we were lucky enough to be approached by the matchday experience team to support St Louis City’s marketing and events in the club’s inaugural year.

St. Louis CITY wanted their pre-match presentation to feel like a television pregame show, creating a “St. Louis-style” party in the stadium. We combined our years of broadcast experience with our in-game presentation experience to deliver something special to their highly energized fans.

“Building a matchday experience for a new professional team is simultaneously a daunting and exciting opportunity to take on,” St. Louis CITY Director of Live Experience said. “As we began the process, we wanted to ensure that we were creating a matchday experience for our fans unlike anything they’ve seen before. After one meeting with David Saphirstein and his team we knew that we had found a partner that we could turn that vision into a reality.”

Our team got to work immediately and provided live and event production assistance to Vedder and his team leading up to a sold-out home opener at the beautiful new stadium. We assisted with developing the run of show, scripting, creative development, production workflow and the overall look of the game-day show.

“St. Louis CITY has a unique vision for what they wanted their matchday to look and feel like,” Venue Edge Founder David Saphirstein said. “We’re honored that they’ve allowed us to have such input into something so important to the club and city. They’ve assembled a creative and talented group that we continue to work with throughout the season. We’re excited to see how this partnership continues to grow.”

After the long-anticipated return of soccer to the Gateway City, we’re excited to bring the live fan experience to soccer fans throughout the greater St. Louis area during the upcoming season.