If you’re new to the St. Louligans, we want to welcome you to the party. 2022 is a weird time to be a Louligan. While most soccer fans are anxiously waiting until 2023 for St. Louis CITY SC to take the field in MLS, there are soccer games and events going on in 2022 that we’ll be at and having fun. We understand you can’t make it out to everything but we want to make sure you feel welcome to come out and get to know what the Louligans are all about and start prepping so you can hit the ground running in 2023. To that end we’ll be gathering at all the St. Louis CITY 2 matches and having other get togethers throughout the year.
First and foremost, there are no dues to pay nor is there any official sign-up to become a Louligan. Some members just show up for games and events and have a good time. Others make it a bigger part of their life by buying merchandise, participating online, volunteering to help with projects or charity events or participating, organizing and running game day operations. Whatever your level of interest there’s a place for you. The best part about being in a supporters group is the friends you’ll make and being able to go to a game and hang out with other people that are there to really get into it. If you start coming to events in 2022 you’ll get to know some people and you’ll feel at home at tailgate parties or in the North End at the new Centene Stadium in 2023.
Some of us have been hanging out together since 2010 at ACSTL games and some of us are brand new to the group since the announcement of CITY. We realize it can be intimidating to join a large group for the first time but I promise we try to make it easy. These CITY2 games this spring/summer will be a perfect opportunity to come out and get to know people because the crowds will be significantly smaller than they will be at MLS games. We hope you take advantage of that. In addition to meeting new people and getting involved in the group you’ll get to see some quality live soccer and see some of the players that will eventually be a part of the MLS club.
The new MLS NEXT PRO league that CITY2 is playing in is technically the 3rd division of the US soccer pyramid. Equivalent to USL1. These are young pros (and a few amateurs) that are trying to work their way up and earn a spot on an MLS roster. They’ve been identified by STL CITY SC as potential MLS players. Some will make it, some won’t, but they’ll be playing their hearts out trying to impress the coaches and playing against other players that other MLS clubs are watching. Since it’s the first year of the league, we don’t know exactly what to expect, but live soccer is always a good time.
In addition to CITY2 there will be St. Louis Lions (USL2), Fire & Ice SC (WPSL), St. Louis Lions Women (USLW) and other games to go to. We’ll also have some “Meet the Louligan” events around town to help people get involved. My friend Matt often says that getting to know people in the supporter section increases your enjoyment of the game ten-fold. I haven’t checked the math on that but I do know I enjoy rolling up to a tailgate party or hanging out in the stands and seeing familiar faces and celebrating big goals and big wins with them. I hope you find something similar with us.
Having said all that, we know we won’t be the only group supporting CITY come 2023. Right now we’re the largest and most organized group but others will pop up. Some people have tried us and it wasn’t a good fit or they want to create their own culture. We’re good with that. We aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. At the end of the day, we hope you enjoy supporting St. Louis soccer and that we can all find a spot in the North End that we’re comfortable with and that we can all work together to support our team.
Come out to some CITY2 games and get to know us. The first local preseason game is this Saturday February 19th at 3pm at the Creve Coeur Soccer Complex. CITY2 is hosting Memphis 901 FC from the USL Championship. We’ll be there at 2pm to tailgate and hang out. We’d love to meet you.
The next St. Louis City game is this coming Sunday at SLU Herman Field. Would like to participate in your tailgate pre game festivities. Where and what time shall we meet?
The next St. Louis City game is this coming Sunday at SLU Herman Field. Would like to participate in your tailgate pre game festivities. Where and what time shall we meet?