Energizer Park
Energizer Park, in St. Louis, Missouri, packs every fan within 120 feet of the pitch, the shortest distance of any stadium in Major League Soccer. It is the 22,423-seat home of St. Louis City SC, and also hosts the club's developmental side, St. Louis City 2 of MLS Next Pro. The building sits next to Union Station in the city's Downtown West neighborhood. Getting a team and a stadium into that spot took two separate bids and a defeated public vote. The story of how it got there starts far from a soccer pitch, in a fight over public money.
In February 2016, Major League Soccer started looking for a downtown site to build a soccer-specific stadium. One candidate site had previously been earmarked for a stadium for the St. Louis Rams before the team moved back to Los Angeles. On the 17th of February 2016, a group of local businessmen calling itself MLS2STL formed to pursue an MLS franchise for the city. Its members included St. Louis Cardinals president Bill DeWitt III, UniGroup president Jim Powers, and Blues chief executive Chris Zimmerman. Saint Louis FC owner Jim Kavanaugh joined them, along with Dave Peacock, a former Anheuser-Busch president who had co-chaired a failed NFL stadium task force.
On the 18th of November 2016, the group unveiled a proposal for a $200 million stadium on 30 acres owned by the Missouri Department of Transportation. That land held only off-ramps from Interstate 64, leftovers of a North-South Distributor Highway that was never built. The plan asked for $80 million in public money, not counting any future land purchases. The full ownership group was led by Paul Edgerley, a former managing director at Bain Capital in Boston, alongside Peacock, Powers, and Kavanaugh.
On the 19th of December 2016, Missouri governor-elect Eric Greitens rejected any public funding, calling the plan 'nothing more than welfare for millionaires.' Edgerley responded that without that money, landing an expansion franchise in St. Louis would be 'hard to get.' A rival ownership group, Foundry St. Louis, offered to cover the $80 million public share if allowed to join the city's MLS bid. SC STL then asked the state for $40 million instead, but Greitens repeated his opposition to any state contribution, tax credit or direct subsidy.
In January 2017, Alderwoman Christine Ingrassia withdrew the plan for an $80 million public vote. She said SC STL was 'asking for way more than I feel like we could support here in the city.' By the end of January, the Board of Aldermen revised the bill, cutting the public contribution to $60 million. The board passed it on the 3rd of February, just after the ten-week cutoff required before any public vote, and St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Michael Mullen approved putting two funding measures on the ballot on the 9th of February. SC STL formally applied for an MLS expansion franchise on the 31st of January 2017, while the city vote was still pending. Voters faced the stadium question on the 4th of April 2017, and defeated it 53-47 percent. The loss looked potentially fatal to the city's MLS hopes, though some reports said the bid was still alive. A new ownership group would return to the same site less than two years later, asking for something the first bid never tried.
On the 9th of October 2018, a group called MLS 4 The Lou proposed a stadium on the same parcel the earlier bid had targeted. The new ownership group was led by the Taylor family, founders of St. Louis-based Enterprise Holdings, alongside Jim Kavanaugh, chief executive of World Wide Technology. Kavanaugh also owned Saint Louis FC of the USL Championship, but the club clarified the new MLS team would not inherit that identity.
The Taylor family's involvement made the team majority woman owned, the first such ownership in league history and one of very few across professional sports. Unlike the earlier bid, this ownership group asked for no public funding at all. The stadium would be privately funded and owned by the team, with upkeep paid through a tax on tickets and items sold there. St. Louis still granted the group more than $60 million in tax incentives, mostly amusement and real-estate tax breaks.
Missouri Governor Mike Parson, St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, and former County Executive Steve Stenger all backed the plan. On the 18th of April 2019, the MLS Board of Governors approved expanding the league to 30 teams, and new stadium renderings followed. On the 20th of August 2019, MLS approved St. Louis as its 28th franchise, with the team set to join in 2023. Construction began in February 2020, closing the exit 39 and 38B ramps off Interstate 64 that crossed the site. Before its first match, the building itself would take on more than one name in less than three years.
On the 15th of February 2022, St. Louis City SC announced a fifteen-year partnership with Centene Corporation, renaming the building Centene Stadium. The stadium was due to open in September 2022 with two matches for St. Louis City 2, the club's developmental team. A power failure caused by an unrelated construction project forced both matches to be moved and delayed the stadium's opening.
The stadium finally opened on the 16th of November 2022, with a friendly between St. Louis City 2 and Bayer 04 Leverkusen of Germany's Bundesliga. Leverkusen won the match 3-0.
On the 31st of October 2024, St. Louis City SC announced the building would be renamed again, becoming Energizer Park starting in 2025. Energizer, a battery manufacturer based in St. Louis, signed the naming rights deal for an undisclosed fee and length of time. The club also unveiled a new premium seating section, presented by Energizer to deliver what it called an 'immersive fan experience.' The ground beneath that new seating section carries a history that predates any sponsor's name.
Energizer Park stands in Mill Creek Valley, once a thriving Black neighborhood cleared out through eminent domain and urban renewal in the late 1950s. Outside the stadium entrance, a monument called 'Pillars of the Valley,' created by artist Damon Davis, memorializes the neighborhood and the people displaced from it.
The playing surface sits 40 feet below street level, ringed by two tiers of seating that can expand by another 2,500 spots. A clear plastic awning covers the bowl, keeping out weather, holding in crowd noise, and avoiding shadows that would fall across the pitch.
The supporters' section holds space for more than 3,000 standing fans, with three capo stands leading chants from the crowd. A 257-foot tifo rigging system runs through the section, alongside a drum platform for drum corps and a dedicated supporters bar. The design would next be tested by more than just a friendly, when league play, international tournaments, and record crowds followed.
The first home MLS match came on the 4th of March 2023, when St. Louis City SC hosted Charlotte FC. Charlotte's Enzo Copetti scored the stadium's first MLS goal in the 25th minute, but St. Louis City SC won 3-1. Eduard Lowen and Joao Klauss scored for the home side, and Charlotte's Bill Tuiloma added an own goal.
The stadium sold out again for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal on the 2nd of July, a 2-1 result. Other big crowds included 21,216 for a 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup group match and 21,080 for a 2024-25 CONCACAF Nations League game. A 2025 women's international friendly drew 17,689. The stadium has also hosted the annual Bronze Boot rivalry between the SIUE Cougars and Saint Louis Billikens. On the 30th of July 2025, St. Louis City SC hosted Aston Villa in a club friendly, losing 1-2.
In 2028, Energizer Park will host eight soccer matches during the Summer Olympics, marking St. Louis's first Olympic competition of any kind since the 1904 Summer Olympics.
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Common questions
What is Energizer Park and where is it located?
Energizer Park is a 22,423-seat soccer-specific stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, home to Major League Soccer's St. Louis City SC and its developmental side, St. Louis City 2. It sits next to Union Station in the city's Downtown West neighborhood.
Who owns St. Louis City SC, the team that plays at Energizer Park?
St. Louis City SC's ownership group is led by the Taylor family, founders of St. Louis-based Enterprise Holdings, along with Jim Kavanaugh, chief executive of World Wide Technology. The Taylor family's stake made the team majority woman owned, the first such ownership in Major League Soccer.
When did Energizer Park open, and what was its name at the time?
The stadium opened on the 16th of November 2022 under the name CityPark, with a friendly match between St. Louis City 2 and Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Leverkusen won 3-0.
Why did St. Louis voters reject public stadium funding in 2017?
Missouri governor-elect Eric Greitens opposed the funding, calling it 'nothing more than welfare for millionaires,' and voters defeated the measure 53-47 percent on the 4th of April 2017. The defeat looked potentially fatal to the city's bid for an MLS franchise.
Why has Energizer Park changed names since it opened?
The stadium opened as CityPark after Centene Corporation, its original naming sponsor, backed out of its agreement in 2022. St. Louis City SC then signed Energizer, a St. Louis-based battery manufacturer, to a new naming rights deal that took effect in 2025, renaming it Energizer Park.
What historic neighborhood did Energizer Park displace, and will it host the 2028 Olympics?
Energizer Park stands in Mill Creek Valley, a once-thriving Black neighborhood cleared through eminent domain and urban renewal in the late 1950s. The stadium will host eight soccer matches during the 2028 Summer Olympics, St. Louis's first Olympic competition since the 1904 Summer Olympics.
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44 references cited across the entry
- 1MLS receives 12 applications by expansion submission deadlineSports Illustrated — January 31, 2017
- 2Major League Soccer to begin search for downtown St. Louis stadium site immediatelyDavid Hunn — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — February 5, 2016
- 3Local business leaders form Major League Soccer exploration groupDavid Hunn — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — February 17, 2016
- 4Those soon-to-close Highway 40 ramps are remnants of a never-built north-south highwayBeth O'Malley — January 31, 2020
- 5MLS group reveals plan for $200 million stadium downtownMike Faulk — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — November 18, 2016
- 6MLS reaches verbal agreement to bring expansion team to St. LouisSam Clancy — KDSK
- 7Prospective St. Louis MLS expansion team names ownership groupBrian Straus — Sports Illustrated
- 8MLS OWNERSHIP EXECUTIVES BACKGROUIND (sic)St. Louis FC
- 10Missouri Governor-elect opposes public funding for St. Louis MLS stadiumColton Coreschi — SBI — December 19, 2016
- 11Ortiz: Would $80 million derail MLS expansion in St. Louis?Jose de Jesus Ortiz — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — December 2016
- 12Second St. Louis group criticizes public financing of MLS stadiumESPN — November 29, 2016
- 13Greitens: 'I have completely ruled out state funding for stadiums'Mike Faulk — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — January 3, 2017
- 14St. Louis bid to join MLS in doubt as stadium funding plan is droppedESPN — January 10, 2017
- 15St. Louis soccer stadium funding bill is deadMike Faulk et al. — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — January 11, 2017
- 16New life emerges for St. Louis soccer stadiumMike Faulk — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — January 27, 2017
- 17Aldermen fine-tune new soccer stadium funding plan; vote down Scottrade renovationsFox 2 St. Louis — January 30, 2017
- 18Judge paves way for St. Louis soccer stadium, MetroLink initiatives on April ballotJason Rosenbaum — St. Louis Public Radio — February 9, 2017
- 19Judge puts St. Louis soccer stadium, MetroLink expansion tax on ballotMike Faulk — St. Louis Post-Dispatch — February 10, 2017
- 20St. Louis Ownership Group Applies for MLS FranchiseSt. Louis FC
- 21Measure for public funding for MLS stadium defeated in St. LouisSports Illustrated — April 5, 2017
- 23St. Louis' bid for an MLS franchise still activeSt. Louis Post-Dispatch — September 4, 2017
- 27St. Louis board OKs additional tax at CityParkSteph Kukuljan — March 14, 2024
- 29MLS Commissioner Don Garber visits expansion candidate St. LouisAlicia Rodriguez
- 30MLS announces plans to expand to 30 teamsMLSsoccer Staff — April 18, 2019
- 31St. Louis soccer stadium shapes up as a sleek square, first renderings showDavid Hunn — April 21, 2019
- 32Five Highway 40 (I-64) ramps to close permanently on Feb. 3 for new soccer stadiumStaff reports — January 24, 2020
- 33St. Louis City SC will play soccer at Centene StadiumSteph Kukuljan
- 34NewsSt. Louis City SC matches relocated as power issue at Centene Stadium continuesTravis Cummings — October 25, 2022
- 36NewsCentene backs out of St. Louis soccer stadium naming dealAnnika Marrilees — October 25, 2022
- 37With power restored at its stadium, here's when St. Louis City SC will host its first match thereNathan Rubbelke — KSDK — October 27, 2022
- 38NewsHome sweet home: City SC opens CityPark with 3-1 win over CharlotteTom Timmermann — March 4, 2023
- 40NewsSt. Louis' CityPark soccer stadium gets new name: Energizer ParkSteph Kukuljan — October 31, 2024
- 41‘Pillars of the Valley’ cements the nearly forgotten history of Mill Creek ValleyMiya Norfleet — February 16, 2023
- 42St. Louis MLS expansion bid releases proposed stadium renderingsNick Rosano — April 20, 2019
- 44SIUE holds off Saint Louis U. to win Bronze BootPete Hayes — September 9, 2024