After the first-ever win in the first-ever game, St Louis City SC president and CEO Carolyn Kindle shared a story.
Right before the Major League Soccer season began, some media sites published predictions. This included The Athletic, which had seven soccer journalists pick City to finish last in the Western Conference. One writer said City would win only four games. And an executive from a different MLS team was anonymously quoted: “It will be a miracle if they finish anywhere other than last place.”
Kindle recalled that day. And in reference to City’s offices in the Clayton area, she said: “When we were ranked 14th, I’m surprised Clayton didn’t blow up, actually. But it really gave Lutz (Pfannenstiel, City’s sporting director) I think that last bit to go to our guys and say: ‘This is unacceptable — we need to prove them wrong.’ I think that’s probably more passionate than any kind of pick-up speech. And truthfully, I think it helped us win in Austin.”
