The Olympics are coming back to St. Louis.
The LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games announced Tuesday that six additional venues across the country will host matches for the 2028 Olympic soccer tournament — including St. Louis City SC's Energizer Park.
"We are a soccer town to our core, but the Olympic Games transcend, uniting us as Americans, sport fans and citizens of the world," said Mayor Cara Spencer in a release. "The LA28 Olympic Football (Soccer) Tournament will showcase the absolute best of St. Louis!"
Spencer and regional leaders said at a press conference at the stadium Tuesday that the event will lead to an influx of visitors and drive economic benefits to downtown St. Louis.
Olympic officials are expected to announce which matches will be played in St. Louis in April.
The process to become an Olympic host took months of visits and conversations with LA28, Soccer United Marketing and FIFA, St. Louis City SC General Manager and President Diego Gigliani said. Gigliani said Olympic leaders were looking for a central location.
"I think they were impressed by two things," Gigliani said. "One is the history that we've talked about, the history both with the Olympics, but also the history with soccer. And then secondly, the world-class facility and track record that we have had in hosting big international games here."
In 1904, St. Louis was the first American host of the Summer Olympic Games. Since then, the region has produced numerous notable Olympians, including basketball star Jayson Tatum, track and field athletes Jackee Joyner-Kersee from East St. Louis, Brandon Miller from O'Fallon, Missouri, diver Tyler Downs from Ballwin and soccer star Becky Sauerbrunn from Ladue.
St. Louis, New York City, Columbus, Nashville, San Jose and San Diego will be the sites of group and knockout contests before the final stage matches are held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The men's gold medal match will be on July 28, and the women's gold medal match will be on July 29.
Energizer Park, which will be referred to as "St. Louis Stadium" for the Games, was selected based on its adherence to international standards. Major League Soccer recommended existing stadiums capable of hosting world-class competitions that have the potential to engage the local community, according to event organizers.
Regional officials are trying to have St. Louis be part of the Olympic torch relay. The city is also a finalist for the 2028 Olympic marathon trials, St. Louis Sports Commission President Marc Schreiber said.
"If all of this could come together, it would be a heck of a 2028 for our region," he said.
The stadium in Downtown West has hosted multiple international matches since its opening in 2022, including the CONCACAF Gold Cup match between the U.S. Men's National Team and Guatemala last summer.
"Bringing Olympic Football group stage and knockout matches to stadiums across the United States means more fans will witness this global event and experience the Olympic spirit firsthand," said Shana Ferguson, LA28 chief of sport and games delivery officer. "With the LA28 Ticket Draw for all Olympic sports on the horizon, we're inviting global Football fans to register now for a chance to secure their tickets to history in the summer of 2028."
Regional leaders emphasized recent investments in international flights and services. Last year, St. Louis Lambert International Airport and city and St. Louis County officials announced British Airways would operate nonstop flights between St. Louis and London.
Flights begin in April — months before this year's FIFA World Cup in which several matches will be hosted in Kansas City. St. Louis business leaders expect the event to bring visitors to St. Louis. These investments will help bring more international attention to the region during the Olympic soccer matches, Explore St. Louis President and CEO Brad Dean said.
"This isn't just an announcement about Olympic soccer," Dean said. "This is a testament and an affirmation and confidence in the infrastructure of St. Louis, in the hospitality of St. Louis and the community of St. Louis."
Registration for a chance to score tickets to the LA28 Summer Olympics is open through March 18. The schedule for both the women's and men's soccer tournaments, including the dates and matches by stadium, will be announced before the first ticket drop in April.
The matches will be the latest in a series of high-profile athletic events in St. Louis.
The city hosted the U.S. Figure Skating National Championships last month, which culminated in the selection of the 2026 Olympic figure skating and ice dancing teams, and the NCAA Frozen Four Men's Ice Hockey Championship last spring.
STLPR's Abby Llorico contributed to this report.
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