St. Louis CITY SC, UMSL to partner on esports and professional development education initiatives

St. Louis CITY SC and the University of Missouri–St. Louis are entering a dynamic new partnership to grow the next generation of esports players and fans and unite the two STLMade brands in programming designed to foster professional development by expanding UMSL’s sport management offerings.

 “UMSL is now the official higher education partner of St. Louis CITY SC,” Dennis Moore, the chief revenue officer for St. Louis CITY SC said. “We will work together to build the St. Louis CITY/UMSL Sport Management Program, and UMSL is the new presenting partner of our club’s esports program.”

The St. Louis CITY SC/UMSL Sport Management Program expands upon UMSL’s current curriculum for the Bachelor of Science in Sport Management and will foster the next generation of sporting professionals.

The program includes opportunities for students to engage with CITY SC executives through on-campus classroom visits and speaking engagements. Additionally, UMSL students across all majors will have the opportunity to intern with St. Louis CITY SC and to gain service hours.

“This is an exciting and unique partnership that focuses on building direct connections between the University of Missouri–St. Louis and St. Louis CITY SC,” UMSL Chancellor Kristin Sobolik said.  “Our partnership includes academic integration to provide students with internships, gameday opportunities, in-class engagements with club personnel and players, and more – all to build a direct and diverse pipeline for the region’s workforce.”

Capitalizing on the global popularity of esports and the success of eMLS, Major League Soccer’s esports competition, UMSL also is serving as the presenting partner of St. Louis CITY SC’s esports program. The university’s familiar branding will be featured on CITY SC’s eMLS kit and throughout CITY SC’s esports lounge, which will be located at the club’s Downtown St. Louis headquarters in CITYPARK’s stadium district.

The partnership comes ahead of the launch of UMSL’s first-ever competitive esports team which will debut in fall 2023. UMSL and CITY SC also will coordinate events between UMSL esports students and the club’s eMLS player, Niklas Raseck.