St. Louis CITY SC Academy Unveils U16 & U17 Rosters
St. Louis CITY SC fans now know the names of the first players who will officially wear the STL CITY crest on the pitch. The club introduced their U-16 and U-17 Academy team rosters today as preparations for the start of the 2021 MLS NEXT season continue.
“After all of the work we have done to create the academy from scratch and scout for top talent to build out our U-16 and U-17 teams, it’s exciting to think we will be playing our first match so soon,” said Lutz Pfannenstiel, St. Louis CITY’s Sporting Director and Acting Head Coach. “St. Louis has a lot of homegrown talent, and we are excited to have them be a part of our Academy and hopefully, have some go on to play soccer professionally.”
This talented group of players represents a diverse range of backgrounds and playing experiences. The roster selection process played out over several months through scouting, invitational trials, and open community trials. The open trials provided an opportunity for all boys in the region born in 2005 and 2006 to showcase their talent and led to the discovery of five local players now currently participating in the STL CITY SC Academy.
With a strong emphasis on personal development – physically, socially, and academically – the club is taking a holistic approach to player development. The Academy teams will act as a first step on the pathway to professional soccer, and players who demonstrate the necessary skills and talent can progress to the development team, which starts play in spring 2022 and hopefully earn the opportunity to play on St. Louis CITY’s MLS first team in 2023.
St. Louis CITY SC Academy will continue to develop top soccer talent around the St. Louis region and beyond. The development academy will be led by Head Coach Andreas Schumacher, Assistant Coaches David Critchley, Luis Swisher and Elvir Kafedžić, Goalkeeper Coach Tim Kelly and Specialist Coach Charles Renken. The teams will train at multiple locations until the club’s world-class athletic training and performance center opens in 2022 in our Downtown West stadium district.
Learn more about our U-16 and U-17 Academy players here.
