Previously mentioned here as being a finalist, St. Louis CITY SC announced today—
CITYPARK, home of Major League Soccer’s St. Louis CITY SC, has won the prestigious 2024 Prix Versailles World Title in the sports category.
Kudos to all involved.
Designed by HOK and Snow Kreilich Architects, CITYPARK supports the CITY SC ownership group’s strategic pillars of connection, mobility, sport, training and experience. The 22,500-seat stadium (soon to be called Energizer Park under a new naming rights deal) anchors the largest urban professional sports campus in the U.S. and serves as a new model for Major League Soccer project development. The stadium’s inclusive, transparent design invites all of St. Louis to share in the soccer experience and offers a best-in-class fan experience. A flat portico, elegant canopy and slender columns maximize engagement with the city.
The true impact, and why it won, has more to do than just the play on the field.
The stadium has served as a catalyst for broader community development, reenergizing downtown and inspiring growth. In the stadium’s inaugural year, it generated more than $168 million in economic impact, with more than 18% of CITYPARK guests coming from outside the region. The pedestrian-centric design has no back door. All four corners of the building are active and accessible, integrating seamlessly with the neighborhood. Every seat is within 120 feet of the pitch, which sits 40 feet below street level to maintain an appropriate scale for the district. The stadium’s design mirrors the reflective nature of St. Louis’s iconic Gateway Arch (which anchors the other end of downtown’s Gateway Mall) and incorporates impactful public art, including Pillars of the Valley.
Nothing to say but positives about the stadium, the project as a whole and the impact it is having on its neighborhood.