Al

Trost

Al Trost is one of the most decorated figures the St. Louis soccer tradition has produced. He grew up in the city at a time when the youth game was quietly building something serious — shaped by local coaches like Dave Berwin and by predecessors like Pat McBride who showed what was possible. That formation sent him to Saint Louis University, where he became the defining college player of his era: two Hermann Trophies, two NCAA championships, back-to-back, in 1969 and 1970. Only one other SLU player has won the award twice.

He then made an unusual choice: he declined to sign professionally — the Stars had already drafted him in 1968 — and held his amateur status for four years so he could compete at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He was one of six St. Louisans on that squad, a concentration that speaks plainly to where American soccer was actually being developed at the time.

His professional career brought him home first. He played five seasons for the Stars, captained the U.S. Men's National Team — earning the nickname "Captain America" in the process — through two World Cup qualifying campaigns, and spent seven NASL seasons total before moving to indoor soccer. After retiring as a player he stayed in the game as a coach. His high school coaching career actually began while he was still playing — he led McCluer North to a Missouri state championship in 1973–74 while simultaneously suiting up for the Stars. Later, after his professional career wound down, he spent more than two decades at Parkway South running both the boys' and girls' programs, accumulating over 350 wins.

He has been inducted into five halls of fame: the St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame (1999), the SLU Athletics Hall of Fame (1994), the National Soccer Hall of Fame (2006), the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame (2009), and the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame (2012). STL City SC included him in its Legacy Series ahead of the club's inaugural 2023 season.