St. Louis CITY’s fourth season brings in fresh faces to the front office as well as the sidelines. After 10 weeks (70 days) without a Sporting Director, Corey Wray was hired November 3rd to take over the role; while Yoann Damet followed six weeks later, being announced as CITY’s 3rd Head Coach on December 16th. CITY had been without a permanent head coach for 29 weeks (203 days).
Damet filled out his coaching staff prior to pre-season starting, bringing in David Sauvry and Marcelo Sarvas to serve as assistant coaches, along with St. Louisan Colin Rooney as Director of Scouting. Baggio Hušidić joins as Individual Player Development coach.
Furthermore, after serving as Interim Head Coach of CITY for the remainder of 2025, fan and player favorite David Critchley returns to his former role as Head Coach of CITY2. Along with that, former first-team assistant coach Elvir Kafedžić will stay with the club and join Critchley’s staff as an assistant coach for CITY2.
Key Offseason Moves
OUT: João Klauss (Cash trade w/ LAG), Henry Kessler, Rasmus Alm, Akil Watts, Alfredo Morales, Michael Wentzel, Joey Zalinsky, Jayden Reid and Seth Antwi (Options declined), while Selmir Pidro was out of contract.
IN: Daniel Edelman, Conrad Wallem, Rafael Santos, Mamadou Mbacke Fall, Dante Polvara, Lukas MacNaughton.
Season Summary
February (0-0-1)
Feb 21 v. Charlotte – Tie 1-1
Yoann Damet’s managerial debut ended in a draw — CITY’s second-ever meeting with Charlotte, both held in St. Louis. Marcel Hartel gave CITY the lead in the 60th minute, but Charlotte equalized in the 73rd. A late flurry of chances couldn’t separate the sides.
TRANSACTIONS: On February 24th, CITY picked up Sergio Córdova on loan from Swiss side BSC Young Boys. The loan is good through June 30, 2026 with an option to purchase. He will occupy an international spot on the roster and be registered as a DP during the loan period. On February 25th, the team announced a contract extension for Chris Durkin which runs through June 2028 and has an option for the 2028/29 season. On February 26th, CITY announced a contract extension for Simon Becher. It will run through June 2028 with a club option for the 2028/29 season.
March (1-3-0)
Mar 1 @ San Diego – Loss 0-2
San Diego struck early through Anders Dreyer in the 3rd minute and added a second in the 54th. CITY were missing both center backs — Mbacké and Fallou Fall — along with midfielders Eduard Löwen and Marcel Hartel, the latter on paternity leave. INJURIES: Tomas Totland, abdomen (72′).
Mar 7 v. Seattle – Loss 0-1
CITY remain winless against Brian Schmetzer, now 0-6-0 all-time. A Kossa-Rienzi goal in the 47th minute was all Seattle needed to leave town with three points yet again.
Mar 14 @ LAFC – Loss 0-2
Closing out their toughest stretch of the season, CITY held their own at LAFC for over 70 minutes — but Mathieu Choinière broke the deadlock in the 73rd and added a second in the 81st. CITY had their chances, but without a true finisher they remain winless against LAFC all-time.
On March 20th CITY announced the hiring of Romain Marée as Lead Team Analyst. He joins from French Ligue 2 side AS Saint-Étienne where he had been since 2020.
Mar 21 v. New England – Win 3-1
New England made their first visit to town but found themselves trailing by halftime. Ilay Feingold gave the Revs an early lead in the 14th, before Simon Becher (29′) and Chris Durkin (45’+3) put CITY ahead for good. Marcel Hartel added a golazo from 42 yards, catching goalkeeper Matt Turner off his line to make it 3-1. NOTABLES: First win for Head Coach Yoann Damet and Sporting Director Corey Wray.
NEW GRASS: With time before the next home game, April 25th against San Jose, CITY will be replacing the entire playing surface with new sod. The last time they swapped out the entire field was nearly two years ago (Apr 25-26, 2024).
INJURY: The club announced March 30 that Célio Pompeu had suffered a non-contact ACL injury in training the week prior. No timeline was given for his return.
April (2-2-2)
Apr 4 @ NYCFC – Tie 1-1
An escape from New York — Brendan McSorley came off the bench in the 80th minute and equalized at 90+6′, securing a road point in CITY’s first (and only) visit to Citi Field. Roman Bürki stood tall with 6 saves to keep CITY in it.
Apr 11 @ Dallas – Tie 1-1
Having never scored or gotten a result in Dallas, CITY faced a tall task after going down 1-0 in the 48th minute. An Edelman cross found Timo Baumgartl at the back post in the 61st minute, giving CITY its first-ever point in Dallas. NOTABLES: First CITY goal for Timo Baumgartl. INJURY: Orozco, concussion (76′).
Apr 15 v. Tulsa (USOC Rd. of 32) – Win 4-0
CITY’s first U.S. Open Cup game of the season came in the Round of 32 against FC Tulsa at CityPark — the first-ever matchup between the two clubs. Goals from Hartel (20′), Sang-bin (36′), Joyner (61′), and Ostrák (78′) sent Tulsa home and advanced CITY to the Round of 16 against Chicago Fire.
Apr 18 @ Seattle – Loss 1-4
Riding a four-game unbeaten run, CITY were looking for their first-ever result in Seattle against a rotated Sounders side. It was not meant to be. Cristian Roldan struck twice early (22′, 37′) on carbon copy corner kicks before Albert Rusnák (49′, PK) and Osaze De Rosario (86′) put the result beyond doubt. Eduard Löwen, returning after missing the first seven games of the season, pulled one back at 90’+2 to spoil the Sounders’ clean sheet.
Apr 25 v. San Jose – Loss 2-3
CITY’s perfect record against San Jose came to an end despite leading through the 60th minute on goals by Córdova (52′) and Hartel (53′). A conceded penalty — for the second consecutive game — and a go-ahead goal from Timo Werner (83′) did CITY in.
Apr 29 @ Chicago (USOC Rd. of 16) – Win 2-1
Back to the dregs of SeatGeek Stadium, where CITY had lost both previous visits — including the 2023 U.S. Open Cup. A listless first half ended 0-0, and Chicago struck just after the hour mark. But second-half substitutes made the difference. Tomas Totland knocked home a rebound (71′) off a slick Eduard Löwen heel pass, and Löwen himself finished a Mykhi Joyner cross to put CITY ahead for good (78′). NOTABLES: First U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal appearance. First road win of the season. First win in Chicago.
May (4-1-1)
May 3 @ Austin – Loss 0-2
Having never lost in Austin, CITY looked to steal a result with a rotated squad. Bürki kept it level through the first half, but Becher spurned a wide-open chance in the 56th minute on a heavily-weighted Hartel ball. Austin made them pay, grabbing goals in the 69th and 81st minutes to secure their first home win over CITY.
May 9 @ Colorado – Win 1-0
A rare start for Jeong Sang-Bin paid off in the 26th minute — a Bürki goal kick deflected on by Becher put Sang-Bin in behind the last defender, and he rounded the keeper to finish. CITY missed chances to put the game away, even after Colorado’s Rob Holding was sent off in the 51st minute. If anything, CITY played worse with the man advantage — and nearly surrendered it entirely when Chris Durkin picked up two yellows in a minute (86′, 87′). They held on through seven minutes of stoppage time for their first clean sheet and first road win of the season.
May 13 v. LAFC – Win 2-1
A midweek matchup against LAFC? No way. LAFC came to town having never lost in St. Louis — or even conceded a goal. That changed in the 4th minute: Timo dumped a ball in behind for Sang-Bin, who triggered a slick passing sequence (Sang-Bin → Hartel → Löwen → Totland) that sliced open the defense for Totland to finish. Rafael Santos doubled the lead in the 64th minute, pouncing on a loose ball after a Córdova cross. David Martínez pulled one back (73′), but CITY held on — their first home win over LAFC, and first in eight attempts. NOTABLES: First CITY goal for Rafael Santos; Totland’s 4th minute goal is fastest of season to date. INJURIES: Orozco, hamstring (7′).
May 16 @ DC – Tie 1-1
CITY’s first trip to DC—and second-ever meeting with United—saw a rotated squad looking to continue their positive run. Chris Durkin, returning to his former home, tucked in a Sang-Bin pull-back to put CITY ahead in the 50th minute. They held that lead until falling asleep at the death: a weakly cleared corner led to an unchallenged shot from 24 yards that blew past Bürki to level it (90′). It got worse. Conrad Wallem was sent off for a second yellow two minutes later, and DC appeared to snatch a winner in stoppage time before it was ruled out for offside. CITY escaped with a point, stretching their run to 7 points from 3 games.
May 19 v. Houston (USOC Quarterfinal) – Win 2-2 (4-2 PK)
Making their first-ever U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal appearance, CITY faced recent champions Houston Dynamo (2023). CITY drew first blood in the 10th minute when a Durkin ball over Houston’s back line caused confusion between defender and goalkeeper. Marcel Hartel pounced on the spilled ball to finish into an open net. Houston responded immediately (11′) with a gift of their own: Bürki slipped on an overwatered part of the box while building out of the back, leaving the ball for Mateusz Bogusz to tap in. Then Bürki went down injured, bringing on Ben Lundt, who conceded a soft goal from outside the box (42′) to put CITY 2-1 down at half. Hartel’s penalty (51′) leveled it, and the two sides played out regulation at 2-2. In extra time, Lawrence Ennali’s second yellow (109′) left Houston down a man, but CITY couldn’t capitalize and it went to a shootout. There, CITY converted their first four, while Lundt stopped Houston’s first and fourth attempts sealing a 4-2 shootout win and a place in the Semifinal. INJURIES: Bürki, quad (26′); Córdova, hamstring (63′).
May 23 v. Austin – Win 3-0
Bookending May with a second game against Austin FC, CITY had a chance to leapfrog them in the standings before the World Cup break. Tomas Totland got things started in the 40th minute, his cross forcing an own goal from Austin’s Guilherme Biro. Fallou Fall added a second from a corner kick (56′), and Daniel Edelman finished it off with a tidy finish from a Cedric Teuchert pass in the box (90′). Chris Durkin was inexplicably booked in the 84th minute on a play where he was the one fouled, and will miss the next game as a result. NOTABLES: First CITY goal for Fallou Fall; first CITY goal for Daniel Edelman. INJURY: Polvara (23′).
DEPARTURES: Over a 10 day span at the start of the World Cup break, CITY parted ways with 3 players.
- May 26 — The club announced that Cedric Teuchert will depart when his contract expires at the end of June. In two years with the club, he made 49 appearances and contributed 10 goals and 7 assists.
- May 27 — The club confirmed that Sergio Córdova will return to his parent club when his loan expires at the end of June. Córdova made 13 appearances across all competitions, contributing 1 goal.
- June 5 — Longtime club member Josh Yaro was loaned to USL League One side AC Boise for the remainder of the 2026 season. Yaro has been with CITY since 2022, including as a member of the historic 2023 side that became the first expansion team in North America to win its conference. He scored 2 goals across 56 appearances in all competitions.