Sports means something different to everyone. Everyone has their own favorite team, their own memories of “where I was when…”, and that’s what makes sports great. No one person will feel the same about any one sporting event. We relate sports to our own lives, in our own way. It’s that uniqueness of experiences that brings all sports fans together, breaks down all barriers; white or black or brown, male or female, rich or poor, young or old — we are just sports fans. Each year, we at GoingFor2, give our writers a chance to share that experience, that emotion, that ‘one thing’ that stood out above all else in the past year. The sports story that mattered to them — big or small. The following is one such story. Enjoy…
I want everyone to take a second and think of the very first moment they were introduced to sports. Christmas Morning 1999 was upon the Frey household; the house was quiet with a blanket of snow on the ground. Little did I know, this was the Christmas that would shape me for the rest of my life. With no alarm clock to wake us up, only Christmas joy, my two sisters and I rush into my sleeping parent’s bedroom to wake them up. It’s present time.
As my siblings and I wait around the beautifully decorated Christmas tree, our parents stroll in half-tired. The first present I go for would spark an interest that is still with me today. I rip off the wrapping paper and there it is. A Kurt Warner Jersey with a matching plastic Rams helmet. In the days that follow, I hear shouting from my mother saying “You can’t wear that jersey every day”. To which I replied, “Mom if I take this jersey off, the Rams will not make it the Super Bowl.” The Rams went on to defeat the Tennessee Titans with the famous Mike Jones “the tackle” play.
Saint Louis reached a high that day. We just won the Super Bowl and the Rams appeared to be a staple of the City.
NFL Sunday brought a great atmosphere downtown. You could literally smell the difference between Sunday and every other day in this great city. The visibly smokey air was filled with the smell of hot dogs, burgers and our famous Saint Louis style ribs. Perhaps, the more important smells that filled the air were intangible. You could smell the history, the joy of fans with a Budweiser in hand from the local plant, and the smiles of everyone walking to the Edwards Jones Dome in anticipation of a win. It was palpable.
Fast Forward to 2015, Saint Louis was on the verge of losing their beloved team. Following the death of the still loved businesswomen Georgia Frontiere, the former owner of the St. Louis Rams. The ambiance in Saint Louis seemed different after her tragic death.
Following nearly a decade of lackluster play after the greatest show on turf, the Rams were still selling more tickets than other NFL franchises.
However, it was evident from the beginning, new owner Stan Kroenke was all about the dollar signs and wanted out of Saint Louis for the higher dollar Los Angeles market. It was clearly about the money over the fans.
After citing the a brand new stadium as the main cause for leaving. The City of Saint Louis immediately began hatching a plan that would bring a new stadium to the city to keep them here.
After months of hard work developing a plan to build a new stadium, it was shot down immediately. Money and time wasted by the investors, all so Kroenke could say he went through all the proper steps. We salute all those involved for their hard work. A city hall meeting of die hard and passionate fans wouldn’t be enough to convince him. All of this to no avail.
Then came a quote that will live in infamy for Saint Louis sports fans when Kroenke and his associates said, “Saint Louis is a baseball city, hockey is second (sometimes).”
These words still leave a sour taste in our mouths. A complete lie that showed his disdain for the proud citizens of Saint Louis. I wouldn’t recommend saying his name in any establishment in the city.
The lie was proven wrong almost immediately in the coming years. In the 2018-2019 season for the Saint Louis Blues, our true sports nature came out in full force on the national scale. The City was alive. The first Stanely Cup came to the great city of Saint Louis. Nothing else mattered, fans hugging each other in the streets was a common sight in the days following the historic Stanely Cup Champion run that rivaled any Cardinals World Series Championship run. It proved that we love our teams, not necessarily the sport itself.
We fought tooth and nail to keep this amazing Blues franchise from leaving the city and our determination payed off as the boys in blue gave us a our coveted championship. A present that will stay with the city of Saint Louis forever. Everyone remembers what they were doing and where they were. It was magical to say the least.
Sports fans in Saint Louis know this isn’t the end to the tale. New football life was reborn into our city once again.
The newly established football league called the XFL saw the fan potential of bringing one of their eight teams to Saint Louis. The news of the Battlehawks forming in our City reinvigorated our love for football because at the end of the day it’s not about the sport, but about the city of Saint Louis competing on a national scale.
As players were announced to the team, you would think these guys were NFL players as excitement grew. Suddenly, the familiar air that once filled the city on NFL Sundays was back to support our contending Battlehawks team. Although the XFL was canceled due to Covid-19, the team is making comeback after Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was smart enough to see the potential of our fanbase after purchasing the league. From all sports fans in Saint Louis, we sincerely thank you.
The success of our Cardinals, Blues, and Battlehawks caught the attention of another popular major sports league, Major League Soccer (MLS).
I can personally say this, I am glad I was not working the phone at ticket sales as packages were announced. We broke the record for season ticket deposits with 30,000 deposits in 15 minutes. 50,000 over the next 24 hours. Does this sound like “just a baseball city” to you? Didn’t think so. Our new team that we love already doesn’t even play until 2023 and has no active roster currently.
This record surprised everyone else in the nation except one place, Saint Louis. We crave sports. It’s in our blood. Dangled from houses you will see the flags of our teams perched high for all to see. Saint Louis sports stars are celebrities around the area. Nothing is better than going to the local grocery store or restaurant and seeing a legend enjoying his day in this lovely city.
To the fans of Saint Louis, keep bringing your passion for our current sports teams to our new MLS team. Show the world that we are a sports city, and more than a baseball town.
