August 20, 2007 by Jeff Cooper 

I will be on KMOX AM 1120 this evening during the 7 p.m. hour to wrap up what has been a hectic but enjoyable news media blitz over the weekend.  I appeared on three St. Louis television stations during their extended weekend sports programs and continue to field interview requests from inside and outside the St. Louis market.  I think this is a reflection not only of the interest in bringing Major League Soccer to St. Louis, but simply the heightened awareness that MLS has throughout North America.  This can be attributed to a lot of things – MLS matches are easily found on national television, the David Beckham effect is undeniable and the quality of play is better than ever, just to name a few.  When I talk about bringing MLS, everyone knows what I am talking about.  Better yet, they want to talk about it as well.

Last week was a good example.  On Thursday, I was privileged to make a presentation to the St. Louis Sports Commission during the commission’s quarterly meeting.  I thank Sports Commission president Frank Viverito for inviting me to illustrate and explain our plan in front of such an influential group of St. Louis-area men and women who are leaders in businesses that are not necessarily focused on sports, but use sports to benefit from – and contribute to – the welfare of our metropolitan area.  In the end, our efforts to bring Major League Soccer to our community are meant to enhance our quality of life through sports, and that’s the mission of the St. Louis Sports Commission.

So, it may have been the perfect audience, but I was still gratified to have fielded so many questions about our MLS plans during the question-and-answer session as well as at the conclusion of the meeting.  I was struck not only at the level of enthusiasm, but also at the familiarity everyone has with MLS – standings, scoring leaders, the expansion horizon, how our St. Louis players are faring in the league, you name it.

Bottom line, MLS is a known product and the St. Louis region is hungry for it.  It’s an exciting time to represent the St. Louis region in landing an expansion MLS franchise and thank everyone for their continued support.