Austin FC Prepares for Crucial Match Against St. Louis City SC

Austin FC aims to kick off a new chapter in its franchise history as they head to St. Louis City SC for a match on Saturday afternoon. This game marks the second meeting between the two teams this season.

Both clubs are eager to conclude their pre-World Cup break matches, having endured challenging starts to their campaigns. St. Louis City currently sits in 14th place with a record of 3-6-4, equaling 13 points, while Austin FC is just above them in 13th, with 3-6-5 and 14 points attributed to one extra draw.

Austin’s struggles have led to significant changes, including the dismissal of coach Nico Estevez and sporting director Rodolfo Borrell earlier this week. Assistant coach Davy Arnaud steps in as interim manager for this match as the team seeks a permanent replacement during the upcoming break.

“The biggest thing is no one’s safe,” Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver stated Thursday. “Going through all of these changes before, some guys feel like, ‘Oh, it’s a fresh start. I can kind of start over,’ and that’s really not the case. If anything, the pressure ramps up even more, and you have to prove why you should be here.”

The Verde’s last outing ended in a disappointing 2-1 home loss against Sporting Kansas City, who currently occupy the bottom spot in the standings. Despite a first-half stoppage goal from Mikkel Desler, Austin conceded two late goals and failed to find an equalizer.

Looking for their first road victory of the season, Austin currently holds a record of 0-4-3 on the road and is mired in a 10-match winless streak away from home that stretches back to 2025.

St. Louis City holds the upper hand in terms of momentum, recently advancing past Houston in penalties during a U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal match on Wednesday. Their last league match was a 1-1 draw against D.C. United, where a late equalizer deprived them of a third MLS win in eight days.

St. Louis City boasts a four-match unbeaten streak across all competitions (3-0-1) since their loss to Austin back on May 3, gaining confidence from their progression in the U.S. Open Cup.

Marcel Hartel leads St. Louis this season with three goals. “There’s a lot of different factors where I think it’s hard to look at the first game (with Austin) and be like, ‘Oh, what do we need to do from the first game?'” said St. Louis coach Yoann Damet. “The main focus is on ourselves, how we’re going to show up for the game, like being flexible, like sticking to our principle.”