Rivalry Returns: Red Hot St. Louis Visit Sporting KC

Sporting KC vs. St. Louis City SC

• Date & Time: Wednesday, August 19th, 2026 | 7:00 p.m. CST

• Venue: Sporting Park | Kansas City, Kansas

• Broadcast | Streaming: FS1, FOX Deportes, MLS Season Pass on Apple TV

• Local Radio: Sports Radio 810 WHB (English), La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish)

Setting the Stage

Rivalry week arrives in Kansas City as Sporting Kansas City hosts cross-state rival St. Louis City at Sporting Park under the national spotlight on FS1. The two sides met just a month ago in an intense 3-2 battle at Energizer Park on July 16, where St. Louis pulled out a narrow victory in front of their home crowd.

It was a game that was decided by a penalty kick that PRO Referees later admitted was a mistake and should not have been called.

Wednesday’s clash presents a major contrast in momentum. St. Louis arrives riding a club-record 10-match unbeaten streak, while Sporting KC enters searching for answers after a challenging three-game scoreless slide and disciplinary setbacks from the past two games.

St. Louis Roster Reset: Designated Player Shakeup

Since the previous meeting between these two clubs on July 16, St. Louis has undergone notable restructuring across their Designated Player ranks.

• Departure of Marcel Hartel: German attacking midfielder Marcel Hartel, who scored against Sporting KC in the July meeting, requested a transfer back to Germany for personal reasons. St. Louis accommodated the move, officially transferring him to 2. Bundesliga outfit Hannover 96.

• Arrival of Carlo Holse: To reload their attack, St. Louis secured 27-year-old Danish international attacking midfielder Carlo Holse from Turkish Süper Lig side Samsunspor on a permanent Designated Player contract through 2028–29.

• Has the New Guy Arrived? Yes. Holse cleared medical checks and visa processing in early August and made his official MLS debut this past Saturday, coming off the bench in the 68th minute during St. Louis’ 3-1 road win against the San Jose Earthquakes. He could be in line for an expanded role or his first start on Wednesday.

Sporting KC Roster Reset: Designated Player Shakeup

Not to be outdone, Kansas City have a change of their own. But as of this writing, it’s only an outgoing move. On Monday night, after an eventful weekend surrounding Manu Garcia, the club mutually terminated his contract.

The original rumor was he was headed back to his former club, Aris Thessaloniki. MLS insider Tom Bogert reacted with a little surprise finding out Manu was about to be sold, thinking they may have to buy him out. Well, they bought him out.

Presumably to make room for multiple incoming DPs, something Bogert also indicated was the plan earlier in the offseason. Andre Luiz seems certain to be announced soon but whoever the other potential signing could be is unknown.

Form Guide: Last 5 Matches

Sporting Kansas City

Sporting KC (4-13-2, 14 pts) has endured a difficult stretch over the last month, and frankly most of the season. They have lost four of their last five matches and going scoreless across their last three. In Saturday’s 2-0 defeat in Commerce City against Colorado, Sporting fought shorthanded after Kwaku Agyabeng and Moisés Mosquera each received red cards, leaving head coach Raphael Wicky with lineup adjustments to make for Wednesday’s home test.

The loss, coupled with an Atlanta United win, also pushed them to dead last in all of Major League Soccer.

St. Louis City SC

St. Louis (8-6-5, 29 pts) sits in 6th place in the Western Conference and comes into Kansas City playing their best soccer of the campaign. Simon Becher scored a brace in San Jose over the weekend to extend City’s unbeaten streak to 10 league matches. With Eduard Löwen pulling the strings and new DP Carlo Holse getting integrated, St. Louis will look to replicate their attacking output from the July rivalry clash.

Keys to the Match

• Discipline & Shorthanded Defensive Depth: With Mosquera and Agyabeng suspended following their dismissals in Colorado, Sporting will need clean defensive communication from Or Blorian and the backline against St. Louis’ high-pressing transition game. That is, if Blorian is available. He left the match against Colorado with an injury.

• Breaking the Scoring Drought: Getting Dejan Joveljić and the wingers service in dangerous areas will be paramount to breaking Sporting’s 270+ minute scoring drought against a disciplined Roman Bürki-led defense.

• Midfield Control: Eduard Löwen continues to orchestrate St. Louis’ transition opportunities; Sporting must disrupt his rhythm in the central third to prevent quick counters out to Becher and Holse.

Prediction

In a rivalry game, you ever know what will happen. A bad team can overcome a good one because emotions carry them over the line. Unless Tuesday’s press conference with President of Soccer Operations David Lee is about a bunch of roster moves, fans could enter Sporting Park with an all-time low level of energy.

Combine that with the potential that Sporting KC are missing both of their starting center backs and St. Louis’ form, and it’s a recipe for disaster. Kansas City have never lost to St. Louis in their home stadium. It seems likely that streak ends on Wednesday. 3-1 STL win.