The Bronze Boot was once a marquee match on the American soccer calendar. The annual showdown between Saint Louis Univeristy and SIUE drew more than 20,000 in 1973 and 1980, becoming one of the crown jewels of Busch Stadium’s non-baseball schedule.
Over the past 40 years, the landscape has changed. College soccer isn’t as relevant as it once was, and SIUE’s drop into Division II put the series’ momentum into a stall.
Are you a CITY SC fan?
Subscribe to the CITY Scene newsletter to get a fan’s guide to the pro soccer scene in St. Louis.
But both schools are eager to see the Bronze Boot rivalry return to its former glory, especially with the SLU and SIUE men’s and women’s programs all viewing it as a marquee matchup on the schedule. Last year’s matches—the SIUE men upended SLU for their first win since 1982, while the SLU women dominated their contest—can only help boost the series profile, as both sides see the opportunity to square off at CITYPARK as a natural step in restoring the rivalry’s stature.
The Bronze Boot game—for both the men and women—returns to the Downtown West stadium on Sunday, September 8.
Although the Billikens have traditionally dominated the rivalry, Cougars head coach Cale Wassermann has helped boost the profile of his SIUE men’s squad. After blanking SLU 2-0 at CITYPARK last September, SIUE appeared at No. 18 in the following week’s United Soccer Coaches poll.
“From quite a few aspects it’s impactful,” Wassermann said about last year’s big win. “Everyone around college soccer is going to be looking at the score of this game, bottom line. They know about it. They know we’re playing in an MLS stadium. Two former national champions. Two local rivals. It’s a big deal.”
Both Wassermann and his SLU counterpart, Kevin Kalish, agree that local pride is on the line—and it extends far beyond one game. Both schools battle on the recruiting trail just as hard as they battle on the pitch, and a result in front of one of the NCAA’s largest crowds would go a long way toward cultivating local favor.
“St. Louis is the best city to play soccer at any level,” Kalish said. “Anytime you’re playing for a trophy, it adds a little bit extra.”
Kalish’s SLU side will want a receipt from last year’s result. SIUE’s recent ascendancy, combined with a rebuilding year for the SLU program, left the Billikens without the Bronze Boot trophy for the first time in over 40 years. St. Louis CITY SC fans know exactly how potent SLU can be—current CITY players Johnny Klein and Simon Becher are prime examples of the types of talent Kalish has been able to unleash in recent years.
But the rivalry showcase at CITYPARK is about more than simply the men’s competition.
The addition of the women’s sides to the rivalry also has the potential to excite. SLU, which won last year’s match 5-1, often finds itself in the top 20 of NCAA attendance. Both clubs hope this annual match can satisfy a desire for high-level women’s soccer in St. Louis.
“These two teams have an incredible amount of players from the area,” SLU women’s deputy athletic director Janet Oberle says. To see a, potentially, top-10 college program, with three returning All-Americans—and they’re all St. Louisans—play on this stage should be compelling. Before this match, we host BYU and Penn State. BYU was in the National Championship last year, and Penn State is who we lost to in the Sweet 16 at their place. There’s just so much quality soccer right here.”
SLU returns Lyndsey Heckel, Emily Gaebe, and Emily Puricelli, along with most of last year’s roster, as Katie Shields’ squad aims for a seventh consecutive Atlantic 10 Championship title. The Billikens are ranked No. 12 by United Soccer Coaches and No. 8 by Top Drawer Soccer.
Meanwhile, SIUE is hoping to get back to the NCAA Tournament. A win over a ranked SLU team would go a long way.
“The opportunity for the players is incredible,” SIUE coach Derek Burton said. “We’ve always played SLU—they’re a very good program—but this atmosphere [at CITYPARK] just amps things up a bit.”
While the men’s attendance record would require max capacity at CITYPARK, chasing the women’s single-game record of 14,410 could be achievable. Regardless of crowd size, all involved are excited to showcase these unique levels of St. Louis soccer.
“It’s definitely a match we want to win for a bit of local bragging rights,” SIUE senior forward Jacob Bilyeu said. “We’re trying to get a little bit of respect back and push forward to prove to everyone that we’re a top tier program.”
That’s an objective each side can agree on.
