The Soccer Play

Few projects better capture Springfield's ambitions in the sports world than the proposed United Soccer League (USL) soccer stadium.

City leaders and the USL—the largest soccer organization in the United States—signed a joint letter of intent to explore the idea in late 2024, with the proposed stadium site in the Jordan Valley area.

That in itself is significant, as it would sit just blocks from the recently renamed Route 66 Stadium (home of the Springfield Cardinals and formerly named Hammons Field), essentially creating a mini sports entertainment district.

"What was good about this was the USL came after Springfield," says Stan Adams, Springfield Sports Commission's Director of Sports Business Development. "There's a soccer community here with Sporting, Southwest Missouri Rush, Missouri State, Drury. There's a lot of interest in soccer around this area, and in Missouri as a whole. I think that really attracted them."

Beyond just interest in soccer, the sport has found its footing in 417-land. The city is home to Sporting Springfield, an affiliate club of the MLS' Sporting Kansas City. MSU men's soccer made six consecutive NCAA Division I tournament appearances between 2019–2024, while the women's team made four successful NCAA tournament appearances and earned four conference tournament titles in the same number of years.

The big-picture vision goes far beyond a single team. Of note, the USL is exploring the possibility of bringing men's and women's pro teams to Springfield. Adams says, "I think what they saw was the potential for growth. [...] Not just something in the short term, but in the long term as well, with a multipurpose stadium that would help, not only for the USL, but for the community."

Underscoring that, Hecquet says, "Certainly any time you get interest from a professional franchise like the USL, it's a really positive indicator of what the city is doing."

That aligns with the league's own outlook. "We are incredibly excited about the potential opportunity to bring both USL men's and women's teams to Springfield," said USL deputy CEO Justin Papadakis in a 2025 press release. "The City of Springfield has a rich soccer culture and a passionate community of sports fans that aligns with the USL's vision of growing the sport at all levels."

It also fits into a broader outlook for the city. "As we prioritize Quality of Place and Economic Vitality, we seek diverse opportunities for our citizens and visitors," says Amanda Ohlensehlen, the City's Director of Economic Vitality. Ohlensehlen, who's been heavily involved with the USL feasibility study, adds, "Implementation of the vision of Forward SGF calls for innovative collaborations and public-private partnerships such as this one [...] to promote a spirit of community pride and add to the economic prosperity of our area."

Interestingly, all of this is unfolding against a shifting regional and national sports backdrop. Kansas City hosts six matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup this summer, bringing global attention—and the very real possibility of spillover tourism. At the same time, resentment around the Kansas City Chiefs moving to a new stadium in Kansas in 2031 underscores how quickly sports-driven economic opportunities can move across state lines. For Springfield, the message is clear: Moments like this don't come around often. Often, very literally once in a lifetime.