The Kings' Cup was a rivalry between Lou City and Saint Louis FC, members of the USL Championship. Both teams joined the second-tier league (then known as the United Soccer League) in 2015. Like the cities of both clubs, the rivalry takes its name from King Louis of France, (though not the same one – Louisville is named after Louis XVI while St. Louis after Louis IX,) which also explains the presence of the fleur-de-lis in both city flags and both teams' crests.[1]
| Location | Central United States Interstate 64 |
|---|---|
| First meeting | LouCity 2–0 STLFC 2015 USL (March 23, 2015) |
| Latest meeting | LouCity 2–0 STLFC 2020 USL (Oct 17, 2020) |
| Next meeting | STLCSC vs LouCity March 5, 2022 |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 17 |
| Most wins | LouCity (9) |
| Top scorer | Lancaster (5) |
| Largest victory | STFLC 1–5 LouCity 2016 USL (September 17, 2016) |
The rivalry officially began in both clubs' inaugural match as STLFC traveled to Louisville for their opening match in the 2015 USL season. LouCity won the match 2–0, setting the tone for the rivalry, with STLFC only winning twice as of July 18, 2020, and only earning one USL Playoffs appearance against LouCity's two USL titles. Their second match a month and a half later in St. Louis cemented the rivalry status with a 3–3 shootout that included eight yellow cards.
Due to financial challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic and the upcoming creation of St. Louis City SC in Major League Soccer, STLFC folded after the 2020 season. Their final game was the only Kings' Cup playoff match, won by LouCity by the same 2–0 scoreline as the very first match in Louisville.
A renewal of the rivalry has occurred, starting in 2022 when St Louis City SC's reserve team began play with the Division 3 league MLS Next Pro. The two clubs faced off in a pre-season match on March 5, 2022, in St. Louis[2] as well as in the third round of the 2023 U.S. Open Cup.[3] Future preseason or U.S. Open Cup matches between St Louis City SC and Louisville City FC are expected.
All-time results
editLou City win STLFC win Draw
| # | Date | Competition | Venue | Home team | Score | Away team | Goalscorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | March 28, 2015 | USL | Louisville Slugger Field | Louisville | 2–0 | Saint Louis | (H) Rasmussen, Adams (A) |
6,067 |
| 2. | May 24, 2015 | USL | World Wide Technology Soccer Park | Saint Louis | 3–3 | Louisville | (H) Lynch, Ambersley, Gaul (A) Fondy x2, Polak |
4,783 |
| 3. | May 30, 2015 | USL | Louisville Slugger Field | Louisville | 1–1 | Saint Louis | (H) Dacres (A) Renken |
7,185 |
| 4. | Sept.19, 2015 | USL | World Wide Technology Soccer Park | Saint Louis | 2–1 | Louisville | (H) Hardware, Bryce (A) McCabe |
5,662 |
| 5. | May 14, 2016 | USL | Louisville Slugger Field | Louisville | 2–0 | Saint Louis | (H) Davis, Lancaster (A) |
6,067 |
| 6. | Sept.17, 2016 | USL | World Wide Technology Soccer Park | Saint Louis | 1–5 | Louisville | (H) Roberts (A) Dacres, Lancaster, Rasmussen x2, Ilić |
6,004 |
| 7. | March 25, 2017 | USL | Louisville Slugger Field | Louisville | 0–0 | Saint Louis | (H) (A) |
6,758 |
| 8. | July 22, 2017 | USL | World Wide Technology Soccer Park | Saint Louis | 1–4 | Louisville | (H) Jackson (A) Jimenez, Craig, Spencer, Lancaster |
4,310 |
| * | March 10, 2018 | friendly | Arad McCutchan Stadium (Evansville, Indiana |
Louisville | 1–1 | Saint Louis | (H) McCabe (A) own goal |
|
| 9. | May 23, 2018 | US Open Cup | Lynn Stadium | Louisville | 1–0 | Saint Louis | (H) Totsch (A) |
2,008 |
| 10. | May 18, 2019 | USL Champ. | Louisville Slugger Field | Louisville | 0–0 | Saint Louis | (H) (A) |
9,688 |
| 11. | Oct.5, 2019 | USL Champ. | World Wide Technology Soccer Park | Saint Louis | 0–1 | Louisville | (H) (A) Rasmussen |
4,512 |
| 12. | July 18, 2020 | USL Champ. | Lynn Family Stadium | Louisville | 0–1 | Saint Louis | (H) (A) Blackwood |
4,850 |
| 13. | August 29, 2020 | USL Champ. | West Community Stadium | Saint Louis | 1–1 | Louisville | (H) Samb (A) Totsch |
0 |
| 14. | Sept.12, 2020 | USL Champ. | Lynn Family Stadium | Louisville | 3–0 | Saint Louis | (H) Hoppenot, Lancaster, Johnson (A) |
4,852 |
| 15. | Sept. 26, 2020 | USL Champ. | West Community Stadium | Saint Louis | 0–1 | Louisville | (H) (A) Williams |
0 |
| * | Oct. 17, 2020 | USL Champ. playoffs |
Lynn Family Stadium | Louisville | 2–0 | Saint Louis | (H) Lancaster, own goal (A) |
4,900 |
Overall statistics
editThere have been a total of 16 competitive games (including 1 playoff match not counted toward the Kings' Cup points system) and 1 friendly between Louisville City FC and Saint Louis FC. LouCity has won 9 competitive matches (including the playoff victory) and drawn 5, with 2 wins for STLFC.
The largest victory in the series was a 5–1 victory for LouCity at STLFC's World Wide Technology Soccer Park. This also tied for the highest-scoring game in the series with a 3–3 draw also in St. Louis. STLFC's two victories have both been by one goal.
- As of October 17, 2020
| Competition | Matches | LouCity wins | Draws | STLFC wins | Lou City goals | STLFC goals | At Louisville | At St. Louis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USL/USL Champ. | 14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 24 | 10 | 3–3–1 (8–2) | 4–2–1 (16–8) |
| USL Playoffs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1–0–0 (2–0) | 0-0-0 (0–0) |
| U.S. Open Cup | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1–0–0 (1–0) | 0-0-0 (0–0) |
| Friendly | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0–1–0 (1–1) | 0-0-0 (0–0) |
| Comp. Total | 16 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 27 | 10 | 5–3–1 (11–2) | 4–2–1 (16–8) |
Winners by season
editThe team with the most points from regular season matches between the two wins the Cup. Goal difference will serve as the first tiebreaker if the teams are tied on points, and away goals will be the second tiebreaker. If the teams are still tied after that, then the holder from the prior season keeps the Cup.[4]
| Year | Winner | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | LouCity | 5–5 (agg. 7–6) |
| 2016 | LouCity | 6–0 |
| 2017 | LouCity | 4–1 |
| 2018 | LouCity | 3–0* |
| 2019 | LouCity | 4–1 |
| 2020 | LouCity | 7–4 |
* 2018 Kings' Cup decided as the winner of the USOC match[5]
Honors
edit| Team | USL Playoffs | USL Regular Season | U.S. Open Cup | Total honors | Major honors / Championships | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Runner-up | Winner | Runner-up | Winner | Furthest USL Entry | |||
| Louisville City FC | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 |
| Saint Louis FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Combined | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 2 |
Player records
editGoal scorers
edit- As of October 17, 2020. Does not include own goals.
| Position | Name | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Cameron Lancaster
|
Louisville City FC | 5 |
| 2 |  Magnus Rasmussen
|
4 | |
| 3 |  Kadeem Dacres
|
2 | |
| Matt Fondy
| |||
 Niall McCabe
| |||
| Sean Totsch
| |||
| 7 | 20 players | 1 | |
Supporters
editThe supporters' groups for both clubs predate their respective clubs by over a year. The Coopers of Louisville helped convince Orlando City owners that Louisville would be a worthy landing spot for Orlando's USL franchise when the main Orlando team moved to MLS. The Louligans of St. Louis formed to support AC St. Louis and have supported a large number of professional and amateur St. Louis-area soccer teams. The two SGs decided to form the "rivalry" as their inaugural season in USL began as a way to make things fun between expansion partners that happened to be in relatively close geographic proximity,[6][7] granting the rivalry a "frenemy" status.[1] The two SGs have worked together to raise money for charity as well.[5]
References
edit- ^ a b john.arlia@uslsoccer.com, JOHN ARLIA- (May 17, 2019). "Kings' Cup Brings Together Best of Frenemies". USL Championship.
- ^ "Show your support! Join the #ForTheCity campaign".
- ^ "Louisville City vs. St. Louis City II - 21 April 2022 - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
- ^ "The 2015 King's Cup".
- ^ a b "Saint Louis FC Takes On Louisville City FC On Wednesday In Open Cup". Real Life STL. May 21, 2018.
- ^ August 28, Saint Louis FC Playoff Hopes: All But Mathematically Eliminated-Last Word on Soccer; Pm, 2016 at 8:09. "Kings Cup- what's this all about?".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "A Celebration of Supporter Groups Culture".