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St. Louis City SC is the best expansion team in MLS history. Are they the best in any sport?

jack mckessy, usa today
·5 min read

What St. Louis City SC has done in its first year as an MLS expansion team isn't just historic by the American soccer league's standards. They're having one of the most successful inaugural seasons by an expansion team in recent history.

On Saturday, St. Louis City beat Sporting KC, 4-1, in front of a sold out home crowd to win its 17th match of the season. It was the 18th sellout of 18 home games in the team's first year, and the 17 wins set a record for an MLS expansion team in its first season.

One day later, the club clinched a regular-season conference title — the first time an expansion team in the United States' five major men's sports leagues has done that in its first season — with two matches to play. St. Louis City also leads MLS with its goal differential of plus-22.

In the recent history of the country's four major sports leagues, not many expansion teams have approached the level of success the St. Louis Club has had in its inaugural season.

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St. Louis City midfielder Jared Stroud (8) celebrates with forward Joao Klauss (9) after scoring a goal against Sporting Kansas City.
St. Louis City midfielder Jared Stroud (8) celebrates with forward Joao Klauss (9) after scoring a goal against Sporting Kansas City.

MLB expansion teams

The Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays (then the Devil Rays) joined MLB as expansion teams in 1998. To date, they are the most recent expansion teams in MLB history.

The Diamondbacks finished 65-97 in their first season, last place in the National League West. The team did win 100 games the following season to take its first divisional title, but the inaugural season was far from a success on the field.

Meanwhile in Tampa, the Devil Rays nearly mirrored the Diamondbacks in that initial 1998 season for both teams. Tampa Bay finished 63-99 and last in the American League East. The Rays did not win a divisional title until 2008, 10 years after their inaugural season.

Going back a bit further, the Colorado Rockies and then-Florida (now-Miami) Marlins joined MLB as expansion teams in 1993. Both teams finished their inaugural season in second-to-last place with the Rockies finishing 67-95 and the Marlins finishing 64-98.

The 1961 Angels were the expansion team with the best inaugural season in MLB history with a 70-91 record.

NFL expansion teams

The Houston Texans hold the honor of being the NFL's most recent expansion team, having joined in 2002.

Despite being the first team to win their first game in an inaugural season since the 1961 Minnesota Vikings, the Texans finished 4-12 and last in the AFC South.

Before the Texans, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Carolina Panthers were the most recent expansion teams, having joined in 1995. The Jaguars went 4-12, but the Panthers set an all-time best by a team in its inaugural season by winning seven games. A year later, both teams reached their respective conference's championship game.

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NBA expansion teams

Now known once again as the Charlotte Hornets, the then-Bobcats were the NBA's most recent expansion team, founded in 2004. The Bobcats finished 18-64 in their inaugural season, which was not as bad as the Memphis (then-Vancouver) Grizzlies' inaugural season in 1995-96, the all-time worst in NBA history with a 15-67 record. It also wasn't as good as the Toronto Raptors' first season in '95-96; Toronto finished 21-61.

The 1966-67 Chicago Bulls had the best inaugural season of any NBA expansion team with a 33-48 record that was enough to make the playoffs.

NHL expansion teams

The Vegas Golden Knights pose with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena.
The Vegas Golden Knights pose with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena.

NHL expansion is a matter of very recent history. The Las Vegas Golden Knights joined the NHL in the 2017-18 season and the Seattle Kraken became the league's 32nd team in the 2021-22 season.

The Golden Knights made history as the best expansion team in American sports history, going 51-24-7 in their first season and even advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals. Though they lost that year, they've made the playoffs every year besides 2021-22 and are the reigning Stanley Cup champions.

Seattle's inaugural season was not nearly as successful, finishing in last place in the Pacific Division at 27-49-6, though they did make the playoffs and won their first-round series last year.

St. Louis City SC

What St. Louis City has done in its first season as an MLS team — winning 17 games, clinching a regular season conference title and possibly finishing as high as second in MLS in points total — might be enough to declare the club's 2023 season as the greatest inaugural season in expansion team history across all American sports.

St. Louis City can make that distinction indisputable if it wins the MLS Cup at the end of a deep playoff run.

Even if not, no other team in any sport has finished as high in a league's overall standings in its inaugural season as St. Louis currently stands with two matches to play. With one more point, St. Louis would tie the record for most points by an MLS team in its inaugural season, so with one win or two draws across its final two games, St. Louis City can break yet another record.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Expansion teams: MLS' St. Louis City SC may be greatest ever