Sports in Missouri explained

Missouri hosts a number of sports teams. Missouri is home to six major league professional sports teams — three in the St. Louis metropolitan area, and three in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

Missouri hosted the 1904 Summer Olympics at Washington University in St. Louis, the first time the games were hosted in the United States.

Major league sports teams

See also: Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada.

ClubSportLeague
Kansas City ChiefsAmerican footballNational Football League
Kansas City RoyalsBaseballMajor League Baseball
Sporting Kansas CitySoccerMajor League Soccer
St. Louis BluesIce hockeyNational Hockey League
St. Louis CardinalsBaseballMajor League Baseball
St. Louis City SCSoccer

Minor leagues

ClubSportLeague
Club Atletico Saint LouisSoccerNational Premier Soccer League
Demize NPSLSoccerNational Premier Soccer League
Kansas City BluesRugbyUSA Rugby Division 1
Kansas City CometsIndoor SoccerMajor Arena Soccer League
Kansas City MavericksIce hockeyECHL
Kansas City MonarchsBaseballAmerican Association
Kansas City PowerAustralian rules footballUSAFL
Kansas City RoguesRugbyUSA Rugby Division 3
Kansas City StormAmerican football - WomenUnited Women's Football Association
Springfield CardinalsBaseballTexas League
Springfield LasersTennisWorld TeamTennis
St. Louis AmbushIndoor soccerMajor Arena Soccer League
St. Louis BattleHawksAmerican footballUFL
St. Louis City SC 2SoccerMLS Next Pro
St. Louis LionsSoccerUSL League 2
Sporting Kansas City IISoccerMLS Next Pro

Former teams

Teams which are no longer in Missouri

ClubSportLeague
Kansas City Athletics (moved from Philadelphia in 1955; moved to Oakland, California after the 1967 season and are now the Oakland Athletics)BaseballMajor League Baseball
Kansas City Kings (moved from Cincinnati in 1972; moved to Sacramento in 1985 and are now the Sacramento Kings; prior to locating in Kansas City, they were known as the Cincinnati Royals)BasketballNational Basketball Association
Kansas City Scouts (1974 expansion team, moved to Denver, Colorado in 1976 and became the Colorado Rockies, and would move again to Newark, New Jersey; now called the New Jersey Devils)Ice hockeyNational Hockey League
Sporting Kansas City (moved home games to Kansas City, Kansas in 2008; still have front office and practice facilities in Kansas City, Missouri)SoccerMajor League Soccer
St. Louis Browns (moved from Milwaukee in 1902; moved to Baltimore, Maryland after the 1953 season and are now the Baltimore Orioles)BaseballMajor League Baseball
St. Louis Cardinals (moved from Chicago in 1960; moved to Tempe, Arizona in 1988 as the Phoenix Cardinals and now play in Glendale, Arizona as the Arizona Cardinals)American footballNational Football League
St. Louis Hawks (moved from Milwaukee in 1955; moved to Atlanta in 1968 and became the Atlanta Hawks)BasketballNational Basketball Association
St. Louis Rams (moved from Anaheim, California in 1995; moved back to Los Angeles in 2016 and resumed the team's former identity of Los Angeles Rams)American footballNational Football League

Defunct

ClubSportLeague
FC Kansas City (folded in 2017 and roster transferred to Utah Royals FC; not related to the present-day Kansas City Current, though the Current inherited the roster of Utah Royals FC after that team folded in 2020)Women's soccerNational Women's Soccer League
Kansas City Blues/Cowboys (active 1924–1926, folded)American footballNational Football League
Kansas City Monarchs (charter member of Negro National League, 1920. Played in Kansas City, MO, until moving to Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1956 after sending more players to Major League Baseball than any other Negro league team. The area's current American Association team renamed itself "Monarchs" in honor of this team shortly before the 2021 season.)Negro league baseballNegro National LeagueNegro American League
Kansas City PhantomsIndoor footballChampions Indoor Football
Kansas City Sizzlers (moved to Topeka as the Topeka Sizzlers in 1986)BasketballContinental Basketball Association
Missouri River Otters (franchise folded in 2006)Ice hockeyUnited Hockey League
River City Rascals (franchise folded in 2019)BaseballFrontier League
Saint Louis Athletica (franchise folded in June 2010)Women's soccerWomen's Professional Soccer
Saint Louis FC (folded after the 2020 season)SoccerUSL Championship
Spirits of St. Louis (franchise played its home games in St. Louis from 1974 through 1976; franchise folded when the ABA merged with the NBA)BasketballAmerican Basketball Association
St. Charles Chill (folded in 2014 after one season)Ice hockeyCentral Hockey League
St. Louis All Stars (active in 1923 only)American footballNational Football League
St. Louis Bombers (charter BAA franchise in 1946, joined the NBA when it formed in 1949; ceased operations in 1950)BasketballNational Basketball Association
St. Louis Eagles (1934 relocation of the original Ottawa Senators, folded after the 1934–35 season)Ice hockeyNational Hockey League
St. Louis Gunners (independent team, joined the NFL for the last three weeks of the 1934 season and folded thereafter)American footballNational Football League
St. Louis Giants/Stars (1906–1931)Negro league baseballNegro National League

College sports

There are six NCAA Division I teams in the state, one of which started a transition from NCAA Division II in July 2022. The only D-I program in the Football Bowl Subdivision is the Missouri Tigers, with the Missouri State Bears and Lady Bears joining them in 2025. As of the 2024–25 school year, 13 schools play in NCAA Division II, with nine in the Great Lakes Valley Conference and four in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.

Team City Division Primary
conference
Kansas CityNCAA Division ISummit League
Lindenwood LionsNCAA Division IOhio Valley Conference
ColumbiaNCAA Division ISoutheastern Conference
SpringfieldNCAA Division IMissouri Valley Conference
NCAA Division IAtlantic 10 Conference
Cape GirardeauNCAA Division IOhio Valley Conference
Central Missouri Mules and JenniesWarrensburgNCAA Division IIMIAA
Drury PanthersSpringfieldNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Lincoln Blue TigersJefferson CityNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Maryville SaintsTown and CountryNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Missouri S&T MinersRollaNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Missouri Southern LionsJoplinNCAA Division IIMIAA
Missouri Western GriffonsNCAA Division IIMIAA
Northwest Missouri State BearcatsMaryvilleNCAA Division IIMIAA
Rockhurst HawksKansas CityNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Southwest Baptist BearcatsBolivarNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Truman BulldogsKirksvilleNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
UMSL TritonsNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
William Jewell CardinalsLibertyNCAA Division IIGreat Lakes Valley
Fontbonne GriffinsClaytonNCAA Division III
Washington University BearsNCAA Division IIIUniversity Athletic Association
Webster GorloksWebster GrovesNCAA Division III
Westminster Blue JaysFultonNCAA Division III

See also