“The Gateway to the West”

St. Louis is located in the heartland of America at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. Known as the « Gateway to the West » for its role in the westward expansion of the United States, the metro area has more than 2.8 million inhabitants and houses the iconic Gateway Arch and the renowned St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.

The economy of St. Louis relies on service, manufacturing, trade, transportation of goods, and tourism. The city is home to several major corporations as well as a large medical and research community.

The Gateway City has plenty to offer its visitors with fun, family-friendly activities, great entertainment venues and an exciting nightlife, hosting hundreds of festivals and events throughout the year such as Ethnic festivals, art fairs, theatrical presentations, sporting events and music festivals.

Olympic affinities

As site of the third Summer Olympiad in 1904, St. Louis hosted the first Olympics to take place in the United States and in the Western Hemisphere.

It was the first time that the Olympic Games were held in a majority English language nation, and the first time that they were held outside of Europe.

With a rich sports history, St. Louis is also known as one of the best sports cities.  It is home to the 11-time World Champion St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League’s St. Louis Blues, who won their first Stanley Cup in 2019.

Since 1904, St. Louis has built on its storied Olympic tradition by hosting national Olympic Trials and national governing body championships, launching the National Senior Olympics, and producing the 1994 U.S. Olympic Festival. Many Olympians call St. Louis home, including six-time Olympic medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

Numerous efforts have been focusing on attracting, creating and managing major sporting events for the St. Louis region aiming to enhance the area’s quality of life and to create economic and social benefit for the community.