Nov. 26 (1893)

The newly formed Sodality League (Nov. 26, 1893 standings pictured) is hailed as “the best managed organization of its kind in St. Louis,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Organized on Sept. 29, 1893, the league is composed of seven teams and “have atrracted the largest crowds ever seen at foot ball games in this city,” the newspaper reports. Governed by association (or soccer) rules, “the quiet and gentlemanly demeanor of all the players while on and off the field have gained for the league many friends,” according to the story. The teams represent “sodalities,” which are organizations of young men, at six Catholic parishes and Christian Brothers College. St. Teresa’s, the best team in the league, will win what is recognized as the city’s soccer championship for four consecutive seasons starting in 1892.  The Sodality League, started nine years after the first soccer league (the Western Association) formed in St. Louis in October 1884, is recognized as the forerunner of today’s St. Louis Catholic Youth Council.