The Metro Catholic Conference, or MCC, is a sports conference of the “Big Five” private Catholic high schools. This includes Chaminade, SLUH, De Smet, CBC, and Vianney. Since its formation in 1991, the competition has increased, the facilities have improved, and it has gained a reputation as one of the state’s most competitive conferences. 

Soccer has always been a large part of these schools’ cultures, with twenty-eight of the last fifty state championship wins coming from MCC schools. Each year, some MCC schools are even ranked nationally, such as when Chaminade won the national championship in 2001. Every year brings on a new set of competitive games. This year, our team has gone 1-2 in the first three MCC games, with our win coming against CBC. Last season, we played SLUH in our first district game which had one of the largest turnouts ever seen for a Chaminade game. The students usually travel to the opposing schools to have student sections that yell chants at each other. 

Beyond just soccer, rivalries are a major part of the MCC in general. The schools have fostered rivalries throughout the last 30 years. SLUH’s initial big rival was CBC as they were both located in the city, but the rivalry toned down once CBC moved out into the county. Chaminade and Vianney have a long history of being rivals, stemming from the fact that they are both Maranist schools. In recent years, the most prominent rivalries have been Chaminade vs. SLUH, SLUH vs. CBC, and Vianney vs Chaminade. The annual SLUH vs. CBC football game would fill out most of the old Busch Stadium before it was demolished. 

Without the MCC, private high schools in St. Louis wouldn’t be nearly as popular as they are now, with sports being a huge factor in admissions. The communities of these schools rely heavily on sports and the championships they bring. The whole school mourns the losses and celebrates the wins.