St. Louis CITY SC Academy Midfielder Drew Dowling and Forward Blake Wilson Named to 2026 MLS NEXT All-Star Roster

St. Louis CITY SC academy midfielder Drew Dowling and forward Blake Wilson have been named to the 2026 MLS NEXT All-Star Game presented by Allstate. This marks the second consecutive time CITY SC has had two players selected for the MLS NEXT All-Star Game.  

The MLS NEXT All-Star Game is an opportunity for young players to display their talents on a national level. The match will be streamed live on MLS’ YouTube channel. Admission is free and fans who want to watch in person can register for tickets here. 

Dowling and Wilson, alongside 42 other top players from MLS NEXT academies, will compete in an East versus West conference matchup at Mecklenburg County Regional Sportsplex in Matthews, North Carolina on Monday, July 27 at 6:30 p.m. CT. The West team will be coached by Seattle Sounders FC U-15 head coach Ethan O’Neill and Seattle Sounders U-16 head coach Matt Dorman.  

Dowling and Wilson will be fully immersed in MLS All-Star Week festivities, including team training, the All-Star Skills Challenge presented by AT&T on Tuesday, July 28, and the MLS All-Star Game on Wednesday, July 29 presented by Chime.  

Both Dowling and Wilson made their MLS NEXT Pro debuts this year with St Louis CITY2. Dowling’s debut came on June 6 against Colorado Rapids 2, where he scored the game-winning penalty kick in a 4-3 shootout win. Dowling played 19 minutes in his debut after entering the match as a substitute in the second half. Wilson’s debut occurred on May 30, featuring in CITY2’s 2-0 shutout win over North Texas SC. Both players have spent this season frequently training with St Louis CITY2.  

With CITY SC’s U-16 academy team, Dowling scored three goals this spring, including a brace in a 8-4 win against Colorado Rapids, and the game-winning goal in a 2-1 upset over Chicago FC United. During the 2025-26 season, Wilson spent significant time with the U.S. U-15 and U-16 Youth National Teams. Wilson made his international debut against Mexico’s U-15 national team, playing 58 minutes. The forward earned four caps with the U-15s, before moving up an age group to the U-16s. Wilson played two matches for the U-16s against Spain and Sweden. In the match against Sweden, Wilson started and played 90 minutes, scoring his first goal for the United States in a 6-3 win.  

Dowling and Wilson are the sixth and seventh CITY SC players to be named to the MLS NEXT All-Star Game. Joining them are Fritz Volmar who made the inaugural roster in 2022, Caden Glover who made the roster in 2023, Tyson Pearce who was selected in 2024, and Lorenzo Cornelius and Owen Jorgensen who represented CITY SC in 2025.