Eyes look to St. Joseph as stage sets for training camp, future events

Mayor John Josendale said in a previous interview with News-Press NOW that this year’s camp will be one filled with celebration, as the Chiefs are the reigning Super Bowl champions. He said that now, plans are in motion to make that happen.

“This year, we’ll get to celebrate the world championship. We’re keen up to that. There’s a committee that works together between Missouri Western, Mosaic, the Chamber of Commerce, CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau). We’ve got a number of people involved that are currently in the planning stage,” Josendale said.

The committee has discussed several ideas to celebrate, including the possibility of the Lombardi Trophy making an appearance in St. Joseph.

Josendale also said early plans point to the Red Rally taking place in late July.

“We’re looking to do down at Civic Center Park again. Hopefully it will be a Saturday instead of Friday. We’ll be able to have training camp in the morning, then bring the people Downtown for the festival,” Josendale said. “We’ll have it in the park again with some major names ... Tech N9ne, we hope will be back. And they’re putting the plans together so that committee will be announcing a lot of that.”

The city isn’t the only entity preparing for the return of Chiefs Kingdom. Missouri Western State University will begin putting things in motion for camp in early July.

Athletics Director Andy Carter said the schedule hasn’t been released publicly, but he is pleased with the progress as camp approaches.

“The schedule, it looks great. We’re really happy with where things are. And, you know, we’re looking forward to getting this summer kicked off,” Carter said.

The Chiefs are set to have training camp in St. Joseph through 2024. Carter said this summer they hope to sit down with the Chiefs to come to a long-term agreement to keep camp in the area longer.

“You never know when their mind is going to shift to want to do something else,” Carter said. “All we can do is perform at the highest level each and every year, and if they make a decision at some point that they want to do something else, then that’s obviously a decision they get to make.”

Carter said one challenge the city faces as the host of training camp is the fact that many NFL teams are building new practice facilities near stadiums.

“We’re kind of a dying breed in that sense, but I believe they (the Chiefs) see the value, and I know that we see the value because of the exposure of the co-brand that we get. I think this summer is going to be indicative of how big that can be,” Carter said.

Foot traffic to the area will go beyond just training camp: The 2026 FIFA World Cup may bring the potential for competing teams to stay or practice on the campus of Missouri Western.

Josendale and Carter agree that the way St. Joseph has showcased the Chiefs with hospitality and facility use could prove they could host a World Cup team, too.

Though it may be too early to tell, the hope is there.

“It’s interesting because that would be a summer where we could have World Cup here for two or three months and then right into Chiefs camp. We know how to do that. It’s not easy. It’s not easy on our campus, on employees and not easy on our students,” Carter said. “But we have, we figured out how to take care of all of that and how to be a good partner with the Chiefs, the community and everybody involved. We think it’s a really good thing for our campus.”

Josendale said this is truly an exciting time for all Chiefs fans, especially those in the St. Joseph area.

“A lot of people don’t ever get the opportunity to have the world champions here. We have an opportunity to show off St. Joe and show off the enthusiasm that our community has for the Chiefs,” Josendale said. “We get to show off how we work together as a community, how we work together, whether it be the city, the county, the Chamber, Missouri Western or Mosaic. We all work together, we meet, we talk, and we go out and project the positive side of St. Joe.”