St Louis could become home to a purpose-built 20,000-capacity soccer stadium after a Missouri-based consortium official submitted a bid for the city to host a Major League Soccer (MLS) expansion franchise.

According to the group – SC STL – the HOK-designed stadium would “complete one of the great corridors of sport, culture and entertainment”.

The venue is earmarked to be situated within one mile of the Busch Stadium and Ballpark – where the St Louis Cardinals baseball team plays – the Peabody Opera House and St Louis Union Station.

SC STL has filed an application to with MLS commissioner Dan Garber and deputy commissioner Mark Abbott to establish a soccer team in the city, which recently lost its National Football League franchise – the St Louis Rams – to Los Angeles.

“The timing is right to bring MLS to St Louis and St Louis is ready,” said Jim Kavanaugh, the vice chair of SC STL and founder of St Louis FC, which plays in the United Soccer League.

“With the Rams leaving our community, St Louis deserves and ownership group committed to the growth and development of St Louis.”

He added: “To that end, we will do all we can to make sure St Louis is announced later this year as a member of the Expansion Class of 2020.”

If the consortium’s wish is granted, the proposed stadium will create 450 start-up and construction jobs, as a well as 428 permanent jobs.