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On the heels of another shutout defeat, St. Louis must pick themselves up by the bootstraps ahead of a tough fixture with the Columbus Crew. Currently first in the Eastern Conference, Columbus has maintained an undefeated record through 7 matches. The addition of Philadelphia Union star Daniel Gazdag stands to reason Columbus fancies its chances of an MLS cup victory this year. Read on for an expert St. Louis vs Columbus prediction and explore stats and tips for 2025 MLS best bets.
- Major League Soccer
- St. Louis CITY SC vs Columbus Crew
- Sunday, April 13, 2025
- 7 PM EST
- Energizer Park, St. Louis, MO
- Apple TV
St. Louis vs Columbus Betting Odds
St. Louis are slight favorites in this Sunday night edition of Major League Soccer. CITY SC is priced at (+159). The Columbus Crew are (+170) to win, implying a probability of 37%. A draw is lined at (+248).
| MLS |  |  |  |
| St. Louis | +159 | +155 | +155 |
| Columbus | +165 | +170 | +170 |
| Draw | +248 | +245 | +245 |
Want to better understand the 3-way moneyline (1X2) market? See our soccer betting lines and view 2025 MLS betting sites.
St. Louis Held Scoreless in Last 3 Fixtures
Another trip to Children’s Mercy Park proved fruitless for CITY, who are now winless against their biggest rivals on the road since their debut four seasons ago. Not only did St. Louis fail to break that dreadful streak, the club was also held scoreless on the third straight occasion. A red card shown to Eduard Lowen in the second half of their match against Philadelphia hindered their offensive output. CITY followed suit with another bagel at home against Austin.
On the bright side, St. Louis boasts one of the best defensive records in the entire country. Only one other club has allowed fewer goals in the MLS. And that’s all without their starting goalkeeper Roman Burki and right back Tomas Totland. This combination of stalwart defense and lackluster offense is the perfect recipe for low-scoring matches. Only one of their seven initial matches has seen a third goal, and five of those seven have contained just one goal or less.
Columbus Crew Sitting Atop the Eastern Conference
The city of St. Louis awaits the arrival of the Eastern Conference’s current points leader. The Columbus Crew have earned results in all of their first seven matches and hold a one-point advantage of Messi’s Inter Miami, albeit a game ahead. A 2-1 victory over Montreal solidified their climb to the summit of the East. Within the first 30 minutes of play Columbus managed to jump to a 2-0 lead.
Columbus’s strong start is worth praising as the club lost its biggest difference-maker over the winter. Cucho Hernandez left his beloved city to return to Europe, more specifically Real Betis. The Colombian midfielder was arguably the best player in the league last season behind Messi. Yet manager Wilfried Nancy has found suitable replacements in his stead, including defender Cesar Ruvalcaba and veteran Steven Moreira.
An asterisk to Columbus’s 15 points accrued could be placed based on a relatively easy strength of schedule. Fixtures with Inter Miami and Charlotte after this visit to the Midwest present more difficult challenges on their road back to the MLS Cup.
In a possible attempt to fill the gap Cucho left behind, Columbus secured a free transfer of Daniel Gazdag from the Philadelphia Union. The Hungarian international has already contributed to four goals in six matches this season. Gazdag was Philadelphia’s top scorer for the last three years, making the acquisition not only a benefit to Columbus but also a significant loss to one of the Crew’s best competition in the East.
MLS Best Bets: St. Louis vs Columbus Prediction
St. Louis has struggled mightily to put the ball in the back of the net. 270 minutes and more have gone by without a CITY goal and a match against Columbus certainly risks this woeful stretch continuing. Columbus has allowed only five goals all season.
The Crew have won all of their away games this season barring one (a draw against this year’s sensation San Diego FC). It’s no surprise my projections favor the Crew heavily. The club will enjoy a full week off after losing to LAFC in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and face a side that failed to make the playoffs.
My numbers indicate Columbus should be (-222) favorites in the draw no bet market, making them huge favorites. But sportsbooks rate this club as the underdog, a curious number that seems to be quite generous to St. Louis. I believe there is plenty of value here, especially considering you will get your money back in the event of a draw. Since St. Louis plays in plenty of low-scoring affairs, this factor could come in handy.
Go with the Crew to get the job done on the road in what I think is a line way off its true probability. The opening line was around this number before immediately jumping to around (-130). After some buyback, the line remains where it opened, but I believe that reverse movement was unwarranted. Take Columbus Draw No Bet (-106) at BetOnline.
Odds are accurate at time of writing but subject to change.
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