The San Jose Earthquakes have agreed to a deal to acquire German midfielder Eduard Löwen from St. Louis City, according to sources briefed on the situation.St. Louis will receive $425,000 GAM plus another $500,000 GAM in add-ons, the sources told The Athletic on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been made public. Löwen will be a designated player for San Jose for the rest of this season to save allocation money and salary cap space but can be bought down in the future, the sources added.The 29-year-old midfielder provides a boost to Bruce Arena’s Earthquakes, who are on a bad run of form since the league returned from the World Cup break. The club had been among the best in the league but is winless in five matches since the return, including a loss to St. Louis in which Löwen started and picked up an assist.
Löwen’s contract is only guaranteed through the season with an option for next year. He approached the club about his long-term future in the spring, sources said, but management said it wouldn’t look at options and extensions until after the summer. Löwen later told the club he wanted his team to look for potential long-term destinations, which St. Louis granted, as he is well-respected in the organization and a fan favorite. The departure also opens up key salary cap space for St. Louis.Löwen joined St. Louis ahead of its debut 2023 MLS season. He made 99 appearances, including six goals and nine assists in 2023 when the team exceeded expectations and finished on top of the Western Conference in its expansion year.He has four goals and two assists in 770 minutes this season. He didn’t debut until April due to personal tragedy, as his wife passed away from brain cancer, an ailment she battled for the last couple of years.St. Louis still has an open DP spot and has targeted a center forward. The club remains active in looking to add attacking firepower at the end of the window.St. Louis added DP attacker Carlo Holse in late July while Marcel Hartel departed. St. Louis is one of the hottest teams in the league, unbeaten in 10 matches. It is the first year under head coach Yoann Damet, and early returns are strong.Löwen will give Timo Werner, Preston Judd and Niko Tsakiris another high-level player in an attacking unit that has cooled off over the last month.
