Formed in reaction to the National League baseball-backed American League of Professional Football, the American Association of Professional Football appears to have played its first games before, and outlived, the ALPF.
Recent Posts
Brutal tests, but better for it
Frank MacDonald’s series on FC Seattle’s UK tours in the late 1980s continues.
Player for hire: Shopping Goulet
Frank MacDonald’s series on FC Seattle’s UK tours in the late 1980s continues.
Uncle Lamar’s Vision
The new NSHOF in Frisco will have a “soft opening” in December of 2017 but there was little talk of how the Hall’s collection will be made available to researchers.
1858: A pivotal year in early American “Foot-ball”
By 1858, two forms of football were being played in the US, the kicking game and the carrying game.
Paving the way for Americans abroad
The first of a four-part series on FC Seattle’s UK tours in the late 1980s.
The unfortunate Steve Zungul
There was more to Steve Zungul than just his storied indoor career.
1934: USA vs. Mexico and the “little truck”
Aldo “Buff” Donelli’s quartet of goals in the one-off playoff game against Mexico powered the US to a berth in the 1934 World Cup. It would 46 years before the US would defeat Mexico again.
The lost tape
Televisa broadcast the US win over Mexico in 1980 — the first in 44 years — but footage of the game remains under wraps.
America and the 1863 Football Association Code
A look at the early history of football in the US, before and after the 1863 Laws of the Game.
Keller, Schmid just the latest Washington legends
2015 National Soccer Hall of Fame inductees Kasey Keller and Sigi Schmid join eight other Washington state members of the Hall.
It’s time to remember the Ukrainian Nationals
Steve Holroyd on the remarkable record of the Ukrainian Nationals, which included four US Open Cup titles between 1960 and 1966.
Philadelphia German Americans win the 1936 US Open Cup
On May 3, 1936, Philadelphia German Americans became the first amateur team, and the first team from the city of Philadelphia, to win the US Open Cup.
1913: Innisfails of St. Louis comes East
Our series on inter-city games involving Philadelphia area teams and St. Louis teams in the 1910s continues. When, a year after winning the American Cup, Tacony FC traveled to St. Louis in 1911, they came back from two goals down to draw 4–4 with St. Louis champion St. Leos in what newspaper reports […]
The Cosmos’ takeoff in 1977
The Cosmos may not have always been “The Cosmos!” but by the end of the 1977 season, in which they won their second NASL title, they definitely were.
Another soccer war?
Steve Holroyd on what happened the last time two professional soccer leagues were rivals for Division I status in 1967.
The “champions of the Middle West” come to Philly, 1912
Tacony FC’s trip to St. Louis in December of 1911 to decide the “championship of America” had ended in disappointment. They would have a chance for revenge in March of 1912 when the St. Leos team of St. Louis embarked on a tour against leading East Coast teams.
1911’s “soccer championship of America”: Philadelphia’s Tacony FC in St. Louis
Part One of a series looking at inter-city games involving Philadelphia area teams and St. Louis teams in the 1910s. Soccer in the United States at the start of the 1910s was undergoing a rise in organization and popularity. That organization was largely locally based and varied in both scope […]
Yankee, Cowboy, Fenian Bastard: An American Catholic at Rangers Football Club
In 1976, Hugh O’Neill — born in Kearney, NJ into a family of Celtic supporters — became the first “admitted Catholic” to play for Rangers.
2-3-5 in the 215: Tactics in the early days of Philadelphia soccer
One formation ruled the game of soccer in Philadelphia for 60 years, the 2-3-5.
On writing “The San Jose Earthquakes: A Seismic Soccer Legacy”
Gary Singh on writing his history of the San Jose Earthquakes.
Preserving and exhibiting Bay Area soccer history
Like many, I’m a transplant to the San Francisco Bay Area. I found over time that the region has a rich soccer history, much of it of relatively recent vintage and yet oddly unknown and in danger of being lost. For example, I had lived in my neighborhood near downtown […]
Be very afraid: U.S. soccer’s most dominant teams ever
Looking back over ASL I, the NASL, and MLS, which teams were the most dominant? Steve Holroyd explores.
Who’s better, who’s best: Leveling the pitch to find the best US club sides ever
Steve Holroyd performs some statistical leveling to determine the all-time top 15 US pro soccer teams.
Moving the goalposts
The ASL in the 1920s has been called the “golden age” of American soccer. Some older fans argue that the NASL was “better” than MLS. What do the numbers say.
Connie Mack’s soccer team
Connie Mack is a baseball legend. In Philadelphia in 1901, he also had a soccer team.
Len Oliver Q&A: Looking ahead
Our series of Q&A’s with Philadelphia-born National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver concludes.
When the U.S. Women’s National Team was made in Washington
Frank McDonald talks to Anson Dorrance, head coach of the U.S. team that won the 1991 Women’s World Cup, about the prominent role players from the Seattle-Tacoma area had in the early history of the US Women’s National Team.
Steve Moyers: American-born goalscorer
A look at the all-time leading American-born goalscorer in the original NASL.
Liverpool comes to America, 1946
In 1946, Liverpool F.C. came to the United States for “American malts and ice creams” — and a few games of soccer.
Len Oliver Q&A: Playing in the pros in 1950s Philadelphia and beyond
Our series of conversations with Philadelphia-born National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver continues.
The night the U.S. women arrived
Roger Allaway on the USWNT’s 7-0 win over Taiwan in the 1991 Women’s World Cup.
Philadelphia Soccer in the 1940s and 1950s, part 5: The pro game in 1950s Philadelphia
National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver’s series continues.
Len Oliver Q&A: The impact of club soccer on Philly’s high school & college game
Our series of Q&As with Philadelphia-born National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver continues.
The forgotten Thomas W. Cahill
Roger Allaway on Thomas Chaill, one of the major figures in the early years of American soccer.
Philadelphia soccer in the 1940s and 1950s, part 4: High school and college soccer, products of the clubs
Len Oliver’s series on playing soccer in Philadelphia in the 1940s and 1950s continues with a look at how the high school and college game benefited from local clubs.
Paying the pros
A look at the background and occupations of professional soccer players in the original American Soccer League.
Kristine Lilly, the Washington Warthogs, and Olympic Gold
Without a club team to stay sharp with before the 1996 Summer Olympics, USWNT legend Kristine Lily signed with Continental Indoor Soccer League club Washington Warthogs, at the time the only professional club in the DC area.
Dick, Kerr Ladies come to Philadelphia, 1922
Women’s soccer has come a long way in the US. In 1922, it came all the way from England to Philadelphia.
Dick, Kerr Ladies in Washington, DC, 1922
In 1922, the world’s greatest women’s team played in Washington, DC as part of the US tour.
The battle of ’99
Roger Allaway looks back at the pivotal quarterfinal match between the US and Germany in the 1999 Women’s World Cup.
Abolish the penalty kick!
A little more than one hundred years ago, the Philadelphia Inquirer led a campaign to abolish the penalty kick.
Live From Acapulco, It’s Tabare Ramos!
Tab Ramos is presently coaching the US at the U-20 World Cup. In 1982, it took a private jet and helicopter to get him to a New Jersey high school championship playoff game.
Spotlight on Jack Huckel
Jack Huckel, former director of the National Soccer Hall of Fame (NSHOF), reflects on the Society for American Soccer History (SASH). Huckel also founded JR Huckel & Associates, a consultation and management services firm for Hall of Fame elections. He served as president of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America and previously […]
Q&A with Len Oliver: Philly amateur soccer in the 1950s
Our series of Q&As with National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver continues.
Bethlehem Steel FC’s 1919 tour of Scandinavia
In 1919, Bethlehem Steel became the first US club to embark on an overseas tour.
Philadelphia soccer in the 1940s and 1950s, part 3: Moving up through the amateur ranks
Philadelphia-born National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver describes moving up the Philadelphia amateur soccer ranks in the 1940s and 1950s, playing in international friendlies, and trying out for the US Olympic team.
Loose threads
Tom McCabe on ONT Football Club, American soccer’s first dynasty, the American Football Association, the sports first governing body in the US.
The search for the Falcos
The Holyoke Falcos were one of the founding members of the American Soccer League in 1921, although they dropped out after just a single season. In many ways the search for information on the Falcos reveals some of the challenges involved in researching the history of American soccer.
A timeline of early soccer in Cleveland: “Socker’s” roots spread (1905-1906)
Part 2 of Craig Tower’s timeline of early Cleveland soccer history.
A timeline of early soccer in Cleveland: Beginnings (1889-1905)
Craig Tower presents a timeline if soccer’s beginnings in Cleveland.
Q&A with Len Oliver: Youth and junior soccer with Lighthouse Boys Club
Our series of Q&A’s with US Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver continues.
Philadelphia soccer in the 1940s and 1950s, part 2: Youth & Junior League soccer with the Lighthouse Boys Club
Part two of a six part series in which National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver recalls growing up playing soccer in 1940s and 1950s Philadelphia continue with his time playing for the Lighthouse Boys Club.
Evolution of a kit: Bethlehem Steel FC
Between 1912 and 1930, Bethlehem Steel FC played in at least 11 different jersey designs.
The game that never ends
Tom McCabe on the importance of pickup soccer games.
Spotlight on Albert Colone
Albert “Al” Colone, former director of the National Soccer Hall of Fame, looks back on the early days and accomplishments of the Society for American Soccer History.
Q&A with Len Oliver: Philly soccer in the 1940s & 1950s
The first in a series of Q&A’s with National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver.
Philly and the first USA international tour
On June 9, 1916, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, “Word was received in this city yesterday that all arrangements had been completed for an All-American soccer team to tour Sweden and Norway in July. The Sweden Football Association, through its secretary, C.L. Kornerup, has cabled a guarantee of $4000 to cover […]
Philadelphia soccer in the 1940s and 1950s, part 1
Part one of a six part series in which National Soccer Hall of Famer Len Oliver recalls growing up playing soccer in 1940s and 1950s Philadelphia.
That wooden sign
In recognition of Throwback Thursday, Tom McCabe recalls the wooden sign that used to hang behind Archie Stark’s tavern in Kearny, New Jersey
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