USA SOCCER GROWTH:
The popularity of soccer has grown immensely in
the United States during the past 15 years. The
quality of play has continued to improve to the point
where U.S. teams are now competitive in the world
arena.
According to a recent survey released by the Soccer
Industry Council of America, 15.5 million Americans
over the age of six played soccer at least once during
1988.
Among the eight leading youth team sports, soccer
ranks third in popularity after basketball and volley
ball. Soccer is the second most popular team sport in
the nation for players under the age of 12 years.
From approximately 103,000 youth soccer players
registered with the Federation in 1974, the total has
grown toover 1.5 million in 1989. 1.4 million of these
are registered with the United States Youth Soccer
Association.
PROFESSIONAL SOCCER
PAST AND PRESENT:
Professional soccer has long been a part of the
sporting environment in the United States. The
American Soccer League, the longest running U.S.
professional league, operated from 1921 to 1984. The
North American Soccer League provided another col
orful chapter to the development of the game in the
USA, operating 19 years through 1985.
Despite the NASL's departure, however, profes
sional soccer continues in the USA, and is destined to
be on the upswing as we near America's 1994 World
Cup.
AMERICAS
MAJOR LEAGUES
American Soccer League: Founded in 1987, the
ASL operates with a spring-summer season of 20
games. The Ft. Lauderdale Strikers are the defending
champions.
Western Soccer League: Founded in 1985, the WSL
has a spring-summer season of 16 games. The San
Diego Nomads are the defending champions.
American Indoor Soccer Association: Founded in
1983, the AISA operates with a winter season of 20
games. The Canton Invaders are the defending cham
pions.
Major Indoor Soccer League (Professional): Founded
in 1978, the MISL operates with a winter season of 52
games. The San Diego Sockers are the defending
champions.
THE FUTURE OF PRO SOCCER:
The U.S. Soccer Federation has developed a plan for
the reorganization of professional soccer in the United
States. The plan calls for a First, Second, and Third
Division professional structure, with a system of pro
motion and relegation that will be unique to American
professional sports. Under the new system, any com
munity in America, provided it meets the proper stan
dards, could field a team in the new professional league.
COLLEGE SOCCER IN THE USA:
The popularity of soccer in American colleges and
universities has been growing tremendously during the
past 15 years. In fact, more institutions of higher
learning currently field intercollegiate soccer teams
than grid football teams. According to the most recent
set of figures from the National Collegiate Athletic
Association and the National Association of Intercolle
giate Athletics, 780 colleges fielded soccer teams while
only 686 fielded grid football teams.
YOUTH SUCCESS:
American national youth teams have been among the
world's most successful in qualification rounds for
world championship events. The U.S. Under-20 Team
has appeared in the last two world championship
events 1989 in Saudi Arabia where it placed fourth,
and in the 1987 event in Chile. The U.S. Under-16 Team
has appeared in three consecutive world championship
events 1989 in Scotland, 1987 in Canada and 1985
in China.
MAJOR U.S. CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The U.S. Open Cup, the U.S. Soccer Federation's
premier club championship event, has been held every
year in the United States since 1914. The first champi
onship was won by the Brooklyn Field Club, which
defeated Brooklyn Celtic 2-1 back in 1914. The 1988
Open Cup title was won by Busch Soccer Club of St.
Louis, which defeated the San Francisco Greek-Ameri
cans 2-1. Other national competitions held by the
Federation include the U.S. Amateur Cup and Over-30
Cup for both male and female teams.
NATIONAL TEAM PROGRAM:
The United States fields five men's teams for interna
tional competition: the NationalTeam, Five-a-SideTeam,
Developmental Team, Under-20 Team and Under-16
Team. There are two teams fielded for women's interna
tional competition - the U.S. Women's Team and the
Girls' Under-19 Team. Administration of these teams is
accomplished through the National Teams Office, which
is based at U.S. Soccer Federation headquarters in
Colorado Springs. Colorado.
The USA Soccer Boom
