The Gold Standard of North American Soccer:
DC United! Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé. * * * *

Map of the United States of America

DC United 
Founded in 1996 in Washington, DC.
Managed by DC United Holdings.

Honors:

Four time MLS Champions: 1996, 1997, 1999, and 2004. Runners-up in 1998.
Lamar Hunt US Open Cup Champions: 1996. Runners-up in 1997.
Five time Eastern Conference Champions: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2004.
1998 Inter-American Cup Champions over Vasco da Gama of Brazil. 
This signifies the best team in the Western Hemisphere. DC United was the first North American team to win this prestigious title.

Why Do We Call It Soccer? 

Contrary to what the media wants you to believe, the word "soccer" is not an American creation. Or, "They call it football, and we call it soccer." The word was derived from Association Football, which was the original term given to the game in the 1860s at the elite schools that spawned the sport. The abbreviation "Assoccer", which became "soccer," was used by the British upper classes of that period. When the sport was embraced by the less fortunate, the name of "soccer" was passed down. But most commoners used the word "football" to describe their new game. Nowadays, from the British Royal Family down to the passionate supporters in the terraces at Anfield, Old Trafford, or Stamford Bridge, the game is called football. Or "footy."

When immigrants, coaches, and sailors exported the game overseas, the word "football" was loosely translated to fit the local languages. For example, Fútbol does not literally mean "football" in Spanish. Nor does futebol translate into "football" in Brazilian Portuguese. The word "fut or fute" does not mean "foot" in either language. It was the English influence that still is found today. Many teams in Argentina have English names: Arsenal, Banfield, Newell's Old Boys, and River Plate to name a few of the more famous ones. Real Madrid was originally called the "Madrid Football Club" by its British founders. If you look closely, you can see the initials MFC in their famous logo. In Italy, one of the most famous clubs, AC Milan, was founded as the Milan Cricket and Athletic  Club. In Italy, the coach is called "Mister." As a tribute to the early English coaches who taught the game in that country.

When the sport arrived on our shores in the late 19th century (the US National Team played its first game against Canada in 1885), it was called Association Football. It was not called soccer. Only after the Second World War was the sport commonly referred to as "soccer." Perhaps due to the growing impact of the NFL (American Football), and that the game was perceived as foreign. Which is strange, because in the early 20th century, there were many industrial teams and leagues throughout the country. While the sport was not as popular as baseball, it was on the sporting landscape. We competed at the first World Cup in 1930. Many well-known soccer nations such as England, Germany, and Italy did not. In fact, up until the 1970s, the USSF used the word "football" in its title. 

Professional American Soccer History:

Prior to the MLS, there was the North American Soccer League (NASL), which began operations in the late 1960s. The most famous team in North American history was the New York Cosmos. In 1975, they lured Pelé out of retirement, who brought instant credibility to the nascent league. He was the first of many great stars to come to this country to play for the Cosmos. World-class players such as Giorgio Chinaglia, Franz Beckenbauer, Johan Neeskens, Vladimir Bogicevic (Bogie), Serginho, and Carlos Alberto would entertain an appreciative American audience. The Cosmos also developed native American talent such as Werner Roth, Shep Messing, Bobby Smith, Ricky Davis, Angelo Di Bernardo, and Jeff Durgan. During their prime, the Cosmos were truly an international squad, and were well-respected throughout the world of soccer. A very good book from this period was written by Shep Messing, and is entitled, "The Education of an American Soccer Player."

There is a grass-roots movement, called the New York Cosmos Campaign, to resurrect the team to its former glory. Here is a link for all of us who appreciated what the team achieved for American soccer: New York Cosmos Soccer Club.

1950 World Cup in Brazil: USA 1 England 0.

The Game of Their Lives is a movie detailing the historic American victory over England in the 1950 World Cup. It remains one of the biggest surprises in World Cup history, and unfortunately, has never received proper recognition in the sports media. Several players from the St. Louis area participated on this memorable team. The team also featured several Italian-Americans, and the winning goal was scored on a diving header by a Haitian immigrant, Joseph Gaetjens. He was assisted by Walter Bahr, who later coached many years at Penn State. The above link is maintained by the Baudo family, and has many links about the movie itself, along with other informative soccer information. Ann Baudo's husband, Frank "Pee Wee" Wallace, was one of the members of the team.  He scored a goal at another game during the 1950 competition.

The Game of Their Lives by Geoffrey Douglas. The book that inspired the movie.

Links of Interest:

A 12-Year-Old's Amazing Feat is an interesting article about Freddy Adu written in 2001.

Adu the prodigy must grow up in the spotlight by Rob Hughes of the International Herald Tribune.

DC United Section: Washington Post. Steven Goff has written excellent articles about American and international soccer for the last fifteen years.

Alexi Lalas: The President and General Manager of the LA Galaxy of the MLS holds a notable distinction. He was the first North American (Giuseppe Rossi was the second on 21 January 2007 for Parma, and Gabriel Enzo Ferrari was the third on 31 January 2007 for Sampdoria) to play in the Italian Serie A. Alexi played for Padova from 1994 to the beginning of 1996. In June 1995, he played an important relegation game for Padova against Genoa, and then flew directly to Boston for a game with the National Team against Nigeria. He played the entire game against Genoa, which was decided by penalty kicks in the favor of Padova. He played the entire second half against Nigeria, and the US won, 3 to 2. Here are his career stats through 1999. He finished his career with 96 appearances for the US National Team.

Major League Soccer: The official site with news and highlights of current games.

Major League Soccer (MLS) Table

National Soccer Hall of Fame: Oneonta, New York.

Soccer America's 35 Most Influential People in American Soccer

USSoccer.com: The official web site of the USSF. Has a nice match tracking feature during live US National Team games.

Yanks Abroad: An interesting and informative site that follows the exploits of the ever growing number of Americans playing in top foreign leagues.

This was a game that I attended in May 1998. USA v. Scotland at RFK Stadium, which has
one of the best soccer environments in North America.

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