I know these videos get like 12 views but I really love these. Anyone can make a video on 7 players who "..." but not everyone can make a football history video with accurate and unbiased information like you do. I think your talents really show through in these videos and I hope they keep coming.
I remember watching those "American penalties" as a kid when they showed NASL highlights on Transworld Sport. The American supporters couldn't handle draws so every game that ended a draw (league included) they would have to go through a penalty shootout to determine a winner. It was a bit strange and changed the dynamic of matches. An away draw against a strong team is a good result and they did away with draws being seen as a good result.
personally I like those better. Not only do they actually resemble the game, unlike a dead ball, but as a goalkeeper you can influence the play even if a shooter takes their approach really well. a well taken PK probably isnt savable
@@tlawal7 See, this is what I've thought football could take from hockey. Especially w/ the 3pt system. A draw is 1 point, a shootout win is 2, and a proper win would be 3. The hockey-style penalty shot, to me, is a better game-decider than the lay-up contest that is penalties proper. There is actual skill for both the taker and the keeper involved. And the conversion percentages were lower than penalties as well. Now, the kick-ins and the offside line and other things NASL tried to make soccer more like outdoor ice hockey? Well, I love hockey. But I love it for itself. :P
Alfie as you are making videos on ideas like these , I recommend you to do one on the Bosman's Law which came in effect in the 1990s europe, it changed the trajectory of transfers in football. A very interesting topic to cover.
@@3dsaulgoodman43 you don't deserve the sport of soccer if you're a MLS fan. Read up about how your only value as a fan is the TV rights for the national team. The same governing body sells the TV rights for the national team and MLS but if you want the national team you gotta buy the MLS rights too. That's the only reason your league exists. Oh and to line pockets with expansion fees.
No one is rating these videos. Perhaps people mean "undervalued" and "under viewed". But "underrated" just doesn't apply. I agree these videos are really good and a nice change of pace from the lists. I hope alfie gets enough financial help to be able to work on more projects of love and interest. Great video.
It is interesting that you brought up some of the new "rules" that the NASL invented that the world just ended up adopted but no one gives them credit for. It's very similar to how the XFL which lasted only 1 season came up with some new ideas that the NFL ended up adopting but will naturally never give them credit for. It's also interesting how many current MLS teams are named after former NASL teams such as the Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders.
@@toritwopointoh Not being a Sounders fan there are probably others more qualified to answer but if I am not mistaken the answer is no. They were a USL team which was named after the NASL team but were their own independent team taking up the old name and look to honor the team of old. Then they paid to become an MLS team and technically no longer hold claim to any of their achievements in USL (not that I know if they actually achieved anything there) but still kept the team name and look. Basically, they are the Sounders in name but have no direct link to the NASL team. However, I could be mistaken.
Spiritual mostly. Theme song, name, Schmetzer. The USL Sounders maintained the logo and look of the NASL Sounders, but when they went MLS, they were almost Seattle United, and it was only due to a fan outcry that the name "Sounders" was kept as "Sounders FC". There was a new crest, but many players and coaches and owners came across (Schmetzer, Le Toux) but MLS Sounders are basically a different organization. FWIW, there is an unofficial thing called the NASL "Heritage Cup" between San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps, and Portland Timbers as teams that kept their NASL names. The Cascadia Cup is the only one these teams care about though so it hasn't become a thing.
DannyTRadio, an MLS RUclipsr made a video on why the NASL failed. I seriously recommend his channel to those that want to learn more about the MLS. He's an extremely underrated RUclipsr.
6:19 also part of the reason that it was called "soccer goes american" is because that team (Bob Rigby included) was largely american, unlike most NASL teams
the transition from NSL to the A-League. The old Migrant community clubs making way for gimmick clubs. pretty much MLS’s not as famous and poorer cousin.
Eurosnobs? to quote Rafa Marquez, "that is where the good football is". Even the best US players at the moment are all at European clubs, even sold from European clubs. Introduce relegation and promotion, and we'll talk.
The reason why NASL received so little media coverage can be traced to the fact that some other sports had 2 competing leagues like the NBA vs. ABA in basketball and NHL vs. WHA in hockey. Not to mention the NFL, MLB and college sports are also in the mix. Even though the MLS is making progress nowdays, its viewing figures are peanuts compared to the NBA and especially NFL with European leagues such as the Premier League have better ratings (duh) despite the time zone issues.
Great NASL video, a magical time for those of us lucky enough to "live it!" One fact check tho....the 1978 Soccer Bowl at Giants Stadium did indeed draw 74,901 fans. The record, though, occurred on August 16, 1977. For the Cosmos v Strikers playoff game, the total was 77,691. Stadium capacity was 75,646, but the pre-sales levels were so large that the NJSEA (New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority) allowed for standing room only sales. So you're probably asking what kind of nerd would know that? I worked in the ticket office for the team, and had to reconcile every ticket and stub (yes, actual paper tickets) so I could watch the second half of the game! Keep up the great videos!
Holy shit, totally missed this when it came out! Thanks for covering the NASL! I'm almost certain the NASL is presented in uni courses as a way to show how one DOESN'T run a sports league! Edit: now that I've finished it, I should say that one thing you only touched on was that the NASL was spending money on an indoor league each winter, which was money they could have been spending on the outdoor league.
I kinda wish that MLS had nicknames like the NASL did, in MLS most teams are just called clubs, when NASL had the Spurs, the Cosmos, the Rowdies, the Sting and more. One thing NASL does have over MLS is that NASL got a video game in 1979 for the Intellivision.
Thank you for saying so, Alfie -- and indeed you're right, the NASL 35-yard/5 second penalty try WAS better than the 12-yard spot kick. It's a shame it didn't catch on in other leagues.
I kinda like the "shootout" that the NASL and early days MLS more than penalties too. I didn't like that they were used to settle draws though. A somewhat interesting fact about the American sports landscape back in and around the '20s is that NFL football wasn't popular at all. It didn't become popular until heavy marketing was thrown at it sometime mid century. Of course, baseball was already entrenched. Football/soccer in America had every chance to be the dominant sport, but mismanagement doomed the leagues. Balkanized leagues and bringing in almost exclusively foreign players allowed other leagues to paint soccer as a "foreign" sport and thus influence Americans to prefer our homegrown ones instead. What a shame. We could possibly have a few World Cup titles by now. I guess the bright side is I get to watch the sport and league(s) grow here in my lifetime.
Am i right in saying theres no promotions and relagations in your soccer league? As a brit i feel if use adopted this model it would only improve your game. Thats what makes football so exciting. Theres nothing more exciting than a last day promotion win and in the same breath nothing as devastating as geting relagated.
@@HeroYMR People who advocate Pro/Rel don't consider how closed leagues work with franchises. You have to pay into the league to get a franchise and you are subject to a salary cap for players and a end of season draft for parity. Since the clubs are a franchise of the league they aren't as individually run as European soccer clubs who are able to take them and compete in pan national competitions. Which is not the case for closed league teams as they are only competing for the franchise championship. There's nothing inherently wrong with either system but trying to switch to pro rel would tank a lot of teams into financial oblivion, leaving small markets in the US without professional teams.
A word here: "A somewhat interesting fact about the American sports landscape back in and around the '20s is that NFL football wasn't popular at all." NFL football did slowly, steadily grow in popularity through the mid-late 1930s and after World War II but for years still wasn't anywhere near as popular as college football which was far more extensively established, and it wasn't until the 1960s when professional American football was finally being grudgingly considered equal to the college game in athletic proficiency. Network television picking up on the NFL and the rise of the AFL in that crucial period tipped the balance. But who knows what would have happened if the American Soccer League had managed to survive the Great Depression and grow following World War II. You might never have heard of the NFL today or it would be about on the same level as the NHL instead of the bloated marquee sports-entertainment it is today. The whole American sports landscape would be quite different as basketball might never have become so popular either in an environment dominated by baseball, college gridiron football and soccer/football.
You should have mentioned Dennis Tueart. A star for Man City and an England international, he signed for the Cosmos when he was only 28. They signed him to replace Pele, that’s how good he was
Love videos like this! Would love to see a similar one on the League of Ireland and its state (or even Irish football as a whole with the FAI). You dont talk enough about the #GreatestLeagueintheWorld
The origins of the all Ireland league and the split would make an interesting video. Cliftonville are the oldest club on the island of Ireland who of course play in the North, that's in the Irish Premiership rather than the Irish Premier League which is in the South (nothing confusing about that then!) The (original - pre-parition) Irish FA still is the governing body up north, rather than the FA of Ireland which governs the game in the republic. Now of course there have been rumblings about the formation of an All-Island League being debated, and supported by a lot of the bigger clubs in the North, despite there being less places for the IFA affiliated teams. Football on the island of Ireland would be an interesting video in the making!
Make a video on the Australian league I’m from the US but their league seems to me to be more similar to MLS than soccer in the rest of the world. From team names to them I believe also having a salary cap and DPs
they are in a similar situation to the US, so it makes sense. Cities spread apart on a continent, competition from native sportslike AFL and other sports like tennis, cricket and rugby. They also have a collective bargaining agreement as well as a team from outside the country competing (Wellington from NZ). There is also no relegation and promotion and the Aussie tradition of the wooden spoon is practiced instead (like a boobie award). The only real difference is that the A League doesn't have a major college network to recruit young talent, who usually sign on as teenagers and train within a club's youth system like in the UK.
@@SantomPh Is the A-League more city influenced like the AFL(where a.hige chunk of clubs are around Melbourne) and NRL(where a huge chunk of clubs are around Sydney).
A-League is at least 10-20 years ahead of MLS in quality and player development. Imagine if Australia had the US's population - they'd win multiple WC's and be on par w/ France.
@@SantomPh Australia has a more developed soccer culture than the US. Also there is no pro/rel btwn A-League and lower divs. but there are plans for it. Unlike the US, AUS has a real pyramid below the A-League w/ traditional pro/rel.
Also Considering players who played in English top flight before the creation of premier league in 1992, here is my all pl vs la liga XI- ENGLISH league- Gordon Banks G.Neville Bobby Moore John Charles Ashley Cole Roy Keane Bobby charlton Tom finny Stanley Matthews George Best Henry This as far as I know. La liga is better. End of story.
All time PL (1992-) XI looks something like Cech G. Neville Terry Vidic A. Cole Vieira Keane Henry Lampard Bergkamp Shearer All time La Liga XI looks like Casillas Alves Ramos Koeman or Puyol Roberto Carlos Hierro Xavi Iniesta Di Stefano Messi Ronaldo
Thanks for the video!! When I used to live in New Jersey, I would hear from everyone about when Pele played for the NY Cosmos at Giants Stadium and they was so happy to see him! I started to watch football when the MLS started in 96 and became a fan of the Metrostars/Red Bulls.
I loved the 35 yard (I think) penalties, a lot of people don't realize how difficult and intense that is. Now its more about how well the attacker can put away a penalty with a keeper given ample amount of prep time.
Those old hockey style penalties are so cool to watch. They also used them in the early years if he MLS. They were the perfect example of Americanizing the sport to become more enticing to the American public without being too sacrilegious and making a novelty out of the sport
@@diezgp Not really. Plenty of us futbol fans have hated penalties forever and it is honestly a travesty that 2 world cups have gotten decided by them. Any attempt at improving them is welcome in my book.
@@clemenx The MLS penalties are cool, but most football fans are quite traditional. There's a reason this sport doesn't change its rules too much in ~150 years. Even if it goes against the entertainment and fun. You'll see many more classic penalty shootouts in your lifetime. Besides that, everybody liked what happened in the last final of the world cup. It was quite exciting what Dibu Martínez did.
I've got a suggestion for another football loving nation documentary "Indonesia", it's got a very weird history from world cup, unrealistic bids, corruption, two football associations, the galatama (model for the first j league), some stars there (kempes and Roger Milla), voodoo magic, clubs being runned to the ground, hooliganism, and many more
This video was absolutely fantastic, I love all of your American videos because it’s a league I definitely want to get into but I really know very little about it. I like Orlando because of kaka and the purple shirt but other than that I’ve never really looked into the whole set up of it. I’m Irish and would love to watch some videos about the history of Irish soccer, Bobby charlton played for waterford united, Sam allardyce started his managerial career in Limerick etc could be very interesting
A documentary about Giogio Chinaglia would be very interesting given his journey from Italy to USA then his post playing legal issues and premature death.
I like and appreciate the video, it's not often I pop up on something focused on the NASL. However, there are actually quite a few issues I've found and have with the video. I research sports history for fun and ironically was going through the history of the NPSL, USA, and NASL yesterday to make banner graphics for the league's champions. Here are the issues in the order they appear in the video. Again very well done but the mistakes are quite a few and I wanna make sure everyone knows the correct history of the NASL and US/Canadian soccer. 1) The NPSL was the one who had the TV contract with CBS for 1967 and 68 not the USA. In fact the USA was scheduled to launch in 1968 but FIFA and the USSFA (now US Soccer/USSF) announced sanctioning for the USA and imported teams to compete with the NPSL for 1967. (there is actually a deeper story on this as there was three groups looking to form leagues but that is an entirely different rabbit hole). 2) The complete disregard of the NPSL's 1967 season is a bit weird considering they had the TV deal and were not made up of imported teams. A mention of why the ratings were terrible would have been nice to add to the story. 3) Only the first part of the 1969 NASL season was made up of imported teams. After the "International Cup" each of the imported teams played against the club side they represented. Following this the NASL held it's "official" season for 1969 consisting of 16 matches per club in which the Kansas City Spurs also won. 4) Mentioning that two clubs were pulled from the ASL for 1970 but not mentioning it was the second version of the league could confuse people as you did say (correctly) when and why the original ASL collapsed. 5) The NASL broadcasting rights were purchased by CBS not ABC in what was to have been a three year contract. Only the first year actually happened and the NASL moved to TVS for 1977-78, before ABC purchased the TV rights for 1979. ABC then held TV rights from 1979-81. ESPN began airing the NASL in 1981 and ESPN and USA Network would hold the rights for the leagues final three seasons. 6) NASL Soccer Bowl '78 is not the highest attendance for a club match in US history. That goes to the first leg of the 1977 NASL Eastern Division Championship Series between the Cosmos and Strikers. That match drew 77,691 fans to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. However it would be correct to say that no match in MLS history has surpassed that Soccer Bowl '78 crowd. 7) It was not 70% of revenue going to player salaries but rather 70% of the overall budget. The one word makes a huge difference as just the player salaries themselves outpaces the revenue each team was generating, making the entire league a money pit and unsustainable. Had it been 70% of revenue the league (while unlikely) could have been sustainable. The one word difference is the difference in millions of dollars. 8) The MISL never "poached" any NASL teams. Rather the NASL had been having intermittent indoor seasons since 1971. The creation of the MISL did push the NASL to having full indoor seasons but the NASL did not have a full blown indoor season for 1982/83. This was in contrast to 1979/80-1981/82 where they played full indoor seasons. Three NASL teams (Chicago, Golden Bay, and San Diego) temporarily moved their indoor sides to the MISL for the 1982/83 season. All three teams would play both the 1983 and 1984 NASL seasons as well as the 1983/84 NASL Indoor season. 9) Of the final nine teams in the NASL four of them would once again play in the MISL for 84/85 due to the lack of an NASL Indoor Season. This move became permanent when the league shut down due to only Minnesota and Toronto wanting to continue the NASL. Tulsa would play 11 matches as an independent in 1985, Golden Bay would survive through 1988 and Tampa Bay would survive all the way until 1993.
You should do a video on the Philadelphia Union! It is a great case study in showing what happens when you don't have a plan (the first couple years) and when you do have a plan and stick to a system and make savvy moneyball signings mixed with youth development (now). They have a fantastic academy you can touch on as a part of their slow build success
Honestly, I have to credit the NASL for my interest in the sport at a young age, as well as going on to play for many years. It was quite big still in the United States in the early 80's when I was just starting out on my first youth team at 6 years old. In fact, many of our youth league team names were names from the NASL, like Cosmos, Rowdies, Strikers, Aztecs, etc.
I love these videos, although I think you should sprinkle some more classic videos in. An idea, Top 7 managers who have played professionally in the past 7 years(or something like that) thank!
During apartheid South Africa when most European leagues banned South African football players most of the best players went to America...I can name Ace Ntsoelengoe ( inducted in American Sports Hall of Fame), Vusi 'Computer' Lamola and Jomo Sono to name a few *Ace Ntsoelengoe was probably one of the best players in the world in the 1970s to early 80s( not exaggerating look him up), too bad Europe never got to see his greatness
Hey Alfie, I just thought of a cracking idea for a video you could do on the turbulent recent history of Goztepe in the Super Lig. They’re one of the Super Lig’s most well supported clubs (a bit like a Newcastle United, Sunderland or Strasbourg if you may). In the 2001/02 season, they finished seventh in the top flight, however from 2002 to 2008, they were relegated five times in six seasons, due to their inability to reduce their outstanding debt which resulted in the football club being banned from signing new players during that time. In August of 2007, a business based in Istanbul, vowed to take them back to the top flight making them one of the top five clubs in the country, but they were met with lots of suspicions from the fan base, and then they handed over the ownership to another bloke called Mehmet Sepil in 2014. Anyway, they’re back in the Super Lig as a solid mid table/weaker top half team. Why am I bringing all this up? Because apparently Abramovich is looking to possibly buy the club himself, after being sanctioned from the UK. It’s a crazy crazy story and may you could look into this, not to mention, they are not only a rare example of a club that is considered a neighbourhood club, as well as the fact that they’ve played in 3 different stadiums since 2011, but also in 1969, they became the first Turkish football team to play a semi-final of a European competition.
That Cosmos team was really something special. It was a mix of all-time great players and a bunch of aging tier 3 or 4 local players who would had never sniffed being on the same pitch as Pele or Franz Beckenbauer let alone playing on the same team with them. It was fun while it lasted.
one could only imagine what the football landscape in the united states would look like today if the afl had somehow survived through the great depression… teams with nearly a hundred years of history and the sport probably would be the most popular in the country
For the unitial fact of the league being the second most popular, the NFL did not exist in the Early 1900’s until the 1920s, college football was a thing but nothing impressive. The 35-yardline hand-to-hand penalties were sick, and nowadays would be more nailbiting, the clock, the players, man that would be awesome if it returned sometime
I've always thought the five second shoot out was a great idea and I'm not sure I know to many people that don't. Like you say, it a much better test of skill and ability and a much better spectacle for fans.
As a kid growing up in the 1970s in South Florida we were blessed in having a dominant American football team (the Dolphins appeared in 3 straight Super Bowls and going one season undefeated), and having the Miami Gatos (which became the Fort Lauderdale Strikers) of the NASL. Tickets for Dolphins games were mostly unobtainable and ridiculously expensive, while Gatos/Strikers games were affordable and plentiful. I saw at least a dozen games between them and the Cosmos, and arch rivals the Tampa Bay Rowdies, which always seemed to be in the way of the Strikers achieving greatness. There was one heartbreaking season I vividly remember when the Strikers had the best record in the league, only to lose to the Rowdies in the playoffs. Unfortunately, the league ultimately met the same demise as the upstart WFL and USFL (American football leagues) in that they over paid for talent hoping to capture the imagination of the public, but went bankrupt in the process.
The only "positive" of the NASL was that Canada, who had some teams there (Vancouver, who won the Soccer Bowl, Montreal or Toronto) had a decent number of good players and they qualified for the World Cup in 1986. The likes of Lenarduzzi, Tino Lettieri or Bruce Wilson were playing at the tail end of the league and helped the Canucks to enter the World Cup ahead of other super-powers such as Honduras.
Love your document Alfie, also when you succeed 1 mil subs and won't mind about views anymore, can you do a document about Football Fever in Vietnam during 2018 U-23 Asian Cup, the most exciting crowd you might ever seen, even World Cup couldn't beat it :))
Really enjoyed this video, sucks all those clubs disappeared which is something that probably plays a role in why soccer isn't as popular as other sports; fans have no real connection (yet) with their teams, because their clubs are so young and they have no real history.
The American soccer league in the 20s if it continued would've been one of the top leagues in the world today. We had great players in that league, Europeans do not give America any credit for the sport. They think we are just now getting into it when we had interest in it since the 1920s. And even then we called it football and the league was more popular then the NFL only behind MLB, just insane to think what could've been. Now we do have a solid more organized league in the MLS. But we will be low tier quality wise until the higher ups of MLS allow clubs to spend more on better talent and keep the young talented players. We are clearly improving on quality every year. And it is no longer easy to become a star player, but it won't be for years until we are up there with the European leagues if we don't allow spending. We have the infrastructure and quality of life that can get good players to come here, but limited spending is the biggest obstacle I see right now.
Being a league in CONCACAF will be the thing to hold MLS back in the end. No league outside of UEFA and CONMEBOL (before they fell from grace) has reached elite status or even top 10. Regardless of the salary cap, MLS may only reach the heights and quality of Liga MX because MLS has nothing to offer top young talent while in CONCACAF. MLS can have the highest attendance in the world or even the richest, but they won't have the prestige that comes with being in an elite FIFA Confederation that to make them widely respected. The prestige is what increases a player's value when performing well and Europe is also paying players hundreds of millions to billions of Euros (which is worth more than the American dollar).
@@jayh3283 I disagree, it is very possible to become a top league. And I think the MLS will be better then Liga MX in the future. Their players are already choosing the MLS over Liga MX. Yeah Europe has the "Prestige" but so is the Libertadores even tho the clubs are not to the level it was when say Pele was playing. It's all about if the continent and the leagues want to become better and make their own way. As long as the fans of that continent grow to care, the rest of the world will have to follow suit.
The shootouts! I once saw a friendly between juventus and idontrememberwho that finished in draw and was resolved via shootout, I remember Salas embarrassing himself.
Good summary. It would be interesting to find out the impact of fields (size, type - grass/turf, location and distance spread, weather). Also rhe impact if city ethnicity on determining crowd size and loyalty.
When MLS started in 96 they had dribbling shootouts over penalties. It was nuts as you had to score by 5 seconds. So ball had to cross goal line. Not even be in the air travelling towards the goal
That's why it failed I think. Too much controversy over timing. Maybe VAR would save it now, but it was just ridiculous to have a ball cross the line in 6 seconds and have it called back. I did like the premise though. I am happier with ties now honestly because I grew sick of the cluster that OT was. I'd rather go home with a point than wait another hour in the rain on a Thursday night over a largely meaningless game to be decided by a bad ref call.
To tell how far pro soccer has come, the final game of the 1971 NASL championship between Atlanta Chiefs and Dallas Tornado was played in Atlanta. The Tornado were in their locker room at Atlanta Fulton County Stadium just before game time, when the phone in the locker room rang. Head Coach Ron Newman (who has previously played for the Chiefs) answered it, and the voice on the other end ask "Hey, what time does the game start?" Newman answered, "What time can you get here? We'll wait!" This was actually confirmed a few years ago, by a Tornado player from that year, who posts on a soccer bulletin board. The next time an Atlanta team played for the pro championship, Atlanta United set what was then the MLS all-time attendance record, fifty years after the Chiefs won the first NASL championship (1968-2018).
The NASL had a team in Hawaii in 1977. I loved there at the time and went to all the matches except four. I played violin in a school orchestra and I had to perform those nights. I recall one night it was raining and the number of supporters was barely over 1,000 in a 56,000+ stadium. I got drenched and I was the only person sitting in my section. Towards the end of the season I got to know many of the players on a first name basis. Unfortunately my memory isn’t that great and the only name I can remember is Peter Fox a goal keeper who was on loan from Stoke. For that reason I follow Stoke and I watch their matches whenever I get the opportunity to.
I actually would love to see a video on the most recent incarnation of the NASL since my team the San Antonio Scorpions was one of few teams carrying that league financially before being bought and discontinued by Spurs sports and entertainment in favor of the modern USL San Antonio FC which coincidentally have had Notable Scorpion alumni join the franchise and have most recently hired their scorpions former championship winning Coach Allen Marcia
Way late on this, but the issue with all these efforts to increase scoring and eliminate ties was completely wasted. The die hard American sports fans (many of which who were very anti-soccer at the time) couldn’t care less if the games ended 0-0 or 5-4. I went to a Cosmos game in the early 80s with a neighbor (who had some interest in soccer) and his very traditional sports American dad. I remember the Cosmos won the game 5-3 and the Dad said he was bored out of his mind after the game. On the way home he had on the radio the Yankees baseball game which ended 2-1 or something and he made a comment like “now that’s a great sport”. There was nothing any soccer league could do to win these guys over. The 35 yard line was also terrible. It literally eliminated all midfield play and games were like basketball - get the ball to the attacking third, finish the play and the other team comes down the field to their attacking third. All intricate tactics, movement, etc were eliminated, again to try and win over people that couldn’t care less. I went to see Cosmos play Anderlecht in the early 80s with some friends whose only exposure to soccer was typical NASL games. Because it was a game against a Euro club, no 35 yard line. My friends were amazed at the speed of play, the intricate passing through MF and Anderlecht’s very aggressive and coordinated off side trap. They couldn’t believe this was the same sport as they were used to seeing in NASL. The Cosmos played them toe to toe and the game finished like 2-1 or something. Had NASL allowed soccer to move forward like this, I bet more people would have become fans, as they have being exposed to EPL, ECL, World Cup, etc the last 10-15 years. Soccer is the “beautiful game” and NASL lacked the confident and vision to believe that Americans would appreciate the sport as it’s played all over the world.
US Soccer is still a mess, and the soccer wars are as relevant as ever. I'm working on starting a grassroots club (Delaware Rising FC) in my local city to help players in my area.
Nice to see you're trying to make soccer a better sport in the US. Hope you succeed in the state of Joe Biden. If I'm not wrong, was Delaware was the first every US state.
Fun fact in a corner kick the ref will tell the player to hold on for a good couple of minutes for CBS to play commercials. Awkward if you’re in attendance and not know what’s happening
Regarding the issue of the age of the players, at the end of Warner's period with the Cosmos they began to take even young promises there. Romerito played for Cosmos before going to Fluminese and becoming Brazilian champion, before going to Barcelona too.
“Open wide for some SOCCAAAAH!” That episode came out about 15 years after the high point of the NASL so it’s quite possible that the writers were influenced by it. If I remember correctly there’s a pretty savage jab at Pelé and his fondness for a bag of cash. The whole soccer match is the set-up for what is my favourite ever Simpsons episode, the name of the gun shop where Homer goes to buy his handgun is in my view the funniest ever Simpsons sight-gag.
@@GorgeDawes the fact that Willie turns round and shouts "we'll show them a real soccer riot" shows that they may know about a certain incident that took place in the 1980 scottish cup final
First off they’re called the sounders not the sounds second what do you mean best team? All time they’re not but if you’re talking about the last 5ish years they’ve been the best.
Yeah they are really not seen as the "best" atleast not yet. Really trophy wise that goes to DC United or LA Galaxy. But the Sounders the last 5 years have really made their way. Including the Timbers, Toronto, ATL UTD, and LA FC, and the Union.
Honestly super greatful that's there's a European football channel giving objective and fair coverage to U.S. football/soccer 👍
Thank you!! 🙏
do you support the new year cosmos
@@keyuantejohnson6266 yes
The World Name, for The World Game is FOOTBALL Fact!.
I know these videos get like 12 views but I really love these. Anyone can make a video on 7 players who "..." but not everyone can make a football history video with accurate and unbiased information like you do. I think your talents really show through in these videos and I hope they keep coming.
Rosco Dodger why do you think it not get a lot some of these type get loooadsss
Like what has gone wrong for pep
GothicGolem29 think he means the historical videos, some of the best football content out there and it doesn’t do as well as the 7s videos
@@harveyholmes9533 ohhh nt the documentry 1s like pep and Liverpool ok
If you like the us soccer videos I recommend checking out DannyTRadio.
I remember watching those "American penalties" as a kid when they showed NASL highlights on Transworld Sport. The American supporters couldn't handle draws so every game that ended a draw (league included) they would have to go through a penalty shootout to determine a winner. It was a bit strange and changed the dynamic of matches. An away draw against a strong team is a good result and they did away with draws being seen as a good result.
Draws are integral to football/soccer, though those penalties are quite intriguing.
personally I like those better. Not only do they actually resemble the game, unlike a dead ball, but as a goalkeeper you can influence the play even if a shooter takes their approach really well. a well taken PK probably isnt savable
I would actually like this in all football. Losing a draw penalty shootout would be 1 point and winning it would be 2
Draws are shit. It's the thing I like least about football.
@@tlawal7 See, this is what I've thought football could take from hockey. Especially w/ the 3pt system. A draw is 1 point, a shootout win is 2, and a proper win would be 3.
The hockey-style penalty shot, to me, is a better game-decider than the lay-up contest that is penalties proper. There is actual skill for both the taker and the keeper involved. And the conversion percentages were lower than penalties as well. Now, the kick-ins and the offside line and other things NASL tried to make soccer more like outdoor ice hockey? Well, I love hockey. But I love it for itself. :P
Alfie as you are making videos on ideas like these , I recommend you to do one on the Bosman's Law which came in effect in the 1990s europe, it changed the trajectory of transfers in football. A very interesting topic to cover.
What this guy said. Do that.
I went to LA Aztecs and California Surf matches back when I was a kid. Thanks for this!
Day 2 of asking for the best footballer for each of the top 50 most common first names
These videos are CRIMINALLY underrated
I highly recommend "Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos." It's one of the best football documentaries out there.
I'd love to see it as an MLS fan.
@@3dsaulgoodman43 you don't deserve the sport of soccer if you're a MLS fan. Read up about how your only value as a fan is the TV rights for the national team. The same governing body sells the TV rights for the national team and MLS but if you want the national team you gotta buy the MLS rights too. That's the only reason your league exists. Oh and to line pockets with expansion fees.
@@jaquandrejones uhhh ok
I was just going to comment this, it’s brilliant!
Seen it very good. I vouch for him it legit.
We‘re the Rambling Rogues of Memphis! The biggest Kick in Town! God I loved going to their games as a boy!
No one is rating these videos. Perhaps people mean "undervalued" and "under viewed". But "underrated" just doesn't apply.
I agree these videos are really good and a nice change of pace from the lists.
I hope alfie gets enough financial help to be able to work on more projects of love and interest.
Great video.
It is interesting that you brought up some of the new "rules" that the NASL invented that the world just ended up adopted but no one gives them credit for. It's very similar to how the XFL which lasted only 1 season came up with some new ideas that the NFL ended up adopting but will naturally never give them credit for. It's also interesting how many current MLS teams are named after former NASL teams such as the Vancouver Whitecaps and Seattle Sounders.
the Sounders have some sort of direct lineage to their NASL team, no?
@@toritwopointoh Not being a Sounders fan there are probably others more qualified to answer but if I am not mistaken the answer is no. They were a USL team which was named after the NASL team but were their own independent team taking up the old name and look to honor the team of old. Then they paid to become an MLS team and technically no longer hold claim to any of their achievements in USL (not that I know if they actually achieved anything there) but still kept the team name and look. Basically, they are the Sounders in name but have no direct link to the NASL team. However, I could be mistaken.
Spiritual mostly. Theme song, name, Schmetzer. The USL Sounders maintained the logo and look of the NASL Sounders, but when they went MLS, they were almost Seattle United, and it was only due to a fan outcry that the name "Sounders" was kept as "Sounders FC". There was a new crest, but many players and coaches and owners came across (Schmetzer, Le Toux) but MLS Sounders are basically a different organization.
FWIW, there is an unofficial thing called the NASL "Heritage Cup" between San Jose Earthquakes, Seattle Sounders, Vancouver Whitecaps, and Portland Timbers as teams that kept their NASL names. The Cascadia Cup is the only one these teams care about though so it hasn't become a thing.
DannyTRadio, an MLS RUclipsr made a video on why the NASL failed. I seriously recommend his channel to those that want to learn more about the MLS. He's an extremely underrated RUclipsr.
I love that channel. So great for Mls content.
YES I love DannyTRadio's videos, I wish there were more MLS creators because it'd do so much for the league
I agree. His channel is good whether you watch the MLS are just want to learn more about it.
I love that guys channel. I wish he would post more often
6:19 also part of the reason that it was called "soccer goes american" is because that team (Bob Rigby included) was largely american, unlike most NASL teams
Love these US Soccer videos! Very interesting, and is basically a middle finger to the Eurosnobs. Maybe one on Australian Soccer in the future?
the transition from NSL to the A-League. The old Migrant community clubs making way for gimmick clubs. pretty much MLS’s not as famous and poorer cousin.
as an american, seeing the parallels between american and australian soccer is very interesting so i would love this
Eurosnobs? to quote Rafa Marquez, "that is where the good football is". Even the best US players at the moment are all at European clubs, even sold from European clubs. Introduce relegation and promotion, and we'll talk.
jake domínguez the parallels between Australia and America don't stop at soccer/football, the two countries are extremely similar
@@SantomPh What I mean by Eurosnobs are people who insult US Soccer for absolutely no reason despite it's recent growth and successes.
It's like the company man series but instead of business, we're talking about football
Company man used to have a basketball channel iirc
The reason why NASL received so little media coverage can be traced to the fact that some other sports had 2 competing leagues like the NBA vs. ABA in basketball and NHL vs. WHA in hockey. Not to mention the NFL, MLB and college sports are also in the mix. Even though the MLS is making progress nowdays, its viewing figures are peanuts compared to the NBA and especially NFL with European leagues such as the Premier League have better ratings (duh) despite the time zone issues.
The old NASL was MUCH MUCH more popular and respected than today's crappy MLS and had WAY HIGHER TV ratings. MLS is a failure by comparison.
Great NASL video, a magical time for those of us lucky enough to "live it!" One fact check tho....the 1978 Soccer Bowl at Giants Stadium did indeed draw 74,901 fans. The record, though, occurred on August 16, 1977. For the Cosmos v Strikers playoff game, the total was 77,691. Stadium capacity was 75,646, but the pre-sales levels were so large that the NJSEA (New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority) allowed for standing room only sales. So you're probably asking what kind of nerd would know that? I worked in the ticket office for the team, and had to reconcile every ticket and stub (yes, actual paper tickets) so I could watch the second half of the game! Keep up the great videos!
Holy shit, totally missed this when it came out! Thanks for covering the NASL! I'm almost certain the NASL is presented in uni courses as a way to show how one DOESN'T run a sports league!
Edit: now that I've finished it, I should say that one thing you only touched on was that the NASL was spending money on an indoor league each winter, which was money they could have been spending on the outdoor league.
these kind of videos are the best ones you work on. Good job once again.
I kinda wish that MLS had nicknames like the NASL did, in MLS most teams are just called clubs, when NASL had the Spurs, the Cosmos, the Rowdies, the Sting and more.
One thing NASL does have over MLS is that NASL got a video game in 1979 for the Intellivision.
Oh, they did that because of most of the other major U.S. sports teams have nicknames.
7 teams ripped apart after success eg Monaco
Ajax as well
@@suhaylmirza884 ajax is still quite decent tho
@@georgewhitfield503 Not saying they aren't, some of their best like de ligt, de Jong, ziyech and van de beek have gone tho
Barça have become a SHADOW of what they were since MSN & Xavi
@@qkomodo9098 they weren't ripped apart. They just got old and eventually left one by one
MLS is a stable league… the more we see Americans in Chelsea, Barca, Dortmund, and Juve, the better for the future of football in the USA! 🇺🇸👍🏼
Love these videos from you I learn so much and they’re a nice distraction during my morning workouts 😎
Thank you for saying so, Alfie -- and indeed you're right, the NASL 35-yard/5 second penalty try WAS better than the 12-yard spot kick. It's a shame it didn't catch on in other leagues.
I kinda like the "shootout" that the NASL and early days MLS more than penalties too. I didn't like that they were used to settle draws though. A somewhat interesting fact about the American sports landscape back in and around the '20s is that NFL football wasn't popular at all. It didn't become popular until heavy marketing was thrown at it sometime mid century. Of course, baseball was already entrenched. Football/soccer in America had every chance to be the dominant sport, but mismanagement doomed the leagues. Balkanized leagues and bringing in almost exclusively foreign players allowed other leagues to paint soccer as a "foreign" sport and thus influence Americans to prefer our homegrown ones instead. What a shame. We could possibly have a few World Cup titles by now. I guess the bright side is I get to watch the sport and league(s) grow here in my lifetime.
Am i right in saying theres no promotions and relagations in your soccer league? As a brit i feel if use adopted this model it would only improve your game. Thats what makes football so exciting. Theres nothing more exciting than a last day promotion win and in the same breath nothing as devastating as geting relagated.
@@HeroYMR you're correct, and i agree that it would benefit us
@@HeroYMR Promotion abs relegation would be utterly disastrous in such a new league with a smattering of franchises only a few years old
@@HeroYMR People who advocate Pro/Rel don't consider how closed leagues work with franchises. You have to pay into the league to get a franchise and you are subject to a salary cap for players and a end of season draft for parity. Since the clubs are a franchise of the league they aren't as individually run as European soccer clubs who are able to take them and compete in pan national competitions. Which is not the case for closed league teams as they are only competing for the franchise championship. There's nothing inherently wrong with either system but trying to switch to pro rel would tank a lot of teams into financial oblivion, leaving small markets in the US without professional teams.
A word here: "A somewhat interesting fact about the American sports landscape back in and around the '20s is that NFL football wasn't popular at all."
NFL football did slowly, steadily grow in popularity through the mid-late 1930s and after World War II but for years still wasn't anywhere near as popular as college football which was far more extensively established, and it wasn't until the 1960s when professional American football was finally being grudgingly considered equal to the college game in athletic proficiency. Network television picking up on the NFL and the rise of the AFL in that crucial period tipped the balance. But who knows what would have happened if the American Soccer League had managed to survive the Great Depression and grow following World War II. You might never have heard of the NFL today or it would be about on the same level as the NHL instead of the bloated marquee sports-entertainment it is today. The whole American sports landscape would be quite different as basketball might never have become so popular either in an environment dominated by baseball, college gridiron football and soccer/football.
Thanks for the excellent videos about the USA lately
Thank you for this! Not much is talked about the first national American football league
Great video as usual Alfie! You always choose really interesting topics
You should have mentioned Dennis Tueart. A star for Man City and an England international, he signed for the Cosmos when he was only 28. They signed him to replace Pele, that’s how good he was
Love videos like this! Would love to see a similar one on the League of Ireland and its state (or even Irish football as a whole with the FAI). You dont talk enough about the #GreatestLeagueintheWorld
The origins of the all Ireland league and the split would make an interesting video. Cliftonville are the oldest club on the island of Ireland who of course play in the North, that's in the Irish Premiership rather than the Irish Premier League which is in the South (nothing confusing about that then!)
The (original - pre-parition) Irish FA still is the governing body up north, rather than the FA of Ireland which governs the game in the republic.
Now of course there have been rumblings about the formation of an All-Island League being debated, and supported by a lot of the bigger clubs in the North, despite there being less places for the IFA affiliated teams.
Football on the island of Ireland would be an interesting video in the making!
Love the American theme videos and the documentary style videos so a combo is great
Quality video Alfie, thoroughly enjoyed that one
Jesus that video about the age of players in America was 3 years ago? Keep it up Alfie. Long time subscriber
Remember, it was the NORTH American Soccer League. There were many Canadian teams in the league, and they won a couple of Soccer Bowls.
Great report man. Thank you
Make a video on the Australian league I’m from the US but their league seems to me to be more similar to MLS than soccer in the rest of the world. From team names to them I believe also having a salary cap and DPs
they are in a similar situation to the US, so it makes sense. Cities spread apart on a continent, competition from native sportslike AFL and other sports like tennis, cricket and rugby. They also have a collective bargaining agreement as well as a team from outside the country competing (Wellington from NZ). There is also no relegation and promotion and the Aussie tradition of the wooden spoon is practiced instead (like a boobie award).
The only real difference is that the A League doesn't have a major college network to recruit young talent, who usually sign on as teenagers and train within a club's youth system like in the UK.
@@SantomPh Is the A-League more city influenced like the AFL(where a.hige chunk of clubs are around Melbourne) and NRL(where a huge chunk of clubs are around Sydney).
A-League is at least 10-20 years ahead of MLS in quality and player development. Imagine if Australia had the US's population - they'd win multiple WC's and be on par w/ France.
@@SantomPh Australia has a more developed soccer culture than the US. Also there is no pro/rel btwn A-League and lower divs. but there are plans for it. Unlike the US, AUS has a real pyramid below the A-League w/ traditional pro/rel.
@@LeeGeorge08 A-league is 10 years behind MLS. the next phase of the A-league is to have their own stadiums.
All time Premier League 11 vs All time La Liga 11
And same could be done for other Leagues
SeriesA, League1 and Bundisliga
Also Considering players who played in English top flight before the creation of premier league in 1992, here is my all pl vs la liga XI-
ENGLISH league-
Gordon Banks
G.Neville Bobby Moore John Charles Ashley Cole
Roy Keane
Bobby charlton Tom finny
Stanley Matthews George Best
Henry
This as far as I know.
La liga is better.
End of story.
Ligue 1*
All time PL (1992-) XI looks something like
Cech
G. Neville
Terry
Vidic
A. Cole
Vieira
Keane
Henry
Lampard
Bergkamp
Shearer
All time La Liga XI looks like
Casillas
Alves
Ramos
Koeman or Puyol
Roberto Carlos
Hierro
Xavi
Iniesta
Di Stefano
Messi
Ronaldo
Thanks for the video!! When I used to live in New Jersey, I would hear from everyone about when Pele played for the NY Cosmos at Giants Stadium and they was so happy to see him! I started to watch football when the MLS started in 96 and became a fan of the Metrostars/Red Bulls.
MLS is a failure compared to old NASL and Cosmos. MLS isn't good enough to clean Pele's ass.
George Lee I agree!
I loved the 35 yard (I think) penalties, a lot of people don't realize how difficult and intense that is. Now its more about how well the attacker can put away a penalty with a keeper given ample amount of prep time.
Thank you Alfie you are the best 😊💐💖
Recommended video.
The Best Team in the English leagues made up of former players that are now managers.
For example. Lampard and Oli
I love your USA videos! Keep them coming! :D
Those old hockey style penalties are so cool to watch. They also used them in the early years if he MLS. They were the perfect example of Americanizing the sport to become more enticing to the American public without being too sacrilegious and making a novelty out of the sport
It's actually quite sacrilegious for anyone that likes football.
@@diezgp Not really. Plenty of us futbol fans have hated penalties forever and it is honestly a travesty that 2 world cups have gotten decided by them. Any attempt at improving them is welcome in my book.
@@clemenx The MLS penalties are cool, but most football fans are quite traditional. There's a reason this sport doesn't change its rules too much in ~150 years. Even if it goes against the entertainment and fun.
You'll see many more classic penalty shootouts in your lifetime.
Besides that, everybody liked what happened in the last final of the world cup. It was quite exciting what Dibu Martínez did.
Thanks for the video, from an old Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977-1983) supporter.
I've got a suggestion for another football loving nation documentary "Indonesia", it's got a very weird history from world cup, unrealistic bids, corruption, two football associations, the galatama (model for the first j league), some stars there (kempes and Roger Milla), voodoo magic, clubs being runned to the ground, hooliganism, and many more
In Malaysia we tend to stereotype Indonesian football fans as hooligans. Tak apa lah. Kita masih suka bola kan?
Very well done, thank you for your efforts!
I have been subscribed for more than 3 years🤘
This video was absolutely fantastic, I love all of your American videos because it’s a league I definitely want to get into but I really know very little about it. I like Orlando because of kaka and the purple shirt but other than that I’ve never really looked into the whole set up of it. I’m Irish and would love to watch some videos about the history of Irish soccer, Bobby charlton played for waterford united, Sam allardyce started his managerial career in Limerick etc could be very interesting
Unique is the best way to describe it
A documentary about Giogio Chinaglia would be very interesting given his journey from Italy to USA then his post playing legal issues and premature death.
I like and appreciate the video, it's not often I pop up on something focused on the NASL. However, there are actually quite a few issues I've found and have with the video. I research sports history for fun and ironically was going through the history of the NPSL, USA, and NASL yesterday to make banner graphics for the league's champions. Here are the issues in the order they appear in the video. Again very well done but the mistakes are quite a few and I wanna make sure everyone knows the correct history of the NASL and US/Canadian soccer.
1) The NPSL was the one who had the TV contract with CBS for 1967 and 68 not the USA. In fact the USA was scheduled to launch in 1968 but FIFA and the USSFA (now US Soccer/USSF) announced sanctioning for the USA and imported teams to compete with the NPSL for 1967. (there is actually a deeper story on this as there was three groups looking to form leagues but that is an entirely different rabbit hole).
2) The complete disregard of the NPSL's 1967 season is a bit weird considering they had the TV deal and were not made up of imported teams. A mention of why the ratings were terrible would have been nice to add to the story.
3) Only the first part of the 1969 NASL season was made up of imported teams. After the "International Cup" each of the imported teams played against the club side they represented. Following this the NASL held it's "official" season for 1969 consisting of 16 matches per club in which the Kansas City Spurs also won.
4) Mentioning that two clubs were pulled from the ASL for 1970 but not mentioning it was the second version of the league could confuse people as you did say (correctly) when and why the original ASL collapsed.
5) The NASL broadcasting rights were purchased by CBS not ABC in what was to have been a three year contract. Only the first year actually happened and the NASL moved to TVS for 1977-78, before ABC purchased the TV rights for 1979. ABC then held TV rights from 1979-81. ESPN began airing the NASL in 1981 and ESPN and USA Network would hold the rights for the leagues final three seasons.
6) NASL Soccer Bowl '78 is not the highest attendance for a club match in US history. That goes to the first leg of the 1977 NASL Eastern Division Championship Series between the Cosmos and Strikers. That match drew 77,691 fans to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. However it would be correct to say that no match in MLS history has surpassed that Soccer Bowl '78 crowd.
7) It was not 70% of revenue going to player salaries but rather 70% of the overall budget. The one word makes a huge difference as just the player salaries themselves outpaces the revenue each team was generating, making the entire league a money pit and unsustainable. Had it been 70% of revenue the league (while unlikely) could have been sustainable. The one word difference is the difference in millions of dollars.
8) The MISL never "poached" any NASL teams. Rather the NASL had been having intermittent indoor seasons since 1971. The creation of the MISL did push the NASL to having full indoor seasons but the NASL did not have a full blown indoor season for 1982/83. This was in contrast to 1979/80-1981/82 where they played full indoor seasons. Three NASL teams (Chicago, Golden Bay, and San Diego) temporarily moved their indoor sides to the MISL for the 1982/83 season. All three teams would play both the 1983 and 1984 NASL seasons as well as the 1983/84 NASL Indoor season.
9) Of the final nine teams in the NASL four of them would once again play in the MISL for 84/85 due to the lack of an NASL Indoor Season. This move became permanent when the league shut down due to only Minnesota and Toronto wanting to continue the NASL. Tulsa would play 11 matches as an independent in 1985, Golden Bay would survive through 1988 and Tampa Bay would survive all the way until 1993.
Great vid. I was surprised the astroturf surface wasn't mentioned.
Much love from the US! Americans love actual football as well
We want real soccer/football but everyone hates MLS. That garbage league GOTTA GO! Way past time.
Most Americans are fine with the mls
You should do a video on the Philadelphia Union! It is a great case study in showing what happens when you don't have a plan (the first couple years) and when you do have a plan and stick to a system and make savvy moneyball signings mixed with youth development (now). They have a fantastic academy you can touch on as a part of their slow build success
Proud to say that the owner of Kaizer Chiefs FC, Kaizer Motaung, played with Pele at Atlanta. He was also a magician with his feet.
Honestly, I have to credit the NASL for my interest in the sport at a young age, as well as going on to play for many years. It was quite big still in the United States in the early 80's when I was just starting out on my first youth team at 6 years old. In fact, many of our youth league team names were names from the NASL, like Cosmos, Rowdies, Strikers, Aztecs, etc.
Interesting fact, Phil Woosnam who started up NASL was related to the Welsh golfing legend Ian Woosnam.
I love these videos, although I think you should sprinkle some more classic videos in. An idea, Top 7 managers who have played professionally in the past 7 years(or something like that) thank!
During apartheid South Africa when most European leagues banned South African football players most of the best players went to America...I can name Ace Ntsoelengoe ( inducted in American Sports Hall of Fame), Vusi 'Computer' Lamola and Jomo Sono to name a few
*Ace Ntsoelengoe was probably one of the best players in the world in the 1970s to early 80s( not exaggerating look him up), too bad Europe never got to see his greatness
Also, many of the NASL stadiums had 1970s-era artificial turf, which was probably an adjustment for players used to regular grass pitches.
i like that comment"THE NASL WAS A GLORIOUS FAILURE"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1,,,,BRILLIANT research by HITC Sevens!!!!!!!!!!!
Day 2 of asking for the best footballer for each of the top 50 most common first names
Greetings! From the founder of the founder of the (Amateur) modern version of the Boston Rovers!
Hey Alfie, I just thought of a cracking idea for a video you could do on the turbulent recent history of Goztepe in the Super Lig. They’re one of the Super Lig’s most well supported clubs (a bit like a Newcastle United, Sunderland or Strasbourg if you may). In the 2001/02 season, they finished seventh in the top flight, however from 2002 to 2008, they were relegated five times in six seasons, due to their inability to reduce their outstanding debt which resulted in the football club being banned from signing new players during that time. In August of 2007, a business based in Istanbul, vowed to take them back to the top flight making them one of the top five clubs in the country, but they were met with lots of suspicions from the fan base, and then they handed over the ownership to another bloke called Mehmet Sepil in 2014. Anyway, they’re back in the Super Lig as a solid mid table/weaker top half team. Why am I bringing all this up? Because apparently Abramovich is looking to possibly buy the club himself, after being sanctioned from the UK. It’s a crazy crazy story and may you could look into this, not to mention, they are not only a rare example of a club that is considered a neighbourhood club, as well as the fact that they’ve played in 3 different stadiums since 2011, but also in 1969, they became the first Turkish football team to play a semi-final of a European competition.
That Cosmos team was really something special. It was a mix of all-time great players and a bunch of aging tier 3 or 4 local players who would had never sniffed being on the same pitch as Pele or Franz Beckenbauer let alone playing on the same team with them.
It was fun while it lasted.
one could only imagine what the football landscape in the united states would look like today if the afl had somehow survived through the great depression… teams with nearly a hundred years of history and the sport probably would be the most popular in the country
For the unitial fact of the league being the second most popular, the NFL did not exist in the Early 1900’s until the 1920s, college football was a thing but nothing impressive. The 35-yardline hand-to-hand penalties were sick, and nowadays would be more nailbiting, the clock, the players, man that would be awesome if it returned sometime
I've always thought the five second shoot out was a great idea and I'm not sure I know to many people that don't. Like you say, it a much better test of skill and ability and a much better spectacle for fans.
As a kid growing up in the 1970s in South Florida we were blessed in having a dominant American football team (the Dolphins appeared in 3 straight Super Bowls and going one season undefeated), and having the Miami Gatos (which became the Fort Lauderdale Strikers) of the NASL. Tickets for Dolphins games were mostly unobtainable and ridiculously expensive, while Gatos/Strikers games were affordable and plentiful. I saw at least a dozen games between them and the Cosmos, and arch rivals the Tampa Bay Rowdies, which always seemed to be in the way of the Strikers achieving greatness. There was one heartbreaking season I vividly remember when the Strikers had the best record in the league, only to lose to the Rowdies in the playoffs. Unfortunately, the league ultimately met the same demise as the upstart WFL and USFL (American football leagues) in that they over paid for talent hoping to capture the imagination of the public, but went bankrupt in the process.
But could Stoke City do it on a cold rainy night in Cleveland? That's what I want to know.
The only "positive" of the NASL was that Canada, who had some teams there (Vancouver, who won the Soccer Bowl, Montreal or Toronto) had a decent number of good players and they qualified for the World Cup in 1986. The likes of Lenarduzzi, Tino Lettieri or Bruce Wilson were playing at the tail end of the league and helped the Canucks to enter the World Cup ahead of other super-powers such as Honduras.
Another positive is that if it wasn’t for the NASL the mls probably would’ve failed
Please do the Team America video, that sounds fascinating, and something that everyone must've done on fifa when they were younger!
Love your document Alfie, also when you succeed 1 mil subs and won't mind about views anymore, can you do a document about Football Fever in Vietnam during 2018 U-23 Asian Cup, the most exciting crowd you might ever seen, even World Cup couldn't beat it :))
Really enjoyed this video, sucks all those clubs disappeared which is something that probably plays a role in why soccer isn't as popular as other sports; fans have no real connection (yet) with their teams, because their clubs are so young and they have no real history.
The American soccer league in the 20s if it continued would've been one of the top leagues in the world today. We had great players in that league, Europeans do not give America any credit for the sport. They think we are just now getting into it when we had interest in it since the 1920s. And even then we called it football and the league was more popular then the NFL only behind MLB, just insane to think what could've been. Now we do have a solid more organized league in the MLS. But we will be low tier quality wise until the higher ups of MLS allow clubs to spend more on better talent and keep the young talented players. We are clearly improving on quality every year. And it is no longer easy to become a star player, but it won't be for years until we are up there with the European leagues if we don't allow spending. We have the infrastructure and quality of life that can get good players to come here, but limited spending is the biggest obstacle I see right now.
Being a league in CONCACAF will be the thing to hold MLS back in the end. No league outside of UEFA and CONMEBOL (before they fell from grace) has reached elite status or even top 10. Regardless of the salary cap, MLS may only reach the heights and quality of Liga MX because MLS has nothing to offer top young talent while in CONCACAF. MLS can have the highest attendance in the world or even the richest, but they won't have the prestige that comes with being in an elite FIFA Confederation that to make them widely respected. The prestige is what increases a player's value when performing well and Europe is also paying players hundreds of millions to billions of Euros (which is worth more than the American dollar).
@@jayh3283 I disagree, it is very possible to become a top league. And I think the MLS will be better then Liga MX in the future. Their players are already choosing the MLS over Liga MX. Yeah Europe has the "Prestige" but so is the Libertadores even tho the clubs are not to the level it was when say Pele was playing. It's all about if the continent and the leagues want to become better and make their own way. As long as the fans of that continent grow to care, the rest of the world will have to follow suit.
Good stuff as usual
The shootouts! I once saw a friendly between juventus and idontrememberwho that finished in draw and was resolved via shootout, I remember Salas embarrassing himself.
Good summary. It would be interesting to find out the impact of fields (size, type - grass/turf, location and distance spread, weather). Also rhe impact if city ethnicity on determining crowd size and loyalty.
ethnicity only really matters in the US, to be honest.
When MLS started in 96 they had dribbling shootouts over penalties.
It was nuts as you had to score by 5 seconds. So ball had to cross goal line. Not even be in the air travelling towards the goal
That's why it failed I think. Too much controversy over timing. Maybe VAR would save it now, but it was just ridiculous to have a ball cross the line in 6 seconds and have it called back. I did like the premise though. I am happier with ties now honestly because I grew sick of the cluster that OT was. I'd rather go home with a point than wait another hour in the rain on a Thursday night over a largely meaningless game to be decided by a bad ref call.
At the time FIFA was exploring rule changes, they saw MLS would be a guinea pig to try out these ideas
Dont mind me just gonna wait here until the Team America Soccer video comes out
To tell how far pro soccer has come, the final game of the 1971 NASL championship between Atlanta Chiefs and Dallas Tornado was played in Atlanta. The Tornado were in their locker room at Atlanta Fulton County Stadium just before game time, when the phone in the locker room rang. Head Coach Ron Newman (who has previously played for the Chiefs) answered it, and the voice on the other end ask "Hey, what time does the game start?" Newman answered, "What time can you get here? We'll wait!" This was actually confirmed a few years ago, by a Tornado player from that year, who posts on a soccer bulletin board. The next time an Atlanta team played for the pro championship, Atlanta United set what was then the MLS all-time attendance record, fifty years after the Chiefs won the first NASL championship (1968-2018).
Brilliant 👏🏼
Great video!
The NASL had a team in Hawaii in 1977. I loved there at the time and went to all the matches except four. I played violin in a school orchestra and I had to perform those nights. I recall one night it was raining and the number of supporters was barely over 1,000 in a 56,000+ stadium. I got drenched and I was the only person sitting in my section. Towards the end of the season I got to know many of the players on a first name basis. Unfortunately my memory isn’t that great and the only name I can remember is Peter Fox a goal keeper who was on loan from Stoke. For that reason I follow Stoke and I watch their matches whenever I get the opportunity to.
I actually would love to see a video on the most recent incarnation of the NASL since my team the San Antonio Scorpions was one of few teams carrying that league financially before being bought and discontinued by Spurs sports and entertainment in favor of the modern USL San Antonio FC which coincidentally have had Notable Scorpion alumni join the franchise and have most recently hired their scorpions former championship winning Coach Allen Marcia
if it wasnt for Pele, i would never have loved the game
Great video
loving the USA football videos
Keep coming out with USA stuff I’m a American and love it. (RedBulls fan if u wanna hook me up lol)
Do you admit that you're club is actually in New Jersey and not in New York?
@@3dsaulgoodman43 Also RBNY isn't a club, it's a McFranchise of soulless corporate MLS fake league.
Way late on this, but the issue with all these efforts to increase scoring and eliminate ties was completely wasted. The die hard American sports fans (many of which who were very anti-soccer at the time) couldn’t care less if the games ended 0-0 or 5-4. I went to a Cosmos game in the early 80s with a neighbor (who had some interest in soccer) and his very traditional sports American dad. I remember the Cosmos won the game 5-3 and the Dad said he was bored out of his mind after the game. On the way home he had on the radio the Yankees baseball game which ended 2-1 or something and he made a comment like “now that’s a great sport”. There was nothing any soccer league could do to win these guys over.
The 35 yard line was also terrible. It literally eliminated all midfield play and games were like basketball - get the ball to the attacking third, finish the play and the other team comes down the field to their attacking third. All intricate tactics, movement, etc were eliminated, again to try and win over people that couldn’t care less. I went to see Cosmos play Anderlecht in the early 80s with some friends whose only exposure to soccer was typical NASL games. Because it was a game against a Euro club, no 35 yard line. My friends were amazed at the speed of play, the intricate passing through MF and Anderlecht’s very aggressive and coordinated off side trap. They couldn’t believe this was the same sport as they were used to seeing in NASL. The Cosmos played them toe to toe and the game finished like 2-1 or something. Had NASL allowed soccer to move forward like this, I bet more people would have become fans, as they have being exposed to EPL, ECL, World Cup, etc the last 10-15 years. Soccer is the “beautiful game” and NASL lacked the confident and vision to believe that Americans would appreciate the sport as it’s played all over the world.
US Soccer is still a mess, and the soccer wars are as relevant as ever.
I'm working on starting a grassroots club (Delaware Rising FC) in my local city to help players in my area.
Nice to see you're trying to make soccer a better sport in the US. Hope you succeed in the state of Joe Biden. If I'm not wrong, was Delaware was the first every US state.
@@3dsaulgoodman43 Thanks, I appreciate the wishes. I probably should've referenced that Delaware is also a small city in Ohio. Cool fact nonetheless!
To sound like an arrogant foreigner, my tip would be to avoid the corny baseball-esque club names...
Fun fact in a corner kick the ref will tell the player to hold on for a good couple of minutes for CBS to play commercials. Awkward if you’re in attendance and not know what’s happening
Regarding the issue of the age of the players, at the end of Warner's period with the Cosmos they began to take even young promises there. Romerito played for Cosmos before going to Fluminese and becoming Brazilian champion, before going to Barcelona too.
make a video on the problems in indian football. i can link you to local journalists here
No one is intrested in our Country dude
Watch IPL
@@sanjaybaniya6449 bruh 😂
@@sanjaybaniya6449 🤣🤣🤣
Do a MLS documentary
Everyone who sees this, have an amazing day, and I hope you are well.
I love the Simpsons episode where they go to a soccer game...
“And ties, ties, ties!”
“He holds it! Holds it! HOLDS IT!”
“Open wide for some SOCCAAAAH!”
That episode came out about 15 years after the high point of the NASL so it’s quite possible that the writers were influenced by it.
If I remember correctly there’s a pretty savage jab at Pelé and his fondness for a bag of cash.
The whole soccer match is the set-up for what is my favourite ever Simpsons episode, the name of the gun shop where Homer goes to buy his handgun is in my view the funniest ever Simpsons sight-gag.
@@GorgeDawes the fact that Willie turns round and shouts "we'll show them a real soccer riot" shows that they may know about a certain incident that took place in the 1980 scottish cup final
7 best footballers playing in premier league 2 division 1 and 2 (ones you haven't made a premier league appearance ) e.g shanbia wolves,
Video on footballers that almost transferred to a big team seven years ago and where they end up today
The underrated story of Seattle Sounds. They are the best franchise in mls but you only hear the big names.
People say that MLS rivalries are just a few years old, without knowing that the Timbers-Sounders rivalry stems from the NASL.
First off they’re called the sounders not the sounds second what do you mean best team? All time they’re not but if you’re talking about the last 5ish years they’ve been the best.
Yeah they are really not seen as the "best" atleast not yet. Really trophy wise that goes to DC United or LA Galaxy. But the Sounders the last 5 years have really made their way. Including the Timbers, Toronto, ATL UTD, and LA FC, and the Union.
Nice video mannn.....Rise of the USL mabye?
The United Soccer Association final was also contested by Aberdeen vs Wolves.