American Conference (NASL)

Last updated
American Conference
League North American Soccer League
Sport Soccer
First season1978
Ceased1980
DivisionsEast
Central
West
No. of teams12
Most titles Tampa Bay Rowdies (2 titles)

The American Soccer Conference was one of two conferences of the original North American Soccer League between 1978 and 1980. It along with the National Conference were formed for the 1978 season as part of a realignment to accommodate an expanding league, and bolster more competitive play which had been lacking under the previous Atlantic and Pacific conferences. It is speculated, that the league decided to realign the league to be more similar to the National Football League (American football) format, with one league official stating that the league hoped that new expansions and initiatives would cause "enough demand for soccer that they [could] sell the TV rights to two networks like the NFL did." [1] During the three seasons using the American/National alignment, American Conference teams struggled to compete against their National Conference counterparts, with the American Conference champion failing to win the Soccer Bowl in every season.

Contents

Teams

Following the realignment, the conference was initially made up of five teams from the Atlantic Conference, two teams from the Pacific Conference, and five teams making their NASL debut. After playing just one season, the Oakland Stompers were sold and relocated to Edmonton.

TeamDivisionFirst season [lower-alpha 1] Last season [lower-alpha 1] Previous conference (division)
Fort Lauderdale Strikers East19781980Atlantic (East)
New England Tea Men East197819801978 debut
Philadelphia Fury East197819801978 debut
Tampa Bay Rowdies East19781980Atlantic (East)
Chicago Sting Central19781980Atlantic (North)
Detroit Express Central197819801978 debut
Houston Hurricane Central197819801978 debut
Memphis Rogues Central197819801978 debut
California Surf West19781980Atlantic (North) [lower-alpha 2]
Oakland Stompers West19781978Atlantic (North) [lower-alpha 3]
San Diego Sockers West19781980Pacific (South) [lower-alpha 4]
San Jose Earthquakes West19781980Pacific (West)
Edmonton Drillers West19791980American (West) [lower-alpha 5]
  1. 1 2 Season played in the American Conference. Teams may have played before and/or after the conference existed.
  2. Relocated from St. Louis.
  3. Relocated from Connecticut.
  4. Relocated from Las Vegas.
  5. Relocated from Oakland.

Conference honors

American Conference championships

BoldWon NASL Championship
SeasonChampionsSeriesRunners-up
1978 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–1 [n 1] Fort Lauderdale Strikers
1979 Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–1 [n 1] San Diego Sockers
1980 Fort Lauderdale Strikers 2–1 [n 1] San Diego Sockers
  1. 1 2 3 Series tied 1–1, mini-game used as tiebreaker

Regular season titles

BoldNASL Premiers
YearTeamDivisionPoints (W–L)Playoffs result
1978 Detroit Express Central176 (20–10)Conference Semifinals
Tampa Bay Rowdies East165 (18–12)Lost Soccer Bowl
San Diego Sockers West164 (18–12)Conference Semifinals
1979 Houston Hurricane Central187 (22–8)First Round
Tampa Bay Rowdies East169 (19–11)Lost Soccer Bowl
San Diego Sockers West140 (15–15)Lost Conference Final
1980 Chicago Sting Central187 (21–11)First Round
Tampa Bay Rowdies East168 (19–13)Conference Semifinals
Edmonton Drillers West149 (17–15)Conference Semifinals

See also

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References

  1. John Feinstein (March 19, 1978). "An Expanded but Pele-Less NASL Kicks Off Season April 1". The Washington Post . Retrieved September 28, 2023.