American Conference (NASL)

American Conference
League	North American Soccer League
Sport	Soccer
First season	1978
Ceased	1980
Divisions	East; Central; West
No. of teams	12
Most titles	Tampa Bay Rowdies (2 titles)

Last updated December 01, 2025

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.

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.

Team	Division	First season^[a]	Last season^[a]	Previous conference (division)
Fort Lauderdale Strikers	East	1978	1980	Atlantic (East)
New England Tea Men	East	1978	1980	1978 debut
Philadelphia Fury	East	1978	1980	1978 debut
Tampa Bay Rowdies	East	1978	1980	Atlantic (East)
Chicago Sting	Central	1978	1980	Atlantic (North)
Detroit Express	Central	1978	1980	1978 debut
Houston Hurricane	Central	1978	1980	1978 debut
Memphis Rogues	Central	1978	1980	1978 debut
California Surf	West	1978	1980	Atlantic (North)^[b]
Oakland Stompers	West	1978	1978	Atlantic (North)^[c]
San Diego Sockers	West	1978	1980	Pacific (South)^[d]
San Jose Earthquakes	West	1978	1980	Pacific (West)
Edmonton Drillers	West	1979	1980	American (West)^[e]

1 2 Season played in the American Conference. Teams may have played before and/or after the conference existed.
↑ Relocated from St. Louis.
↑ Relocated from Connecticut.
↑ Relocated from Las Vegas.
↑ Relocated from Oakland.

Conference honors

American Conference championships

Bold	Won NASL Championship

Season	Champions	Series	Runners-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 2 3 Series tied 1–1, mini-game used as tiebreaker

Regular season titles

Bold	Most points in NASL

Year	Team	Division	Points (W–L)	Playoffs result
1978	Detroit Express	Central	176 (20–10)	Conference Semifinals
	Tampa Bay Rowdies	East	165 (18–12)	Lost Soccer Bowl
	San Diego Sockers	West	164 (18–12)	Conference Semifinals
1979	Houston Hurricane	Central	187 (22–8)	First Round
	Tampa Bay Rowdies	East	169 (19–11)	Lost Soccer Bowl
	San Diego Sockers	West	140 (15–15)	Lost Conference Final
1980	Chicago Sting	Central	187 (21–11)	First Round
	Tampa Bay Rowdies	East	168 (19–13)	Conference Semifinals
	Edmonton Drillers	West	149 (17–15)	Conference Semifinals

References

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

External links

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[NTL-2] 1 2 Season played in the American Conference. Teams may have played before and/or after the conference existed.

[3] Relocated from St. Louis.

[4] Relocated from Connecticut.

[5] Relocated from Las Vegas.

[6] Relocated from Oakland.

[minigame-7] 1 2 3 Series tied 1–1, mini-game used as tiebreaker

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

[1]

[a]

[b]

[c]

[d]

[e]

[n 1]

v t e North American Soccer League
Broadcasters USSF CSA Portal NASL (2011–2017) First overall draft picks
Seasons	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984
Soccer Bowls	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984
Predecessors	USA 1967 Final NPSL 1967 Final
Indoor seasons	1971 1975 1976 1978 (Skelly) 1978 (Schlitz) 1979 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1983 1983–84
Conferences	1968 East West 1976–1977 Atlantic Pacific 1978–1980 American National
Related	Soccer Bowl broadcasters NASL Indoor Championship
Clubs	Atlanta Apollos Atlanta Chiefs Baltimore Bays Baltimore Comets Boston Beacons Boston Minutemen Boston Shamrock Rovers ¹ Calgary Boomers California Surf Chicago Mustangs Chicago Spurs ² Chicago Sting Cleveland Stokers Caribous of Colorado Connecticut Bicentennials Dallas Tornado Denver Dynamos Detroit Cougars Detroit Express Edmonton Drillers Fort Lauderdale Strikers Golden Bay Earthquakes Hartford Bicentennials Houston Hurricane Houston Stars Jacksonville Tea Men Kansas City Spurs Las Vegas Quicksilvers Los Angeles Aztecs Los Angeles Wolves Memphis Rogues Miami Gatos Miami Toros Minnesota Kicks Minnesota Strikers Montreal Manic Montreal Olympique New England Tea Men New York Cosmos New York Generals New York Skyliners ¹ Oakland Clippers Oakland Stompers Philadelphia Spartans ² Philadelphia Atoms Philadelphia Fury Pittsburgh Phantoms ² Portland Timbers Rochester Lancers San Antonio Thunder San Diego Jaws San Diego Sockers San Diego Toros San Francisco Golden Gate Gales ¹ San Jose Earthquakes Seattle Sounders St. Louis Stars Tampa Bay Rowdies Team America Team Hawaii Toronto Blizzard Toronto City ¹ Toronto Falcons Toronto Metros Toronto Metros-Croatia Tulsa Roughnecks Vancouver Royals Vancouver Whitecaps Washington Darts Washington Diplomats Washington Whips
¹ United Soccer Association team that did not join NASL upon merger with NPSL. ² National Professional Soccer League team that did not join NASL upon merger with USA.