Soccer in the United States is run by multiple organizations. The United States Soccer Federation (USSF) governs most levels of soccer in the country, including the national teams, professional leagues, and amateur leagues, being the highest soccer authority in the country. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) governs most colleges; secondary schools are governed by state-level associations, with the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) setting the rules at that level. The match regulations are generally the same between the three governing bodies although there are many subtle differences.
The Argentine Football Association is the governing body of football in Argentina based in Buenos Aires. It organises the main divisions of Argentine league system, including domestic cups: Copa Argentina, Supercopa Argentina, Copa de la Liga Profesional, Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional and the Supercopa Internacional. The body also manages all the Argentina national teams, including the Senior, U-20, U-17, U-15, Olympic and women's squads. Secondly, it also organizes the women's, children, youth, futsal, and other local leagues.
The Canadian Soccer Association is the governing body for soccer in Canada. Headquartered in Ottawa, the federation is a full member of FIFA and governs Canadian soccer at the international, professional, and amateur levels, including: the men's and women's national teams, Canadian Premier League, youth organizations, beach soccer, futsal, Paralympic and deaf national teams. The Canadian Soccer Association also administers and operates the Canadian Championship.
The American Football Association (AFA) was the first attempt in the United States to form an organizing soccer body. It was the second oldest sports league to form, behind the National League of baseball in 1876, as well as being the oldest soccer league in the United States. The Association was formed in 1884 in an attempt to standardize rules and procedures. It was allied with The Football Association, becoming a member on February 22, 1909, at an FA meeting chaired by Charles Clegg, and drew on that organization's approach to the game. As part of its efforts, the AFA directly organized both league and cup competitions as well as overseeing the operations of member leagues. In 1884, it established the American Cup, which for several decades was the highest competitive soccer competition in the United States. The weakness of the AFA lay in its refusal to expand outside the southern New England region. When a movement began to create a national governing body in 1911, the AFA found itself confronting the newly established American Amateur Football Association (AAFA), a body which quickly became national. The AFA argued that it should be recognized by FIFA. However, several member organizations defected from the AFA to the AAFA in 1912. The AAFA quickly moved to reform itself as the United States Football Association, receiving FIFA recognition in 1913. The AFA continued to run the American Cup until 1925, but by that time it had been superseded by the National Challenge Cup and National Amateur Cup.
The history of association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, stretches back at least to the medieval times. Some predecessors of football may date back to ancient Greece and Rome, and similar games were played in ancient China and Japan. The history of football in Britain dates at least to the eighth century CE.
The United States had recently entered World War I, and the soccer world felt the effects as increasing numbers of players joined the armed forces to wage battle in Europe. Soccer was not as hard-hit as some other sports, but all leagues felt the impact; in fact the Čechie team of Chicago lost every member of its roster to enlistment. The United States Soccer Football Association issued a call to its member associations for teams to resist the temptation to strengthen their teams at the expense of others — when wealthy, but decimated teams eye the poorer but complete teams, their wallets and checkbooks should remain pocketed in the name of fair play. A welcome consequence of the war situation was a willingness of the USFA's own warring factions to end their dispute and work together in relative harmony during those trying times. Many soccer organizations launched fund raising campaigns and benefit matches to raise money to provide support for US soldiers through, among other means, the provision of soccer equipment and gear to enhance their recreational opportunities. One such project was the Soccer Football Chain Letter Fund launched by Thomas Cahill and the USFA.
Archibald McPherson Stark was a U.S. soccer player who became the dominant player in U.S. leagues during the 1920s and early 1930s. He spent nine seasons in the National Association Football League and another twelve in the American Soccer League. He also earned two caps, scoring five goals, as a member of the U.S. national team. He holds the U.S. single-season scoring record with 67 goals scored during the 1924–25 season which is the current World Record. He was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1950.
Charles Henry Ellis (1890-1954) was an American soccer player who is best known for scoring a goal in each of the U.S. national team's first two games.
Thomas W. Cahill was one of the founding fathers of soccer in the United States, and is considered the most important administrator in U.S. Soccer before World War II. Cahill formed the United States Football Association in 1913, which later became the United States Soccer Federation. In 1916 he became the first coach of the United States men's national soccer team. Cahill was enshrined in the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1950.
The Eastern Professional Soccer League, better known as the Eastern Soccer League (ESL), was an American soccer league which existed for only a season and a half in 1928 and 1929. Born of the internecine strife between soccer organizations in the United States known as the “Soccer War”, the ESL was created by the United States Football Association (USFA) as a counter to the professional American Soccer League which was contesting USFA control of professional soccer in the country.
The American Amateur Football Association Cup was an American soccer competition open to amateur teams affiliated with the American Amateur Football Association (AAFA). It played only two years, 1912 and 1913 before being superseded by the National Challenge Cup, now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Hollywood Inn F.C. was a U.S. soccer team which played in Yonkers, New York during the early twentieth century. While an amateur team for much of its existence, it played a single season in the professional National Association Football League. In 1913, it went to the final of the American Amateur Football Association Cup where it lost to Yonkers F.C.
The 1924–25 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
The 1922 American Cup tournament was not held. In accordance with new rules passed by the USFA, the American Football Association did not conduct a tournament for the 1921-22 season. The hiatus was brief, though, with the tournament resuming the following season.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is an American soccer competition open to all United States Soccer Federation affiliated teams, from amateur adult club teams to the professional clubs of Major League Soccer. The following is the history of the U.S. Open Cup tournament.
The history of soccer in the United States has numerous different roots. Recent research has shown that the modern game entered America in the 1850s through New Orleans when Scottish, Irish, German and Italian immigrants brought the game with them. It was in New Orleans that some of the first organized games that used modern English rules were held.
The American Soccer League, established in 1921, was the first of four different professional soccer sports leagues in the United States to use the ASL name. It was formed by the merger of teams from the National Association Football League and the Southern New England Soccer League. For several years the ASL's popularity rivaled the popularity of the National Football League. Disputes with the United States Football Association and FIFA, as well as the onset of the Great Depression, led to the league's collapse in spring 1933.
The Stirling & District Amateur Football Association (SDAFA) is a football (soccer) league competition, primarily for amateur clubs in the Stirlingshire area of Scotland. It was formed in 1947. The association is affiliated to the Scottish Amateur Football Association.
The 1913 AAFA Cup featured twenty-four teams from New York and New Jersey. The 'Wasps' of Yonkers defeated the 'Black and White Brigade' of Hollywood Inn 3-0 to win the tournament. This was the second and final edition as the AAFA Cup. The association became the USFA and awarded the Dewar Trophy to the National Challenge Cup winner beginning in the 1913-14 season.
