The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the United States. The league final was called the Soccer Bowl from 1975 to 1983 and the Soccer Bowl Series in its final year, 1984. The league was headed by Commissioner Phil Woosnam from 1969 to 1983. The NASL laid the foundations for soccer in the United States that helped lead to the country hosting the 1994 FIFA World Cup and setting up Major League Soccer (MLS) in 1996.
Dale William Mitchell is a Canadian former professional soccer striker who played for several North American teams in the 1980s and 1990s.
Robert Italo Lenarduzzi, OBC is a former North American Soccer League player, Canadian international, and coach of the Canadian national and Olympic soccer teams. He is currently club liaison for Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
The Toronto Blizzard were a professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL).
Colin Fyfe Miller is a Canadian professional soccer coach who captained the Canadian national team several times while earning 61 caps in total.
Bruce Richardson Twamley is a former Canadian international soccer player.
Michael Sweeney is a Canadian former soccer player. In 2012, as part of the Canadian Soccer Association's centennial celebration, he was named to the all-time Canada XI men's team.
Tony Chursky is a former Canadian national soccer team and NASL goalkeeper.
Paul John James is a retired professional soccer player who played as a midfielder. He was a one-time CONCACAF champion who represented Canada at both the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games and 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. He later worked as a soccer analyst and soccer coach. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.
Randolph "Randy" Lee Ragan is a former Canadian elite professional soccer player, who was considered one of the top midfield players in Canada in the 1980s.
Wes McLeod is a retired Canadian soccer player who earned eighteen caps with the Canadian national soccer team.
Gerard "Gerry" Gray is a former soccer player. Born in Scotland, he represented and coached the Canadian national soccer team.
Ian Christopher Bridge is a soccer coach and former professional who played as a defender. A former player for the Canada national team, he has coached the Canada women's national team among other teams.
Robert Iarusci is a former star NASL player and member of the Canadian national soccer team. In 2012 as part of the Canadian Soccer Association's centennial celebration, he was named to the all-time Canada XI men's team.
Clive Roy Toye was inducted to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in the United States in 2003.
The original Vancouver Whitecaps were a professional soccer team founded on December 11, 1973. During the 1970s and 1980s they played in the North American Soccer League (NASL).
The 1979 North American Soccer League season was the 67th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer and the 12th with a national first-division league in the United States and Canada.
Charlie Mitchell is a Scottish American former soccer defender and coach. He played ten seasons in the North American Soccer League from 1970 to 1979.
The history of Vancouver Whitecaps FC, a professional soccer team based in Vancouver, Canada, spans over four decades. The first team to use the "Whitecaps" name was the Vancouver Whitecaps of the now-defunct North American Soccer League, playing from 1974 to 1984. After two years while the core of the players were focused on preparations for the 1986 World Cup, a second version of the club was founded in 1986 as the Vancouver 86ers. This team bought back the Whitecaps name in 2000 and has operated continuously in various leagues since 1986. A Whitecaps FC team began play in Major League Soccer starting in 2011 making it the first time since 1984 that a "Whitecaps" team played in the top tier of soccer in the United States and Canada.
Leslie John "Les" Wilson is a football administrator and former professional player. He played in The Football League for Bristol City, Norwich City, and most notably Wolverhampton Wanderers, one of the first North American-trained players to do so. Following his playing career with the original North American Soccer League's and his hometown Vancouver Whitecaps, Wilson became a Canadian Soccer Association coach and administrator involved in some of the national program's finest ever results. He is an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.
