American Conference (NASL)

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.

American Conference
LeagueNorth American Soccer League
SportSoccer
First season1978
Ceased1980
DivisionsEast
Central
West
No. of teams12
Most titlesTampa Bay Rowdies (2 titles)

Teams

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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. ^ a b 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

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American Conference championships

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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. ^ a b c Series tied 1–1, mini-game used as tiebreaker

Regular season titles

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Bold NASL Premiers
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

See also

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References

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