The American Cup Champions:
The American Cup was the single-elimination tournament for the championship of the American Football Assocation, first conducted in the season following that organization's founding in 1884. It was eventually superceded by the U.S. Open Cup after the founding of the U.S. Football Association in 1913. Colin Jose, Roger Allaway and David Litterer have been attempting to compile a list of the scores of American Football Association Cup finals, to supplement the list of winners that has appeared in many publications in recent decades. Please contact David Litterer (spectrum@sover.net) if you have any info regarding the finals for 1890, 1891, 1893, 1894, or 1898. 1885 Kearny O.N.T defeated New York, 1-0 1886 Kearny O.N.T defeated Kearny Rangers, 3-1 1887 Kearny O.N.T defeated Kearny Rangers, 3-2 1888 Fall River Rovers defeated Newark Almas, 5-1 1889 Fall River Rovers defeated Newark Caledonian, 4-0 1890 Fall River Olympics defeated Kearny Rovers, 4-3 1891 Fall River East Ends defeated Brooklyn Longfellows, 3-1 1892 Fall River East Ends defeated New York Thistle, 5-2 1893 Pawtucket Free Wanderers defeated New York Thistle, 3-1 1894 Pawtucket Olympics defeated Paterson True Blues, 4-1 1895 Newark Caledonian defeated Pawtucket Free Wanderers 4-0 1896 Paterson True Blues defeated Fall River Olympics, 7-2. 1897 Philadelphia Mainz defeated Paterson True Blues, 5-2, 2-2 1898 Kearny Arlington 4, Paterson True Blues 2 (unconfirmed) 1899-1905 (None) 1906 West Hudson defeated Paterson True Blues, 3-1 1907 Kearny Clark A. A. defeated Kearny Scots, 4-0 1908 West Hudson defeated Paterson True Blues 3-2 1909 Paterson True Blues defeated East Newark Clark AA 2-1 1910 Philadelphia Tacony defeated Kearny Scots, 2-1 1911 Pawtucket Howard & Bullough defeated Philadelphia Hibernian 1-1, 3-1. 1912 West Hudson defeated Paterson Rangers, 1-0 1913 Paterson True Blues defeated Philadelphia Tacony, 2-1 1914 Bethlehem Steel defeated Philadelphia Tacony, 1-0 1915 Kearny Scots defeated Brooklyn Celtic, 1-0 1916 Bethlehem Steel defeated Kearny Scots, 3-0 1917 Bethlehem Steel defeated West Hudson, 7-0 1918 Bethlehem Steel defeated Bayonne Babcock & Wilcox, 1-0 1919 Bethlehem Steel defeated Paterson, 2-0 1920 Brooklyn Robins Dry Dock defeated Bethlehem Steel, 1-0 1921 Brooklyn Robins Dry Dock defeated Quincy (Mass.) Fore River Shipyard, 5-2 1922 Not Held 1923 Philadelphia Fleischer Yarn defeated Pawtucket J&P; Coates, 2-0 1924 Bethlehem Steel defeated Fall River Marksmen, 1-0 1925-1928: Not held 1929 Providence Gold Bugs defeated New York Nationals, 2-2, 4-2.
Note: In 1900 on April 14, the Scottish Americans (Newark) p[layed North Ends at Pawtucket in a game that was to decide “The Association Football Championship”. It is unclear whether this was the American Cup. In 1901, kearny Arlington defeated Newark Scots 3-1 in a game called “The American Cup”, although this was a different competition than the AFA’s American Cup.