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The year before the World Cup saw a flurry of action with the World Cup organizing committee, an extremely hectic year for the men’s national team, much turmoil among the professional leagues, the reassembling of the Women’s national team, a first US appearance in the Copa America, and continual growth in women’s collegiate and youth soccer. In short, a typical complex 1990’s style year for the United States soccer scene.
At the National level, the World Cup Organizing Committee was aggressively seeking sponsors and implementing the required renovations for the stadiums that would host the event. The stadiums had been selected the previous year, with the winning cities being Foxboro, MA (Next to Boston), New York City (Giants Stadium), Washington DC, Orlando FL, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit (The first indoor World Cup games on temporary grass), Palo Alto and Pasadena, CA. Unlike previous cups, only modest infrastructure improvements would be made, mostly to widen fields to meet FIFA specifications. The United States Soccer Federation landed a major TV contract with ABC/ESPN in which every game would be televised nationally in the US, a first. Sponsorships were extensive, and ticket sales took off quickly. Although the process was slow to start, it proceeded rapidly, and remarkably smoothly. The world was skeptical that the World Cup could succeed in the USA, a country without a large professional soccer presence, but the USSF was very eager to prove them wrong.
On the domestic front, the Men’s National Team underotook a tough game schedule of full internationals and exhibitions against European clubs to develop their skills and become familiar with coach Bora Milutinovic’s unusual defensive-oriented style. By this time most of the US players were either employed full-time by the USSF or gaining top experience on European clubs, and they were able to focus more intensively on practicing as a group than ever before.
Meanwhile, turbulence reigned at the Professional level. Three professional leagues folded the previous year, the results of long-term overspending in one case, and simple lack of support in the other two. The Major Soccer League ended their expensive indoor war with the NPSL by folding at the end of their 1991-92 season, with the resulting inflow of talent and teams greatly strengthening the NPSL, and bringing the expensive bidding war to an end. Meanwhile, Canada lost their most successful national league to date when the Canadian Soccer League expired. Although fan support was good, the league was always in precarious financial shape. Because of the enormous travel costs engendered by this coast-to-coast league, they were never able to gain a sound financial footing. Finally, the Lone Star Soccer Alliance had folded, the victim of the continued success and growth of the USISL. The indoor situation was shifted somewhat as the Continental Indoor Soccer League was founded, with two former MSL teams at their core, and began play in 1993 as the first summer indoor league, as well as the first to extend into Mexico.
Although the loss of three professional leagues in one season was potentially devastating, it actually helped greatly to clarify the confusing professional league situation in the US, and consolidated the teams into a smaller, financially healthier system, greatly easing the task of selecting a Division 1 league to fulfill one of the World Cup 1994 requirements. Until now, this had been a multi-front war between aggressive, opposing parties who undermined each other at each opportunity. By now, the struggle was between Alan Rothenberg’s investment group, and the American Professional Soccer League. This battle was partially ideological, as the APSL, led by commissioner William de la Pena envisioned growing their existing league up to Division 1 status, utilizing a grassroots structure based on existing semipro and amateur leagues as a development base, and Rothenberg’s Major League Soccer group who saw a highly powered agressive top-down development effort with substantial financial capital as the only way to get a league off the ground with enough clout to be worthy of Division 1 status. A third group, headed by Chicago marketing executive Jim Paglia, envisioned a league tied to a series of new stadiums constructed adjacent to new shopping malls. Ultimately, in December 1993, the USSF decided in favor of the Rothenberg proposal, and Major League Soccer was born. Soon afterwards it received official Division 1 sanctioning by FIFA.
American Professional Soccer League
The APSL became an international league this year. With the demise of the Canadian Soccer League, three of the CSL’s clubs, the Vancouver 86ers, Montreal Rockets and Toronto Blizzard joined the circuit. Also new to the league were the Los Angeles Salsa, who filled the unexpected void left by the departure of the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks, one of the more successful clubs of years past. The APSL now had the distinction of being the top league in both the United States and Canada, gaining USSF Division 2 sanctioning. Initially this helped in their attempt to gain Division 1 status, but FIFA would not allow a division 1 league to cross national boundaries.
The season was an exciting affair. Colorado and the expansion Los Angeles Salsa jumped out to an early lead, but the Vancouver 86ers launched a major run, climbing to the top of the standings on July 4, a position they would hold for the rest of the season. Salsa teammates Paulinho and Paul Wright battled for the scoring title and MVP awards, but Paulinho, the flamboyant Brazilian was the one to come out on top, with 15 goals and 7 assists. In the playoff semifinals, Colorado edged Tampa Bay 1-0 and Los Angeles toppled Vancouver 3-2 in a shootout. A sellout watched a nationally televised championship match between Colorado and Los Angeles. The two teams battled through 67 scoreless minutes before Salsa’s Philip Gyau landed the goal. They looked to be on their way to victory when, with less than three minutes left, Ted Eck tied the match, taking it into overtime where game MVP Talifour Diane and rookie Robert Lipp scored to give Colorado a 3-1 win and the Commissioner’s Cup.
The APSL benefitted from their new TV show, “This Week in Professional Soccer” on Sportschannel, and over 300,000 fans attended regular season games. The other highlight of the season was the Four Nations Cup Tournament, held in Denver’s Mile High Stadum. The Foxes hosted three premier European teams, F. C. Kaiserslautern, of Germany’s Bundesliga, F. C. Copenhagen, from Denmark’s First Division, and Norwich City from England’s Premier League. Colorado performed magnificently, gaining a 3-2 victory over Norwich, and even more importantly, a 1-1 draw with eventual tournament champion Kaiserslautern. Although they eventually lost in a shootout, it was still an impressive effort. In other friendlies, the LA Salsa defeated Pumas, Chivas and Atlante from Mexico, and the South Korean national team, and drew with El Salvador. Giddiness turned to disappointment at the end of the year when the APSL lost their bid for FIFA sanction as the new Division 1 league required by the World Cup 1994 agreement, to Alan Rothenberg’s “Major League Soccer” investment group, but the league had done itself proud, and with an influx of new talent and significant representation on the National team, their fortunes for 1994 as a Division 2 circuit looked good.
Final APSL League Standings, 1993
Before the season, Ft. Lauderdale and Los Angeles were added. Vancouver,
Toronto and Montreal joined the league from the defunct CSL.
Pd W L WN WE WS LN LE LS G+ G- GD Pts
Vancouver 86ers 24 15 9 11 2 2 8 0 1 43 35 +8 126
Colorado Foxes 24 15 9 12 0 3 6 3 0 40 34 +6 121
Tampa Bay Rowdies 24 12 12 10 2 0 10 1 1 53 47 +6 118
Los Angeles Salsa 24 12 12 8 1 3 9 0 3 41 37 +4 109
Toronto Blizzard 24 10 14 8 2 0 11 1 2 35 41 -6 97
Ft Lauderdale Strikers 24 9 15 8 0 1 11 1 3 39 52 -13 94
Montreal Impact 24 11 13 9 0 2 11 1 1 28 33 -5 90
Semi-finals: Los Angeles defeated Vancouver 2-2 (PK)
Colorado defeated Tampa Bay, 1-0
CHAMPIONSHIP: Colorado defeated Los Angeles, 3-1 (OT)
After the season, Tampa Bay folded.
Leading Scorers:
G A Pts
Paulinho, Los Angeles 15 7 37
Paul Wright, Los Angeles 13 7 23
Paul Dougherty, Tampa Bay 8 11 27
Zico Doe, Ft. Lauderdale 12 2 26
Hector Marinaro, Toronto 7 12 26
Taifour Diane, Colorado 10 5 25
Pierre Morice, Tampa Bay 9 7 25
D. Mobilio, Vancouver 10 3 23
Scott Benedetti, Colorado 10 1 21
Fernando Aguiar, Toronto 9 1 19
Ted Eck, Colorado 8 3 19
Carlo Corazzin, Vancouver 7 5 19
Alvin James, Ft. Lauderdale 7 4 18
Steve Trittschuh, Tampa Bay 7 4 18
Jean Harbor, Tampa Bay 5 7 17
Brad Smith, Tampa Bay 6 4 16
Ivor Evans, Vancouver 4 8 16
Dale Mitchell, Vancouver 4 8 16
A. Gasparin, Toronto 6 3 15
G. Needham, Montreal 6 3 15
Eddy Berdusco, Toronto 5 3 13
Goalkeeping Leaders: (Min 900 minutes to qualify)
Min GA Sv SH GAA
Jim St. Andre, Colorado 1212 16 75 4 1.19
P. Harrington, Montreal 2209 33 89 6 1.35
Brett Phillips, Tampa Bay 910 14 35 3 1.39
Ian Feuer, Los Angeles 1604 25 72 4 1.40
Paul Dolan, Vancouver 2216 35 145 4 1.42
Mark Dodd, Colorado 1015 18 47 2 1.60
P. Ceccarelli, Toronto 2114 39 187 4 1.66
Jorge Valenzuela, Ft. Lauderdale 1748 42 96 2 2.16
Bill Andracki, Tampa Bay 1003 26 49 1 2.33
1993 All-APSL Team:
G - Paul Dolan, Vancouver
D - Robin Fraser, Colorado
D - Danny Pena, Los Angeles
D - Mark Watson, Vancouver
D - Patrice Ferri, Montreal
M - Paulinho, Los Angeles
M - Ivor Evans, Vancouver
M - Paul Dougherty, Tampa Bay
M - Ted Eck, Colorado
F - Paul Wright, Los Angeles
F - Taifour Diane, Colorado
Most Valuable Player: Paulinho, Los Angeles
Coach of the Year: Ken Fogarty, Tampa Bay Rowdies
Rookie of the Year: Jason Devos, Montreal
United States Interregional Soccer League
This was the year that the USISL really exploded. With the league now clearly committed to a plan of developing a wide grassroots base for the development of professional soccer, the USISL nearly doubled in size, to 38 teams. They strengthened their position on California, and the southwest, and expanded into the Mid-Atlantic states, and even had a toehold in New England with the Connecticut Wolves. The entire Atlantic Division consisted of new teams, and the Greensboro Dynamo immediately proved themselves a force to be reckoned with, with their 14-2 record.
The playoff system was once again unique. Three of the five division winners were expansion teams (San Jose, East Los Angeles, Greensboro), along with veterans Orlando (defending champs who got a bye to the “Sizzling Six” Championships, and Tulsa. The divisional playoffs resulted in victories for San Jose, Dallas, Atlanta and Greensboro, and also East Los Angeles, although it isn’t clear if their division actually had a divisional or whether the Cobras received a bye (no records are available). From the “Sizzling Six” round-robin, defending champion Orlando and newcomer Greensboro finished on top, leading to the championship game on August 13, won by the Greensboro Dynamo 2-1.
Final USISL Outdoor Standings, 1993
Before the season, Chico, San Francisco Bay, East Los Angeles, Valley, Charleston,
Charlotte,Greensboro, Raleigh, Texas, New Orleans, Montgomery, Connecticut, Baltimore,
Delaware, Montclair, Columbia, Standard, Richmond, Santa Cruz, Coral Springs,
and Birmingham were added. Arkansas changed their name to the A's. Texas
became the Tyler Lightning. Dallas Kickers became the Dallas/Ft. Worth Toros.
San Antonio became the Pumas. Atlanta Magic became the Lasers. Memphis
became the Jackals.
G W L GF GA PTS
Atlantic Division
Greensboro Dynamo 16 14 2 41 14 114
Delaware Wizards 16 10 6 34 22 88
Raleigh Flyers 16 10 6 31 24 84
Richmond Kickers 16 8 8 30 30 78
Charleston Battery 16 8 8 27 23 72
Connecticut Wolves 16 7 9 29 33 68
Baltimore Bays 16 5 11 28 38 59
Charlotte Eagles 16 5 11 26 35 52
Columbia Spirit 16 3 13 12 43 32
Southeast Division
Orlando* Lions 16 14 2 46 10 124
Atlanta Lasers 16 10 6 44 34 93
Coral Springs Kicks 16 10 6 42 43 92
Memphis Jackals 16 9 7 49 30 87
Boca Raton Sabres 16 8 8 37 31 80
Nashville Metros 16 6 10 29 37 60
Chattanooga Express 16 3 13 33 45 52
*Orlando, as 1992 champion, gets a bye to the Championships.
South Central Division
Tulsa Roughnecks 16 12 4 33 18 99
Oklahoma City Slickers 16 11 5 34 32 97
Dallas Americans 16 11 5 34 17 94
San Antonio Pumas 16 8 8 39 35 83
Austin Soccadillos 16 8 8 30 33 69
Dallas-Ft. Worth Toros 16 5 11 22 42 52
Tyler Lightning 16 5 11 22 40 49
Southwest Division
East L.A. Cobras 16 11 5 40 18 101
Montclair Std. Falcons 16 10 6 30 33 89
El Paso Patriots 16 10 6 34 16 87
New Mexico Chilies 16 9 7 25 15 73
Tucson Amigos 16 8 8 23 30 72
Valley Golden Eagles 16 3 13 20 42 37
Arizona Cotton 16 3 13 12 43 29
Pacific Division
San Jose Hawks 16 14 2 42 11 119
Palo Alto Firebirds 16 12 4 50 8 107
SF United All-Blacks 16 13 3 39 17 106
Chico Rooks 16 11 5 47 29 98
North Bay Breakers 16 8 8 37 25 79
Santa Cruz Surf 16 7 9 27 42 66
SF Bay Diablos 16 3 13 20 51 38
East Bay Red Riders 16 2 14 7 52 13
Southern Challenge Cup (Provisional)
N.O. Riverboat Gamblers 9 6 3 20 17 48
Birmingham Grasshoppers 9 5 4 18 9 45
Jacksonville Fury 9 4 5 15 27 35
Montgomery Capitals 9 2 7 13 38 25
Teams in the Northeast and Midwest have points that reflect
the addition of a 1 point corner kick bonus per game.
Play-in Games: Richmond defeated Charleston 2-0
Divisional Semi-finals: San Jose defeated Chico 6-0
SF United defeated Palo Alto 3-2 (OT)
Los Angeles defeated Standard 7-3
Dallas defeated Oklahoma City 4-0
Greensboro defeated Richmond 4-1
Delaware defeated Raleigh 4-2
Atlanta defeated Memphis 3-2
Boca Raton defeated Coral Springs 4-1
Divisional Finals: San Jose defeated SF United 3-0
Los Angeles defeated Valley 0-6, 3-0, 2-0
Dallas defeated Tulsa 4-3(OT), 0-3, 1-0(MG)
Greensboro defeated Delaware 5-0, 2-1
Atlanta defeated Boca Raton 1-0, 3-2
SIZZLING SIX CHAMPIONSHIPS:
1st Round: San Jose defeated East Los Angeles 4-1
Orlando defeated Dallas 3-1
Greensboro defeated Atlanta 9-0
2nd Round: Greensboro defeated East Los Angeles 4-0
Orlando defeated Atlanta 5-1
San Jose defeated Dallas 3-1
FINAL: Greensboro defeated Orlando 2-1
After the season, East Bay folded.
Top Scorers:
GP G Pts
Sheldon Lee, Orlando 16 19 45
Rahman Alarape, Atlanta 16 15 38
Milton Da Cruz, Oklahoma City 16 14 34
John Mulrooney, Memphis 13 13 33
Jeremy Burttner, Palo Alto 10 13 32
Michael Guerrero, San Antonio 16 11 32
Scott Wulferlingen, Chicago 13 13 29
Michael Araujo, Coral Springs 15 9 29
Michael Ribera, San Antonio 14 11 28
Ian Palmer, Tulsa 11 11 24
Efren Rodarte, El Paso 12 11 24
Jerry O'Hara, Palo Alto 15 11 24
Leading Goalkeepers:
GA SO GAA
Vince Da Silva, Palo Alto 7 9 0.49
Yi Mun-Young, San Jose 7 8 0.51
Warren Russ, Orlando 9 8 0.58
Aidan Heaney, Greensboro 12 6 0.82
Kyle Karpta, San Fran All-Blacks11 1 1.00
Lynn Venable, Dallas 17 9 1.07
Josh Budde, Tulsa 17 7 1.10
David Whitecraft, Delaware 18 3 1.33
Cliff Brown, Oklahoma City 22 3 1.37
Manny Sanchez, Chico 16 0 1.39
"Sizzling Six" All-Star Team:
G - Vince DaSilva, Palo Alto
D - Michael Ditta, East Los Angeles
D - David Ulmstein, Greensboro
D - Derek Van Rheenen, San Jose
M - Patrick Krehs, Dallas
M - Eddie Radowski, Greensboro
M - Jason Haupt, Greensboro
F - Sheldon Lee, Orlando
F - David Mackey, Orlando
F - Justin Wall, San Jose
F - Mihael Gailey, Greensboro
Most Valuable Player: Eddie Radwanski, Greensboro Dynamo
Coach of the Year: Mark Dillon, Orlando Lions
The indoor season was a decidedly secondary affair, with only 11 teams competing, with a new indoor-only team, the Knoxville Impact. From this season on, the indoor season was a small event, used mainly to keep some outdoor players in practice and provide playing experience for newcomers. Oklahoma City won the South Central Division easily, as did the Atlanta Magic in the Southeast. Tucson and Arizona fought it out in the Southwest with the Tucson Amigos finally pulling ahead for the crown. In the playoffs, the Arizona Cotton beat Tucson in two games, while Atlanta, Chattanooga and Knoxville did a quick round-robin, with Arizona and Atlanta advancing to play another round-robin with Dallas and Oklahoma City in the “Sizzling Four” finals. Arizona and Atlanta came out on top, and Atlanta defeated Arizona 11-7 for the championship.
Final 1992-1993 USISL Indoor Standings:
Knoxville (indoor only) was added. Lubbock changed their name back to the
Lazers. Texas Stampede was added.
GP W L GF GA PTS SO
Southeast Conference
Atlanta Magic 12 12 0 135 35 48 0-0
Chattanooga Railroaders 12 7 5 87 70 28 0-0
Knoxville Impact 12 4 8 82 136 16 0-0
Nashville Metros 12 1 11 57 117 4 0-0
South Central Conference
Oklahoma City Warriors 12 11 1 103 55 44 0-0
Dallas Kickers 12 7 5 91 87 28 0-0
San Antonio Generals 12 6 6 96 88 24 0-0
Texas Stampede 12 2 10 76 104 8 0-0
Southwest Conference
Tucson Amigos 12 8 4 101 74 30 2-0
Arizona Cotton 12 7 5 104 72 28 0-0
Lubbock Lazers 12 6 6 79 78 25 0-1
Playoffs: Arizona 6, Tucson 3
Arizona 10, Tucson 9
Atlanta 6, Nashville 0
Atlanta 7, Knoxville 2
Chattanooga 3, Knoxville 2
Chattanooga 6, Nashville 2
Atlanta 7, Chattanooga 4
Sizzling Four: Arizona 4, Oklahoma City 3
Atlanta 8, Dallas 2
Atlanta 4, Arizona 2
Oklahoma City 6, Dallas 4
FINAL: Atlanta defeated Arizona, 11-7.
After the season, Lubbock folded.
Leading Scorers:
GP G PT
M. Draguicevich, San Antonio 10 25 61
L. Lakin, Chattanoogs 12 24 52
C. Hellenkamp, Atlanta 11 17 51
L. Ledwith, Tucson 9 16 56
K. Stevens, Lubbock 11 20 45
D. Sanchez, Arizona 12 18 45
C. Suri, Atlanta 10 15 44
R. Corral, Tucson 11 15 42
G. Veatch, Arizona 12 15 42
R. Soderman, Arizona 10 8 41
Leading Goalkeepers:
GP GA GAA
Yaro, Atlanta 12 35 2.92
Robertson/Myer, Oklahoma City12 55 4.58
Northcutt, Chattanooga 12 70 5.83
Zambrano/Pucci 12 72 6.00
Seaber/Allen, Tucson 12 74 6.17
Swissler, Lubbock 12 78 6.50
Ray/McGee, Dallas 12 87 7.25
Lammering, San Antonio 12 88 7.33
Brunskill, Texas 12 104 8.67
Hall/West, Nashville 12 117 9.75
Most Valuable Player: Rich Richmond, Atlanta
Top Goal Scorer: Marcello Draguicevich, San Antonio
Coach of the year: Zelimar Antonievic, Arizona
Rookie of the year: Omar Felix, Tucson
National Professional Soccer League
This was a golden season for the NPSL. With the demise of the Major Soccer League, their major competition was gone, and so was the bidding war which had seriously strained the teams’ financial resources. In addition to a flood of new talent, the league also gained the MSL’s three strongest franchises, the Baltimore Spirit, Cleveland Crunch and Wichita Wings. There was a new league in town, the Continental Indoor Soccer League, but they were scheduled for summer competition, which not only avoided another salary war, but provided opportunity for players to be active indoors all year long. The league also moved two franchises, Illinois to Denver and Tulsa to St. Louis. This led to the interesting situation – even though MSL folded, only one of their cities lost indoor soccer. These changes consolidated the league’s presence in major metropolitan markets, as well as spreading their geographic reach. All of this added up to the most competitive season yet, and a substantial (60%) increase in fan attendance. As a measure of the NPSL’s progress, nine of their players competed with the National Indoor (five-a-side) Team as they competed in the World Indoor Tournament in Hong Kong, coming in 2nd to Brazil.
The regular season immediately showed the impact of the former MSL clubs, as Baltimore and Wichita won their divisional titles, with Cleveland a close second in the East. The Denver Thunder finished with a league-worst 3-37, and quickly folded. Cleveland’s Hector Marinaro proved why he was such a star in the MSL, shattering the goal-scoring record, while amassing over 220 points for the regular season. He would go on to become one of the top indoor stars in history by the end of the century. In the playoffs, Baltimore’s good fortune vanished as they were surprisingly dispatched easily (16-3, 22-9) by 4th place Harrisburg. The same was the story in the West, where Wichita was unceremoniously dumped by 4th place St. Louis in a somewhat closer 17-15, 18-16 series, both games going to overtime. In other action, Kansas City defeated former powerhouse Chicago, and Cleveland remained the only MSL team in the hunt, winning over Buffalo. The semifinals saw an evenly matched series between Harrisburg and Cleveland suddenly turn into a rout for Cleveland as they pounded Harrisburg in the deciding game 16-7. In the most exciting soccer series ever to hit the state of Missouri, the Kansas City Attack defeated St. Louis Ambush in a see-saw battle, 21-17, 4-15, 16-14 (overtime). The Championship (series G), saw Kansas City defeat Cleveland 18-6, 12-8, 12-17, 16-19 and 19-7.
Final NPSL League Standings, 1992-1993
Before the season, Cleveland and Wichita moved from the MSL.
Baltimore and Buffalo were added. Illinois moved to Denver,
and Tulsa moved to St. Louis.
G W L % GB GF GA
American Division
Baltimore Spirit 40 27 13 .675 -- 582 488
Cleveland Crunch 40 25 15 .625 2 702 563
Buffalo Blizzard 40 23 17 .575 4 570 503
Harrisburg Heat 40 22 18 .550 5 597 556
Dayton Dynamo 40 20 20 .500 7 562 584
Detroit Rockers 40 16 24 .400 11 566 666
Canton Invaders 40 13 27 .325 14 519 634
National Division
Wichita Wings 40 27 13 .675 -- 587 435
Kansas City Attack 40 26 14 .650 1 657 555
Chicago Power 40 22 18 .550 5 483 514
St. Louis Ambush 40 19 21 .475 8 582 610
Milwaukee Wave 40 17 23 .425 10 513 509
Denver Thunder 40 3 37 .075 24 439 742
Quarterfinals: Harrisburg def. Baltimore 16-3, 22-9
Cleveland def. Buffalo 13-20, 12-6, 13-6
St. Louis def. Wichita 17-15 OT, 18-16 OT
Kansas City def. Chicago 9-8, 14-10
Semifinals: Cleveland def. Harrisburg 16-15, 18-20(OT), 16-7
Kansas City def. St. Louis 21-17, 4-15, 16-14(OT)
FINALS: Kansas City defeated Cleveland 18-6, 12-8, 12-17, 16-19,19-7
After the season, Denver folded.
Leading scorers:
GP G* A Pts
Hector Marinaro, Cleveland 38 100 50 248
Zoran Karic, Cleveland 33 78 72 222
Gino DiFlorio, Canton 40 81 28 178
Rudy Pikuzinski, Buffalo 39 67 36 165
Jon Parry, Kansas City 40 66 27 161
Franklin McIntosh, Harrisburg 40 56 51 157
Sean Bowers, Detroit 40 59 39 156
Brian Haynes, Kansas City 40 57 27 144
Goran Hunjak, Baltimore 39 53 46 141
Kia Zolgharnain, Canton 35 62 32 136
Kevin Koetters, Kansas City 40 45 50 135
Paul Dougherty, Buffalo 35 48 29 119
Dale Ervine, Wichita 28 46 29 119
*Includes 1 point, 2 point and 3 point goals.
Leading Goalkeepers: (min. 1410 minutes)
Min PA PAA W-L
Kris Peat, Wichita 1772:27 306 10.36 22-8
Cris Vaccaro, Baltimore 1993:46 373 11.22 23-11
Victor Nogueira, Milwaukee 1691:49 322 11.42 15-15
Jamie Swanner, Buffalo 2293:00 469 12.27 22-16
Otto Orf, Cleveland 2031:36 426 12:58 25-9
Carlos Pena, Dayton 2157:18 493 13.71 20-16
Jeff Robben, St. Louis 1641:51 390 14:25 12-16
Frank Arlasky, Canton 1466:28 384 15:71 9-14
Bryan Finnerty, Detroit 2336:22 617 15:85 14-23
Most Valuable Player: Hector Marinaro, Cleveland Crunch
Goalkeeper of the Year: Cris Vaccaro, Baltimore Spirit
Coach of the Year: Zoran Savic, Kansas City Attack
Defender of the Year: Kim Roentved, Wichita Wings
Rookie of the Year: Brett Phillips, Harrisburg Heat
First All-NPSL Team:
G - Cris Vaccaro, Baltimore
D - Kim Roentved, Kansas City
D - Sean Bowers, Detroit
F - Hector Marinaro, Cleveland
F - Zoran Karic, Cleveland
F - Rudy Pikuzinski, Buffalo
Continental Indoor Soccer League
The Continental Indoor Soccer League started operations in the 1993 season, providing a second source of action for indoor fans. It was created to provide indoor soccer during the summer and also as a way of keeping arenas full during what were traditionally slow months. The CISL had an advantage over the mailed Major Soccer League in that it would not compete against the winter-season NPSL, and would also provide opportunity for full-year indoor careers for the better players. It also had a disadvantage in that it would be competing directly against outdoor teams, complicating an already complex summer league situation, with World Cup only a year away. The league was chartered with ten clubs, including the two strongest former MSL clubs, Dallas Sidekicks and San Diego Sockers. Three teams had organizing problems and chose to wait for 1994 to begin play. The teams that remained were mostly along the west coast, a region not covered by the NPSL. The CISL also boasted the first Mexican club in American professional soccer history, Monterrey La Raza.
The first season saw surprisingly good competition; Dallas and San Diego were loaded with talent, and many former MSL players were picked up by the expansion clubs. As expected, Dallas and San Diego finished on top of the league, and both teams easily defeated their playoff opponents, Monterrey and Portland. In the CISL Championship Series, San Diego defeated the Dallas Sidekicks 6-3, but Dallas turned the tables, winning the next two games 11-5 and 5-4 to take the league title.
Final CISL League Standings, 1993
G W L % GB GF GA
Dallas Sidekicks 28 23 5 .821 -- 230 180
San Diego Sockers 28 20 8 .714 3 208 159
Portland Pride 28 16 12 .571 7 192 177
Monterrey La Raza 28 15 13 .536 8 239 249
Sacramento Knights 28 12 16 .429 11 195 237
Arizona Sandsharks 28 6 22 .214 17 201 243
Los Angeles United 28 6 22 .214 17 161 211
Semifinals: Dallas defeated Monterrey 11-6
San Diego defeated Portland 9-1
Championship Series: Dallas defeated San Diego 3-6, 11-5, 5-4
Scoring Leaders:
GP G A Pts
Tatu, Dallas 26 59 58 117
David Doyle, Dallas 28 52 41 93
Zizinho Dos Santos, Monterrey 28 49 32 81
Kevin Smith, Monterrey 28 21 59 80
Marco Lopez, Monterrey 28 44 21 65
Wes Wade, Arizona 27 39 25 64
Dick McCormick, Portland 28 27 35 62
Mark Thomas, Sacramento 27 42 18 60
Franklin McIntosh, Arizona 21 35 23 58
Thompson Usiyan, San Diego 22 29 28 57
Goalkeeping Leaders: (Min 775 minutes)
Min Svs GA GAA
Joe Papaleo, Dallas 1428:40 391 126 5.29
Bryan Finnerty, San Diego 1633:23 352 153 5.62
Jim Gorsek, Portland 1393:10 386 139 5.99
Kris Peat, Los Angeles 1121:21 260 260 6.37
Mike Dowler, Sacramento 778:29 213 96 7:40
Warren Westcoat, Arizona 1254:03 325 175 8:37
Curtis McAlister, Monterrey 1564:23 454 230 8:82
Most Valuable Player: Tatu, Dallas
Goalkeeper of the Year: Joe Papaleo, Dallas
Coach of the Year: Gordon Jago, Dallas
Defender of the Year: Sean Bowers, Sacramento
Rookie of the Year: Marco Lopez, Monterrey
Playoff MVP: Tatu, Dallas
All-CISL First Team:
G - Joe Papaleo, Dallas
D - David Banks, San Diego
D - Sean Bowers, Sacramento
M - Kevin Smith, Monterrey
F - Tatu, Dallas
F - David Doyle, Dallas
Men’s National Team
The Men’s National Team undertook their most extensive and grueling campaign ever this year as they sought to give the players ample playing opportunity to build themselves up to the demands of the World Cup. They took no chances that the US would turn their best ever showcase opportunity into a debacle. They played 34 games, amassing a record of 10 wins, 11 draws and 13 losses. A decidedly mixed result, but it included three major tournaments, and numerous games against top competition. By this time, most of the players who were seeing playing time were employed full-time by the USSF as part of their Team-in-Training program, and were practicing together full-time as a squad, and the team was clearly beginning to gel.
For the first time, the US was invited to participate in the Copa America, the South American championship. Unfortunately, the United States players were exhausted after a rough two month stretch that pitted the US in eight contests against strong opposition. The Americans had just finished a tough US Cup which had been designed to challenge the team with three of the world’s top superpowers, Brazil, Germany and England. As expected, they had a hard time of it, being thoroughly dominated by Brazil on June 6, losing 0-2, a score which did not accurately reflect Brazil’s total domination of the game. The next game was a complete shock the other way, when the US upset England in a 2-0 victory that created a scandal in England, leading to the resignation of their coach. Four days later, Germany, after tying Brazil in a classic 3-3 draw, and beating England 2-1, went on to take the trophy, as they easily dominated the US, leading at one time 4-1, before two late goals by Thomas Dooley, closed the gap to a deceptively close 4-3.
For the Copa America, starting just three days later, the USSF had decided they couldn’t overburden the squad with three major tournaments in three months (The CONCACAF Gold Cup was scheduled for July), so they sent a somewhat diluted roster down to Ecuador, and the results showed. The US lost two frustrating shutouts, 0-1 to Uruguay on June 16, and 0-2 to Ecuador on the 19th, before drawing 3-3 against the relatively weak Venezuelan squad. The goals were scored by Chris Henderson, Alexi Lalas and Dominic Kinnear. One particularly gratifying part of the event was the large and enthusiastic crowds that came out to root on the Americans, with over 44,000 witnessing the Brazil match at new Haven, CT, 38,000 at Foxboro for the England match, and 54,000 at Chicago for the Germany game.
The results at the Gold Cup in July were more to Milutinovic’s liking, although most games were against a lesser caliber of talent that the previous tournaments. The US won 1-0 against Jamaica (goal from Eric Wynalda) on July 10, and Panama 2-1 four days later (goals by Wynalda and Dooley), followed by Honduras 1-0 on the 17th (goal by Alexi Lalas). Although the scores were low, the results were in keeping with Milutinovic’s strategy of concentrating on primarily a defensive game. Overall, the going was unexpectedly difficult, especially against relative minnow Panama who was playing the US for the first time. In the semifinal, the US met perennial rival Costa Rica and struggled through a scoreless draw until Kooiman got a goal in the 13th minute of overtime to send the US back to the championship game. Action moved from Dallas to Mexico City for the final against Mexico who had breezed through the earlier rounds by lopsided scores. Mexico, who had to be cajoled into sending their full squad to the tournament, felt right at home with the friendly crowd, the largest the US had ever faced. With 120,000 fans on their side, Mexico swamped the US 4-0 for the Cup, on July 25. Although the result was disappointing, the US was getting some badly needed challenges and tests that would toughen them up for the BIG event the following year.
After almost a month’s rest, the US played friendlies against Iceland (1-0 victory) and Norway (an equally close loss), before taking six weeks off for practice. In a rematch against Mexico (albeit with the diluted squad again), the US drew 1-1 on October 13, and finished off the year with a pair of losses against the new Ukrainian team, wins against Cayman islands, El Salvador and Konigsvinger Norway (exhibition). They ended the year with a tough rematch against Germany, drawing 53,000 to witness the 0-3 loss. Overall it was decidedly a mixed year. The US was proving itself firmly ensconced in the upper part of the 2nd tier of teams, but still had some work to do before they could defeat the world leaders on more than a sporadic basis.
The first half of the year had featured a showcase package called the World Series of Soccer, a highly publicized series of games against top world competition in major US cities. These games were interspersed with other friendlies, many held in the other team’s homeland. The World Series of Soccer started January 30 with a 2-2 draw against Denmark in Tempe, AZ, followed by a coast-to-coast doubleheader against Russia (0-1 loss in Orlando, scoreless draw in Palo Alto, CA), a 1-1 draw against Iceland in April and a 1-2 loss against Colombia on May 8 in Miami. For promotional purposes, the three games of the US Cup against Brazil, England and Germany were considered a part of the Series. The US also took part in the Kirin Cup in Japan in March with decidedly mixed results, drawing scorelessly against Hungary and losing to host Japan 1-3.
1993 USA Men’s National Team results
Women’s National Team
The women’s team was more active this year, starting off with a quick tournament in Cyprus in March. They were still feeling their legs after more than six months off, as they were shut out by Norway and Germany after a good 2-0 victory over Denmark, with Mia Hamm and Michelle Akers-Stahl returning to scoring form. After losing a frustrating return visit with Germany in Oakdale, PA in April, the US buckled down and knocked off nine straight victories, including some blowouts against Germany (3-0), Italy (5-0), and Canada (7-0).
They also earned a 1-0 shutout of Italy on June 19 before starting a five game tournament in Hamilton, Ontario. The US started out full-force as Mia Hamm scored a hat trick en route to a 6-0 US trouncing of Australia on July 7, which was followed three days later by a 7-0 dusting of Japan on July 10 (Hamm scored two more, and Rafanelli secured a hat trick for good measure). After a relatively easy 3-1 victory over Chinese Taipei, the US crashed down to earth at the hands of world power China which set them back 1-2 but overall the series had shown the US returning to top form after a near-layoff of almost two years. The final event of the year was the 1993 CONCACAF Women’s Championship, held at New Hyde Park, NY. The US swept the competition, defeating New Zealand 3-0, Trinidad & Tobago 9-0 and Canada 1-0 to finish first.
1993 USA Women’s National Team results
U. S. Open Cup
Several familiar teams made their way through the first round of the tournament, including Milwaukee Bavarian, Salt Lake City Flamengo, Dallas Rockets and St. Louis Scott Gallagher. In the quarterfinals, San Francisco CD Mexico defeated the Los Angeles Exiles on penalty kicks after a 2-2 draw. St. Petersburg Kickers defeated the Dallas Rockets on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Philadelphia United German-Hungarian defeated new York Pancyprian Freedom 1-0, and Milwaukee Bavarian eliminated St. Louis Scott Gallagher 1-0.
In the semifinals, San Francisco CD Mexico defeated Milwaukee Bavarian 3-1 and Philadelphia United German-Hungarian defeated St. Petersburg 2-0. The Final was played at Kuntz Stadium in indianapolis, where San francisco CD Mexico defeated Philadelphia United German-Hungarian 5-0 for the Cup.
The College Game
Another successful college season, which saw continuing rapid growth of women’s soccer, especially at the Division 1 and Division 3 levels. It was a good year for goalies, as St. Michael’s Jon Fazzino set a career Division I record for saves with 635, and Southern Connecticut State’s Bo Oshomiyi established a new goals-against average of 0.47, with only 40 goals scored in 7,580 minutes of play. Richard Sharpe of Florida Tech set a new Division II career points record with 321 in 72 games, for an average of 4.46 per game, also a record. These records remained through the end of the century. College soccer continued to grow at the Varsity level, with men’s programs growing from 581 to 591, and women’s leaping from 348 to 387.
The Men’s Division 1 tournament expanded to a 32-team field this year. In the third round, Virginia defeated Wisconsin 3-0, Princeton defeated Hartwick 3-0, Cal State Fullerton defeated San Francisco 1-0, and South Carolina defeated Air Force 6-0. In the semifinals, Virginia defeated Princeton 3-1, and South Carolina defeated Cal State Fullerton 1-0. The championship returned to Davidson, NC, where on December 5, Virginia, under coach Bruce Arena, retained their national title by defeating South Carolina 2-0.
The Women’s Division 1 Tournament expanded from 12 to 16 teams. In the second round, North Carolina defeated William & Mary 7-0, Santa Clara defeated Stanford 2-0, Hartford defeated Massachusetts 2-1, and Duke defeated Virginia 2-0. In the semifinals, North Carolina defeated Santa Clara 3-0 and Duke defeated Hartford 1-0. The Championship, held in Chapel Hill, NC for the 4th time in five years, saw North Carolina, under coach Anson Dorrance, retain their title for the 8th consecutive year, and their 11th championship in 12 years, defeating Duke 9-1.
Division II Men’s champion: Seattle Pacific defeated Southern Connecticut State 1-0.
Division II Women’s champion: Barry defeated Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo 2-0.
Division III Men’s champion: US-San Diego defeated Williams, 1-0.
Division III Women’s champion: Trenton State defeated Plymouth State 4-0.
NAIA Men’s Champion: Sangamon State 4, Lynn 3 (4 overtimes)
NAIA Women’s Champion: Berry 1, Lynn 0 (OT)
NJCAA Men’s Championship: College of DuPage 2, Essex Comm. Coll. 1
NJCAA Women’s Championship: Essex Community College 4, Monroe Comm. Coll. 0
NCCAA Division 1 Championship: The Master’s College 1, Judson 0
NCCAA Division 2 Championship: Northlands Baptist Bible College 1, Baptist Bible College 0
Final Men's Division 1 Coaches' Poll: 1. Creighton 2. UCLA 3. Virginia 4. St. John's (NY) 5. Clemson 6. Indiana 7. Rutgers 8. James Madison 9. Santa Clara 10. Duke Final Women's Division 1 Coaches' Poll: 1. North Carolina 2. Stanford 3. Notre dame 4. Santa Clara 5. Massachusetts 6. William & Mary 7. Portland 8. Duke 9. Wisconsin 10. George Mason Men's Division 1 NSCAA All-Americans (1st team): G - Tim Deck, Wisconsin D - Shane Batelle, St. Louis D - Pedro Lopes, Rutgers D - Jorge Salcedo, UCLA M - Brian Kamler, Creighton M - Jason Kreis, Duke M - Claudio Reyna, Virginia F - Keith DeFini, Creighton F - Jimmy Glenn, Clemson F - Brian McBride, St. Louis F - Staale Soebye, San Francisco Women's Division 1 NSCAA All-Americans (1st team): G - Skye Eddy, George Mason D - Karen Ferguson, Connecticut D - Jessica Fischer, Stanford D - Paula Wilkins, Massachusetts M - Cindy Daws, Notre Dame M - Jennifer Lalor, Santa Clara M - Tisha Venturini, North Carolina M - Kelly Walber, Duke F - Mia Hamm, North Carolina F - Kara Lee, Southern Methodist F - Shannon MacMillan, Portland F - Sarah Rafanelli, Stanford Men's National Award Winners: Hermann Trophy: Claudio Reyna, Virginia Missouri Athletic Club Award: Claudio Reyna, Virginia ISAA Player of the Year: Brian McBride, St. Louis ISAA Goalkeeper of the Year: Adeboyega Oshoniyi, Southern Connecticut State NSCAA Coach of the Year (Division 1): Bob Bradley, Princeton Women's National Award Winners: Hermann Trophy: Mia Hamm, North Carolina Missouri Athletic Club Award: Mia Hamm, North Carolina
Other Action
US Open Cup Championship: San Francisco CD Mexico (SFDML) defeated Philadelphia United German-Hungarians on July 17, 5-0.
National Amateur Cup Championship: Seattle Murphy’s Pub defeated St. Louis Scott-Gallagher on July 17, 2-1.
James P. McGuire Cup (U-19 Men): MVLASC Shooting Stars (CA)
J. Ross Stewart Cup (U-19 Women): Hammer FC, Cincinnati
Don Greer Cup (U-17 Boys): Temple Terrace (FL) Spirit
L. Moynihan Cup (U-17 Girls): Connecticut Omni
D.J. Niotis Cup: Vardar III, Detroit
Patricia Masotto Cup:J. B. Marine, St. Louis
CONCACAF Champions Cup: Hercules of the US was slated to play Juventus of Belize but withdrew. The cup was won by Saprissa who won on points after an unusual rinal round which saw three teams tie for first with 1 win and 2 draws apiece. Saprissa had scored 9 in a romp over Robin Hood (Suriname), giving them 11 goals for the round.
CONCACAF Cup Winners Cup: San Jose Oaks lost to eventual champion Monterrey (Mexico) 10-1. Monterrey won the final round with a 2-1-0 record.
CONCACAF Women’s Championship: The US swept the competition, defeating New Zealand 3-0, Trinidad & Tobago 9-0 and Canada 1-0 to finish first.
U-20 World Youth Cup: The US finished 2nd in Group B, beating Turkey 6-0, losing to England 1-0 and drawing 1-1 with South Korea. In the quarterfinals, the US was beaten by Brazil 3-0. Brazil defeated Ghana 2-1 in the final.
U-17 World Youth Cup: The US drew 2-2 with the “Representation of the Czech & Slovak Republics”, lost to Colombia 2-1 and beat Qatar 5-0, to finish second in Group C. In the quarterfinals, the US lost to Poland 3-0. Nigeria defeated Ghana 2-1 in the final.
Hall of Fame: In 1993, the US Soccer Hall of Fame inducted Dennis Long, John “Jukey” Nanoski, and Pele. The National Soccer Coaches Association of America inducted Ebbie Dunn, Bob Guelker, Doc Minnegan, Huntley Parker, Irv Schmid, Charlie Scott, and Isadore Yavits. The National Intercollegiate Soccer Officials Association (NISOA) Hall of Fame inducted Salvatore Esposito, Allen Feld, Al Kleinatis, Cliff McGrath, and Mike Moskowitz.
Honda Award (Player of the Year): Eric Wynalda
USSF Players of the Year: Thomas Dooley, Kristine Lilly
Chevrolet/US Soccer Athletes of the Year: Alexi Lalas, Kristine Lilly