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The year 1990 was one of flux in American soccer. The US had been awarded the 1994 World Cup, and was already scrambling to not only made a respectable start on securing and improving venues for the competition, as well as developing the National team to a respectable competitive level, and establishing a Division 1 professional soccer league as required by FIFA. There was a lot of floundering on all fronts, but also the beginnings of real progress that would become more significant in the later years of the decade. The National Team was well into its residential development program, and there were high hopes following the unexpected qualification to World Cup 1990. Although their final World Cup performance was disappointing, a near tie with host Italy showed that the US was already on the road to bigger things. Back home, organizing efforts for World Cup 1994 were going around in circles, and FIFA, disenchanted with Werner Fricker’s leadership, promoted Los Angeles lawyer Alan Rothenberg to run against him as president of the United States Soccer Foundation. Rothenberg, who had organized the soccer competition at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, easily won the election and gave the USSF the business acumen and international clout it needed. He was also named chair of the 1994 World Cup Organizing Committee and soon went to work laying the groundwork for the event.
Meanwhile various factions were vying to establish the new Division 1 professional league that was a condition of the USA being awarded World Cup 1994. To that end, the Western Soccer Alliance and the American Soccer League reached a merger agreement to establish a single, nationwide league which would then work its way up to Division 1 status. The Sunbelt Independent Soccer League meanwhile was consolidating its strength and beginning its shift towards outdoor soccer. Meanwhile, the Major Indoor Soccer League was facing increased competition from the American Indoor Soccer Association, which, to emphasize its future intentions, renamed itself the National Professional Soccer League. Although there was high optimism for the World Cup as an unprecedented opportunity to showcase the sport for the American audience, the professional arena was still a mishmash of competing leagues which spent more time hurting each other financially than growing the sport as a whole.
World Cup 1990
The 1990 World Cup marked the start of the USA’s drive back towards respectability. The US had qualified through good fortune when Mexico was disqualified, and the US, while on the brink of elimination scored an amazing upset over Trinidad & Tobago in the last game of qualifications. Even though the US went winless in the 1990 World Cup, the overall performance was a marked improvement over recent decades, most especially 1986 when the US was eliminated with little more than a whimper. By 1990, the USSF development program had been in force for almost two years with the result that many of the American players were training together full-time, and experiencing tougher competition than they could expect with the leagues available in the States. The US roster also featured an array of young and advancing stars who would play significant roles for the rest of the decade, including Tony Meola, John Harkes, Steve Trittschuh, Paul Galigiuri, Tab Ramos, Eric Wynalda, Marcelo Balboa, Brian Bliss and Peter Vermes.
The US was trounced in the opening game against Czechoslovakia 5-1, leading to comments by the press that the Americans were a bunch of clueless amateurs, but the result was partially a result of the US underestimating the intensity of the competition, and putting forth a three-man backline which the Czechs were able to exploit. They would not make that mistake against host Italy. That game, although a loss, showed the future potential of the team, as the US hobbled Italy’s scorers in a heavily defensive formation, which turned the expected Italian goalfest into a close hard-fought contest, with Italy pulling out 1-0. After giving up a goal early in the game, the US shut down Italy’s vaunted defense in front of their home crowd, and nearly tied the game in the later stages. The US had a small chance of advancing, but that was ended quickly as they lost to Austria 2-1 for a disappointing exit. The rest of the tournament went on to an exciting finale, and the Americans went home disappointed, but with bigger horizons already looming in the future.
The quarterfinals saw four very evenly matched teams take their matches into penalty kicks. England and Germany drew 1-1, with Germany prevailing 4-3 on PK’s. Argentina and Italy also went 1-1 through regulation time, with Argentina winning 4-3 on kicks. Ital;y beat England 2-1 in the 3rd place match, and Germany defeated Argentina 1-0 in the final.
American Professional Soccer League
The American Professional Soccer League was formed as a result of a 1989 merger agreement between the Western Soccer Alliance and the American Professional Soccer League. This merger brought together the two strongest professional outdoor leagues, and that union accomplished several important purposes: It was seen as an opportunity to return top flight soccer on a nationwide basis for the first time since the demise of the North American Soccer League, and shift the balance in favor of the outdoor sport, which had taken a back seat to indoor soccer for the latter half of the 1980’s. The league also had ambitions to be designated by FIFA as the new Division 1 American league. The APSL had several advantages, among them several established clubs, some of them with years of amateur experience, as well as the bulk of the top players in the US. APSL rosters boasted many of the National Team players and reserves who were not already part of the USSF residency program. The major challenges were the fact that none of the teams was truly operating at a high level of professionalism, and the new nationwide sprawl of teams would wreak havoc with high travel expenses. To ease the transition, The former ASL and WSA played their regular seasons as separate conferences, meeting only at the end for the Championship game.
The regular season provided some high excitement in the divisional races, as Maryland, Albany and Penn-Jersey fought a tight three way battle right into the last week of the season, with Maryland squeaking out a two point victory at season’s end. The WSL featured two divisional races worth watching: In the North, the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks, Salt Lake Sting, Colorado Foxes and Portland Timbers were within five points of each other, with Salt Lake City and San Francisco tied for the crown. Meanwhile in the South, California, Los Angeles and Real Santa Barbara finished neck and neck. In the first official APSL Championship game, Maryland and San Francisco Bay mounted a memorable fight in driving rain at Boston before a national television audience, and Maryland finally pulled out a 2-1 victory on penalty kicks to crown a true national outdoor champion for the first time in more than half a decade.
Final APSL Standings, 1990
G W T L GF GA PTS
EAST (ASL) CONFERENCE
North Division
Maryland Bays 20 15 0 5 42 29 44
Albany Capitals 20 14 0 6 35 22 42
Penn-Jersey Spirit 20 13 0 7 34 23 39
Boston Bolts 20 9 0 11 27 27 28
Washington Stars 20 7 0 13 24 28 22
New Jersey Eagles 20 6 0 14 21 38 17
South Division
Ft. Lauderdale Strikers 20 15 0 5 38 22 45
Tampa Bay Rowdies 20 10 0 10 32 39 29
Orlando Lions 20 8 0 12 25 30 24
Miami Freedom 20 8 0 12 27 29 24
Washington Diplomats 20 5 0 15 22 40 16
Semifinals: Ft. Lauderdale defeated Albany, 3-2, 2-0
Maryland defeated Tampa Bay 2-1 (OT), 4-1
Finals: Maryland defeated Ft. Lauderdale, 3-2, 2-0
WEST (WSL) Conference
North Division
San Francisco Bay Blackhawks 20 13 0 7 39 30 104
Salt Lake Sting 20 12 0 8 39 34 104
Colorado Foxes 20 14 0 6 22 12 100
Portland Timbers 20 10 0 10 42 36 99
Seattle Storm 20 10 0 10 42 35 93
South Division
California Emperors 20 10 0 10 35 32 89
Los Angeles Heat 20 11 0 9 39 39 87
Real Santa Barbara 20 10 0 10 33 35 85
San Diego Nomads 20 8 0 12 22 28 67
New Mexico Chilies 20 7 0 13 25 45 61
Arizona Condors 20 5 0 15 29 51 59
First Round: Los Angeles defeated Santa Barbara 0-1, 2-1, 1-0 (MG)
Colorado defeated Salt Lake, 2-1, 4-1
Semifinals: Los Angeles 2 at California 0
Colorado 1 at San Francisco Bay 2
Finals: San Francisco Bay defeated Los Angeles 0-2, 2-1 (PK), 1-0 (MG)
CHAMPIONSHIP: Maryland defeated San Francisco Bay 2-1 (PK)
Leading Scorers:
G A Pts
Chance Fry, Seattle 17 5 39
George Pastor, Salt Lake 14 9 37
Mike Masters, Albany 14 4 32
Philip Gyau, Maryland 12 6 30
Derek Sanderson, Salt Lake 11 6 37
Jerry O'Hara, California 10 3 23
Shawn Medved, Portland 10 2 22
Jean Harbor, Maryland 8 6 22
Jim Hutchingson, Santa Barbara 9 4 22
Scott Benedetti, Seattle 9 3 21
Cesar Plascenia, Portland 9 3 21
Steve Pittman, Ft. Lauderdale 7 7 21
David Byrne, Tampa Bay 5 10 20
Steve Corpening, San Francisco 8 4 20
Rob Paterson, Portland 8 4 20
Mike Sweeney, Boston 8 3 19
Elvis Comrie, Albany 8 2 18
Lazlo Barna, Miami 7 4 18
Duane Robinson, Penn-Jersey 5 8 18
Goalkeeping Leaders: (Min. 1450 minutes played)
Min GA Sv GAA
Mark Dodd, Colorado 1760 7 87 0.36
Dale Caya, Penn-Jersey 1540 12 55 0.71
Bill Stetten, Albany 1755 19 58 0.97
Arnie Mausser, Albany 1856 21 83 1.02
Anton Nistl, San Diego 1957 23 79 1.05
Mark Simpson, Orlando 1350 17 66 1.13
Mike Littman, Los Angeles 1670 22 63 1.17
Neil Cowley, Washington Stars 1472 20 89 1.22
Paul Parkinson, Salt Lake 1731 24 76 1.24
Mark Dougherty, San Francisco 1450 20 42 1.24
1990 First All-Star Team:
G - Dale Caya, Penn-Jersey
D - Steve Pittman, Ft. Lauderdale
D - Paul Mariner, Albany
D - Brian Ainscough, Penn-Jersey
D - George Gelnovatch, Penn-Jersey
M - Chicago Borja, Albany
M - Marcelo Carrera, Ft. Lauderdale
M - David Byrne, Tampa Bay
F - Philip Gyau, Maryland
F - Dan Donigan, Penn-Jersey
Most Valuable Players: Mark Dodd, Colorado Foxes, Philip Gyau, Maryland Bays
Coach of the Year: Thomas Rongen, Ft. Lauderdale
Rookie of the Year: Steve Pittman, Ft. Lauderdale
Other APSL 1990 players of note: Jorge Acosta, New Jersey; Chad Ashton, Colorado; Marcello Balboa; San Francisco; Scott Benedetti, Seattle; Hubert Birkenmeier, New Jersey, Brian Bliss, Boston; Troy Darak, San Francisco; Mark Dodd, Colorado; Winston DuBose, Tampa Bay; Robin Fraser, Colorad; John Kerr, Jr. Washington; Dominic Kinnear, Miami; Matt Knowles, Penn-Jersey; Cle Kooiman, San Diego; Lawrence Lozzano, California; Bruce Murray, Washington Stars; Thomas Rongen, Ft. Lauderdale; Jim St. Andrew, Colorado; Steve Triitschuh, Tampa Bay; Perry van Der Veck, Tampa Bay; Steve Wegerle, Tampa Bay; Eric Wynalda, San Francisco.
Major Indoor Soccer League
The Major Indoor Soccer League faced increasing competition with the American Indoor Soccer Association which made clear its intentions to compete head to head. This soon led to an all out salary war, which had grave repercussions for both leagues. Meanwhile, the MISL implemented four rule changes: (1) permitting goalkeeping on the fly, (2) elimination of the sixth foul rule, (3) elimination of the three-line violation by field players, and (4) awarding of shootouts in place of penalty kicks. MISL returned to one of their most successful cities with the expansion St. Louis Storm, who lost their debut to cross-state rivals Kansas City before 14,752. The league season saw a close race in the East between the perennial favorites Baltimore Blast and Kansas City Comets, with the Comets claiming the crown with a mere 2 point lead after a 52 game season. The Dallas Sidekicks had an easier time of it with a decisive Western Division crown. Tatu continued his impressive goal-scoring feats with 64 goals. League attendance held steady, at an average of 7,765 for the regular season. At the conclusion of the season, MISL reached an agreement with ESPN for a nine game TV schedule for the following season. The league remained busy during the summer, announcing a renewal with the Intercollegiate Soccer Association of America to host their annual showcase of senior collegiate stars. Later, the league changed their name to Major Soccer League, and reached an agreement with the USSF to play two outdoor exhibitions against the Men’s National team. Finally, USSF President Alan Rothenberg appointed commissioner Earl Foreman to a commission to study the feasibility of establishing a 1st division outdoor league in the United States.
Final MISL Standings, 1989-1990
Before the season, Cleveland and St. Louis were added.
G W L GF GA % GB
Eastern Division
Baltimore Blast 52 32 20 231 191 .615 --
Kansas City Comets 52 30 22 208 205 .577 2
Wichita Wings 52 26 26 210 229 .490 6.5
Cleveland Crunch 52 20 32 201 237 .392 11.5
Western Division
Dallas Sidekicks 52 31 21 217 190 .596 --
San Diego Sockers 52 25 27 217 204 .481 6
St. Louis Storm 52 24 28 202 205 .462 7
Tacoma Stars 52 20 32 191 217 .385 11
Div. Semi-finals: Kansas City defeated Wichita 5-4, 4-3, 3-4, 5-4
San Diego defeated St. Louis 3-2, 3-4 (OT), 4-1, 5-4
Div. Finals: San Diego defeated Dallas 4-2, 1-6, 1-4, 4-2, 4-0,3-1
Baltimore defeated Kansas City 6-4, 4-2, 2-1(OT),
2-3(OT), 2-3(OT), 7-2
CHAMPIONSHIP: San Diego def. Baltimore 4-7, 4-3, 5-2, 4-1, 2-3,6-4.
Scoring Leaders:
GP G A Pts
Tatu, Dallas 52 64 42 113
Jan Goossens, Kansas City 51 41 55 96
Preki, Tacoma 44 33 39 72
Michael King, Cleveland 52 45 26 71
Dale Mitchell, Kansas City 48 47 23 70
Dale Ervine, Wichita 47 47 20 68
Hector Marinaro, Cleveland 45 40 23 63
Zorin Karic, Cleveland 47 34 28 62
Branko Segota, San Diego 44 27 34 61
Domenic Mobilio, Baltimore 48 41 20 61
Chico Borja, Wichita 43 24 35 59
Carl Valentine, Baltimore 52 24 34 58
Leading Goalkeepers: (Min 1250 minutes played)
GP Min. SHT SV GA Avg. W L
Joe Papaleo (Dallas) 27 1633 829 342 91 3.34 16 10
Zoltan Toth (San Diego) 27 1640 682 334 95 3.48 14 13
Scott Manning (Baltimore) 34 2091 991 457 122 3.50 22 12
Slobo Illjevski (St. Louis) 32 1903 851 415 113 3.56 17 14
Victor Nogueira (San Diego) 25 1511 590 284 91 3.61 11 13
Mike Dowler (Kansas City) 28 1671 751 308 102 3.66 17 10
Krye Sobieski (Dallas) 22 1354 644 237 85 3.77 14 8
Jim Gorsek (Kansas City) 26 1485 648 275 95 3.84 13 11
Ron Fearson (Wichita) 33 1988 789 331 128 3.86 18 14
Cris Vaccaro (Tacoma) 28 1672 730 313 109 3.91 11 17
P. J. Johns (Cleveland) 38 2087 894 439 140 4.02 16 18
David Brcic (St. Louis) 21 1269 558 275 87 4.11 7 14
1st MISL All-Star Team:
G - Victor Nogueira, San Diego
F - Tatu, Dallas
F - Zoran Karic, Cleveland
M - Preki, St. Louis
D - Kevin Crow, San Diego
D - Fernando Clavijo, St. Louis
Most Valuable player: Tatu, Dallas Sidekicks
Coach of the Year: Billy Phillips, Dallas
MISL Scoring Champion: Tatu, Dallas Sidekicks
MISL Pass Master (most Assists): Jan Goossens, Kansas City Comets
Defender of the Year: Wes McLeod, Dallas
Goalkeeper of the Year: Joe Papaleo, Dallas Sidekicks
Rookie of the Year: Terry Brown, St. Louis Storm
Newcomer of the Year: Claudio DeOliviera, St. Louis Storm
Championship Series Player of the Year: Brian Quinn, San Diego Sockers
Championship Series Unsung Hero: Paul Wright, San Diego Sockers
Southwest Independent Soccer League
The SISL expanded out of its traditional Texas-Oklahoma stomping grounds, expanding to outlying regions by adding El Paso, Arkansas, Permian Basin, Phoenix, Richardson, Tucson and Waco, and splitting into four divisions. A greater emphasis was placed on outdoor soccer this season, with 14 clubs choosing to participate. it would eventually become clear that the future of the league lay under the sun.
The outdoor season expanded greatly this season, but that didn’t dampen the quality of play. Tulsa Renegades led the league, easily winning the Eastern Conference with a 12-2 record. The West saw a race to the wire, as Lubbock Lazers just barely pulled out a divisional title by one point over the Colorado Comets who actually had one more victory; Lubbock gained the extra points due to their high scoring which was rewarded by the league by awarding a bonus point for each goal scored up to a maximum of three per game. In the playoffs, Colorado, Richardson, Austin and Tucson advanced easily to the semifinals. Richardson easily beat Austin 2-1 and 5-1, while Colorado shut out Phoenix 2-0 and 1-0. The championship game had to be cancelled, and Colorado Comets were declared champions based on overall record.
Final Outdoor Standings, 1990
GP W L SW-SL BP GF GA PTS
Eastern Conference
Tulsa Renegades 14 12 2 (1-1) 34 45 17 106
Austin Sockadillos 14 8 6 (0-2) 33 45 27 85
San Antonio Generals 14 10 4 (2-0) 29 38 25 85
Richardson Rockets 14 7 7 (0-0) 28 38 22 70
North Texas United 14 7 7 (1-0) 25 36 30 68
Arkansas Diamonds 14 6 8 (0-2) 20 26 34 60
Waco Kickers 14 1 13 (0-0) 9 9 54 15
Oklahoma City Warriors 6 1 5 (0-0) 7 7 25 13
Western Conference
Lubbock Lazers 14 11 3 (0-0) 35 52 28 101
Colorado Comets 14 12 2 (1-0) 30 38 17 100
Phoenix Hearts 14 8 6 (1-0) 30 39 29 76
Tucson Amigos 14 7 7 (0-1) 28 29 20 68
Albuquerque Gunners 14 3 11 (0-0) 17 17 51 35
Permian Basin Shooting Stars 14 2 12 (0-0) 19 20 43 31
Quarterfinals: Colorado defeated Lubbock 5-1, 5-2
Richardson defeated Tulsa 1-2, 1-0, 3-1
Austin defeated San Antonio 0-1, 4-1, 3-2
Tucson defeated Phoenix 2-1, 2-1
Semifinals: Richardson defeated Austin 2-1, 5-1
Colorado defeated Tucson 2-0, 1-0
CHAMPIONSHIP: Colorado declared champion based on overall record.
After the season, North Texas United was merged into Ft. Worth.
Top Scorers:
GP G Pts
M. Friederich, Lubbock 13 11 32
Chris Veselka, Austin 10 12 31
D. Sholeen, Lubbock 10 12 29
S. Schwab, Tulsa 13 11 27
M. Draguicevich, Austin 13 12 26
A. Richardson, Tulsa 13 11 26
G. Garcia, San Antonio 13 11 25
S. Gallegos, Phoenix 13 10 22
K. Coughlin, North Texas 13 9 21
Leading Goalkeepers:
GP G Pts
Lammering, Colorado 14 17 1.21
Hughes, Tulsa 14 17 1.21
Apodaca, Tucson 14 20 1.43
Hovard/Smith, Richardson 14 22 1.57
Chavarria, San Antonio 14 25 1.79
Hale/Lord, Austin 14 27 1.93
Swissler/Godi 14 28 2.00
Valdez, Phoenix 14 29 2.07
Patterson, North Texas 14 30 2.14
Scott, Arkansas 14 34 2.43
Most Valuable Player: Craig Lammering, Colorado Comets
Coach of the Year: Phil Jones, Richardson Rockets
Top Goalkeeper: Craig Lammering, Colorado Comets
The Indoor season demonstrated the league’s tradition of parity, as two of the expansion teams, Richardson and Phoenix won their divisional titles, along with Addison and the perennial favorite Colorado. All four division champs easily defeated their first round opponents, setting up an exciting semi between Phoenix and Colorado, with Phoenix winning 6-4, 7-8 and 11-10, the last two games going into overtime. Addison Arrows defeated Richardson 7-5, 5-4 before earning the championship over Phoenix, 9-6, 9-8 (shootout), 10-3.
Final Indoor Standings, 1989-1990
GP W L GF GA PTS
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Texas Division
Richardson Rockets 24 17 7 176 112 69
Austin Capital Sockadillos 24 14 10 165 130 56
Waco Kickers 24 11 13 132 182 44
Houston Express 24 2 22 66 143 9
San Antonio Generals 13 1 8 60 91 4
Tex-Ark-Oma Division
Addison Arrows 24 17 7 179 122 68
Tulsa Renegades 24 14 10 170 155 54
Oklahoma City Warriors 24 13 11 138 131 53
Arkansas Diamonds 12 2 10 46 97 8
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
Colorado Comets 24 21 3 235 102 84
Lubbock Lazers 24 19 5 199 106 76
Permian Basin Shootin' Stars 24 5 19 142 218 21
Amarillo Challengers 24 5 19 125 272 19
Cactus Division
Phoenix Hearts 24 21 3 207 118 84
Tucson Amigos 24 12 12 128 126 46
Albuquerque Gunners 24 9 15 157 167 37
El Paso Sixshooters 24 0 24 44 179 0
First Round: Phoenix defeated Lubbock 7-6, 4-0
Colorado defeated Tucson 5-4, 9-4
Richardson defeated Tulsa 7-5, 7-6
Addison defeated Austin 12-4, 8-5
Semifinals: Phoenix defeated Colorado, 6-4, 7-8 (OT), 11-10 (OT)
Addison defeated Richardson 7-5, 5-4
CHAMPIONSHIP: Addison defeated Phoenix 9-6, 9-8 (SO), 10-3
After the season, Amarillo and Houston folded.
Most Valuable Player: Andy Crawford, Permian Basin/Colorado
Top Scorer: Enrique Serrano, Albuquerque Gunners
Coach of the year: Petar Baralic, Phoenix
Rookie of the year: Jose Miranda, Tucson
Lone Star Soccer Association
The LSSA expanded and adopted a two-division format for the first time. The relatively short season saw division winners F. C. Dallas defeat Austin and San Antonio fall to Oklahoma City. The league largely ignored the larger SISL, and stuck to tradition, allowing ties and foregoing bonus points to encourage more scoring. The championship was won by Oklahoma City Spirit 3-0 over F. C. Dallas.
Final LSSA League Standings, 1990:
Before the season, Oklahoma City and the Wichita Blue were added.
G W L T GF GA PTS
Northern Division
F. C. Dallas 10 8 1 1 26 6 17
Oklahoma City Spirit 10 6 4 0 22 17 12
Wichita Falls Fever 10 6 4 0 19 14 12
Wichita Blue 10 1 9 0 8 30 2
Southern Division
San Antonio Alamo 10 5 4 1 18 17 11
Austin Thunder 10 5 5 0 16 9 10
Houston Alianza 10 4 6 0 10 16 8
Houston Dynamos 10 4 6 0 9 17 8
Playoffs: Oklahoma City defeated San Antonio 2-1
F. C. Dallas defeated Austin 2-0
CHAMPIONSHIP: Oklahoma City defeated F. C. Dallas 3-0
After the season, San Antonio folded.
American Indoor Soccer Association
The 1989-1990 season saw an expansion team, the Atlanta Attack, win a fairly respectable 2nd place in the American division. The All-Star game featured a gala exhibition against the Soviet Red Army, who beat the AISA Best 10-8 at Detroit. In the playoffs, Atlanta defeated Hershey 13-10 and 13-9, Milwaukee defeated Chicago 8-6 and 8-6. The semifinals went to Canton 10-4 and 12-4 over Milwaukee, and Dayton, winners by 8-6 and 13-6 over Atlanta. Finally, the Canton Invaders, who set a record for victories (19) in the regular season, made it a three-peat as they beat the Dayton Dynamo 16-8, 6-8, 16-7, 6-22, and 9-15 in a see-saw battle that nearly saw a single game scoring record broken. Such is the nature of the indoor game, a trouncing one day can lead to a surprise victory the next. One player of note was drafted in round 4 of the amateur draft – Shawn Medved, out of Evergreen State and later of MLS fame, who went to the Atlanta Attack.
Final AISA League Standings, 1989-1990
Before the season, Atlanta was added, Ft. Wayne changed their name to Indiana,
and Memphis changed their nickname to the Rogues.
G W L % GB GF GA
American Division
Canton Invaders 40 36 4 .900 -- 544 321
Atlanta Attack 40 23 17 .575 13 443 382
Hershey Impact 40 19 21 .475 17 397 384
Memphis Rogues 40 6 34 .150 30 267 484
National Division
Dayton Dynamo 40 21 19 .525 -- 388 354
Milwaukee Wave 40 21 19 .525 -- 373 353
Chicago Power 40 20 20 .500 1 375 394
Indiana Kick 40 14 26 .350 7 368 488
First Round: Atlanta defeated Hershey 13-10, 13-9
Milwaukee def. Chicago 8-6, 8-6
Semifinals: Canton def. Milwaukee 10-4, 12-4
Dayton def. Atlanta 2-15, 8-6 OT, 13-6
FINALS: Canton defeated Dayton 14-2, 7-8, 21-8, 13-11(OT)
After the season, Indiana and Memphis folded.
Leading scorers:
GP G A Pts
Drago Dumbovic, Atlanta/Hersey 41 100 67 167
Rudy Pikuzinski, Canton 36 102 38 140
Peter Hattrup, Atlanta 40 88 43 135
Dan O'Keefe, Indiana 40 108 17 125
George Pastor, Milwaukee 39 90 29 119
Steve Frick, Canton 37 91 18 109
Batata, Chicago 37 63 41 104
Art Kramer, Milwaukee 40 74 27 101
Franklin McIntosh, Hershey, Atl.35 63 35 98
Tony Bono, Dayton 39 61 32 93
Leading Goalkeepers: (min. 900 minutes)
Min PA PAA W-L
Jamie Swanner, Canton 2134 273 7.67 32-4
Pat Harrington, Dayton 980 131 8.00 10-6
Yaro Dachniwsky, Atlanta 1526 206 8.10 16-10
Most Valuable Player: Jamie Swanner, Canton Invaders
Goalkeeper of the Year: Jamie Swanner, Canton Invaders
Coach of the Year: Rick Schweizer, Dayton Dyamo
Defender of the Year: Bret Hall, Chicago Power
Rookie of the Year: Brian Haynes, Atlanta Attack
First All-AISA Team:
G - Jamie Swanner, Canton
D - Bret Hall, Chicago
D - Tim Tyma, Milwaukee
M/F - Peter Hattrup, Atlanta
M/F - Drago Dumbovic, Hershey
M/F - Rudy Pikuzinski, Canton
Canadian Soccer League
Before the season, Kitchener and London were added.
G W T L GF GA PTS
Eastern Division
Toronto Blizzard 26 18 3 5 52 15 39
Montreal Supra 26 13 11 2 30 12 37
Hamilton Steelers 26 10 9 7 44 35 29
Kitchener Spirit 26 8 7 11 30 36 23
North York Rockets 26 7 9 10 34 36 23
Ottawa Intrepid 26 2 9 15 21 49 13
London Lasers 26 2 7 17 26 68 11
Western Division
Vancouver 86ers 26 17 3 6 69 26 40
Victoria Vistas 26 12 7 7 42 32 31
Winnipeg Fury 26 7 11 8 22 37 22
Edmonton Brickmen 26 6 14 6 20 44 18
Quarterfinals: Victoria 1 at Winnipeg 4
Victoria 2 at Winnipeg 1
Victoria 1 at Winnipeg 1 - 5-4 Victoria Penalty
Vancouver 2 at North York 0
North York 1 at Vancouver 2
Kitchener 0 at Toronto 1
Kitchener 0 at Toronto 0 - 4-3 Kitchener Penalty
Montreal 1 at Hamilton 2
Hamilton 1 at Montreal 0
Semifinals: Vancouver 2 at Victoria 2
Victoria 1 at Vancouver 6
Hamilton 1 at Kitchener 0
Kitchener 3 at Hamilton 3
CHAMPIONSHIP: Hamilton 1 at Vancouver 6
Leading Goalscorers:
John Catliff, Vancouver 19
Domenic Mobilio, Vancouver 13
Paul Peschisolido, Toronto 13
Alex Bunbury, Toronto 12
Billy Domazetis, Toronto 10
Eddy Berdusco, North York 9
Ted Eck, Toronto 9
Ivor Evans, Vancouver 8
Geoff Aunger, Victoria 8
All-Star Team:
Pat Harrington, Montreal
Patrick Diotte, Montreal
Edinho, Toronto
Allan Evans, Victoria
Ian Bridge, Victoria
Michael Araujo, Montreal
Lyndon Hooper, Toronto
Ivor Evans, Vancouver
Domenic Mobilio, Vancouver
John Catliff, Vancouver
Paul Peschisolido, Toronto
National Teams
Men’s National Team
Although the World Cup was clearly the highlight of the year, the Men’s team had a full schedule of competition. The early part of the year saw a series of friendlies to get the team in shape for the Cup. Games included a highly anticipated match with the Soviet Union, which was lost 1-3 in front of 61,000 at Palo Alto, CA on February 24, with John Harkes getting the lone goal. The only two games ever against East Germany saw the Easties take a 3-2 victory in March at Berlin, and a 1-2 loss in July at Milwaukee. Other games of note were a 1-1 draw against the strong Colombian side on February 4, and a convincing 3-1 romp over Poland on May 9. Eric Wynalda was already securing his reputation as a goal scorer, with 5 goals, second only to Bruce Murray.
After World Cup ’90, there was a home and away series against Trinidad, who was eager for revenge after their elimination at the hands of the Americans. They didn’t get it though, as the US scored a 3-0 win at Charlotte, NC, and a 0-0 draw in Trinidad. The US also repeated against Poland in October with a 3-2 away triumph at Warsaw, and managed a face-saving draw against the Soviet Union in November. Overall, the US had a record of 8 wins, 3 draws and 11 losses, not as good as 1989, but this time including some wins against stronger competition.
1990 USA Men’s National Team results
Women’s National Team
The Women had a fairly quiet year, but also an unbeaten one, as they proved themselves to be quick learners rapidly moving to the top echelon in the world’s game. All six matches were victories, the most impressive being against West Germany and Norway, two other world powers, and an 8-0 thrashing of the Soviet Union. Michelle Akers, Mia Hamm and future hall of famer April Heinrichs had established themselves as mainstays of the team and would make the world take notice later in the decade. At this early stage, the national team was largely inactive, only getting together for occasional series. It was a measure of the players’ skill and experience that this did not hurt them the following year as they powered on to their triumph in the first World Cup.
Women's National Team Results, 1990:
Aug 11 90 W 3-0 West Germany Blaine, MN, USA
Akers-Stahl (2), Heinrichs
Aug 09 90 W 3-0 England Blaine, MN, USA
Akers-Stahl (2), Heinrichs
Aug 05 90 W 8-0 Soviet Union Blaine, MN, USA
Higgins, Jennings, Hamm (2), Akers-Stahl (3), Heinrichs
Jul 29 90 W 4-2 Norway Winnipeg, Canada
Jennings, Akers-Stahl, Heinrichs (2)
Jul 27 90 W 4-1 Canada Winnipeg, Canada
Lilly, Jennings, Hamm, Hebauer
Jul 25 90 W 4-0 Norway Winnipeg, Canada
Jennings, Akers-Stahl, Heinrichs, Hamm
U. S. Open Cup
In the Quarterfinals, Chicago AAC Eagles defeated St. Louis Mike Duffy’s, FC Dallas defeated St. petersburg Kickers 1-0, Brooklyn Italians defeated Philadelphia United German-Hungarians 5-3 and Los Angeles Zamora defeated San Francisco Greek-American 2-1. In the semifinals, Chicago defeated FC Dallas 3-0 and Brooklyn defeated Los Angeles 4-1. The Final was held on July 28, 1990 at Kuntz Stadium, Indianapolis where the Chicago Eagles defeated Brooklyn Italians 3-1 before 3,116 fans to claim the championship.
The College Game
In 1990, the college game was continuing to grow rapidly, as it continued to benefit from the surge in youth soccer that occurred during the excitement of the North American Soccer League. By this point, growth in men’s soccer at the top level was beginning to level off as a result of competition with other sports forced by Title IX, but conversely, the women’s game was benefiting enormously, and colleges were going varsity at an ever accelerating rate. For the 1989-1990 academic year, there were 547 varsity men’s programs (up from 543) and 294 women’s varsity programs (up from 270).
In the Men’s Division 1 NCAA tournament, the third round saw Rutgers defeat Dartmouth 1-0, Evansville beat Indiana 1-0, North Carolina State defeated defending champion Virginia 1-1 on penalty kicks, and UCLA defeated Southern Methodist 2-0. In the semifinals, Rutgers defeated Evansville 1-0 and UCLA defeated North Carolina 1-0 after two overtime periods and penalty kicks. That didn’t exhaust the Bruins however, as the stamina team of the year then went on to down Rutgers 1-0 after FOUR overtime periods and a round of penalty kicks to take the national championship. Tenacity was their name.
The Women’s Division 1 NCAA tournament saw continuing dominance by North Carolina which had already established themselves as THE dynasty of women’s soccer, a title it holds to this day. In 1990, under coach Anson Dorrance, they were simply unstoppable. In the second round of the tournament, North Carolina defeated North Carolina State 4-3 in overtime, Colorado College defeated Wisconsin, Santa Clara defeated UC Santa Barbara 2-0, and Connecticut downed Virginia 1-0. The semifinals saw North Carolina top Colorado College 2-1 and Connecticut survive through penalty kicks to take Santa Clara 2-0. The Championship was yet another cakewalk for North Carolina who beat Connecticut 6-0.
Division II Men’s champion: Southern Connecticut State defeated Seattle Pacific 1-0 (OT,PK)
Division II Women’s champion: Sonoma State defeated Keene State 2-0.
Division III Men’s champion: Rowan defeated Ohio Weslayen 1-1 (4 OT, PK)
Division III Women’s champion: Ithaca defeated Cortland State 0-0 (4 OT,PK)
NAIA Men’s Champion: West Virginia Weslayen 3, Boca Raton 1
NAIA Women’s Champion: Berry 3, Simon Fraser 1 (OT)
NJCAA Men’s Championship: Yavapai College 2, Passaic County Comm. Coll. 1
NJCAA Women’s Championship: Florissant Valley Community College 1, Farmingdale 0
NCCAA Division 1 Championship: George Fox 1, John Brown 0
NCCAA Division 2 Championship: Baptist Bible College (PA) 3, Tocoa Falls 2 (OT,SD)
Final Men's Division 1 Coaches' Poll: 1. Evansville 2. UCLA 3. Rutgers 4. North Carolina State 5. Clemson 6. St. Louis 7. Santa Clara 8. Dartmouth 9. Indiana 10. Virginia Men's Division 1 College All-Americans: G - Kasey Keller, Portland D - Jeff Agoos, Virginia D - Scott Cannon, Evansville D - Tom Loeber, South Carolina M - Dario Brose, North Carolina State M - Chad Deering, Indiana M - Mark Santel, St. Louis F - Steve Rammel, Rutgers F - Ken Snow, Indiana F - William Thompson, UCLA F - David Weir, Evansville Women's Division 1 NSCAA All-Americans (first team): G - Hether Taggart, Wisconsin D - Julie Foudy, Stanford D - Sandra Gaskill, William & Mary D - Beth Grecco, Connecticut F - Suzanne Baily, Brown F - Brandi Chastain, Santa Clara F - Lisa Cole, Southern Methodist F - Mia Hamm, North Carolina F - Charmaine Hooper, North Carolina State F - April kater, Massachusetts F - Kristine Lilly, North Carolina F - Robin Lotze, William & Mary
Men’s National Award Winners:
Hermann Trophy: Ken Snow, Indiana
Missouri Athletic Club: Ken Snow, Indiana
ISAA Player of the Year: William Thompson, UCLA
ISAA Goalkeeper of the Year: Juergen Sommer, Indiana
NSCAA Coach of the Year (Division 1): Bob Reasso, Rutgers
Women’s National Award Winners:
Hermann Trophy: April Kater, Massachusetts
Other Action
US Open Cup Championship: Chicago A.A.C. defeated Brooklyn Italians (NESSL) 2-1.
National Amateur Cup Championship: St. Petersburg Kickers defeated San Francisco Glens 1-0.
James P. McGuire Cup (U-19 Men): Spartan Randolph Blackhawks, St. Paul, MN
J. Ross Stewart Cup (Women U-19): Springfield (VA) Spirit
D.J. Niotis Cup (Boys U-16): Livonia (MI) Metro Magic Wolves
Patricia Masotto Cup (Girls U-16): Willingboro (NJ) Strikers
North American Nations Cup: Canada defeated the USA 1-0 on 5/6, Mexico defeated the USA 1-0 on 5/10, Canada beat Mexico 2-1 on 5/13. Canada finished first, Mexico 2nd.
North American Club Championship (Pepsi Cup): Vancouver 86ers (CSL) defeated Maryland Bays (APSL), 3-2.
CONCACAF U-20 Championship: The USA finished 1-2. Mexico won the cup with three wins and qualified for World Youth Cup 1991.
CONCACAF Champions Cup: St. Petersburg Kickers entered the competition but lost to America of Mexico 1-0. Club America (Mexico) defeated Pinar del Río (Cuba) 8-2, 6-0 in the final.
Hall of Fame: In 1990, the US Soccer Hall of Fame inducted Bob Kehoe, Shamus O’Brien, Eddie Pearson, and Manny Schellscheidt. The National Intercollegiate Soccer Officials Association (NISOA) Hall of Fame inducted Roy Yarborough.
USSF Players of the Year: Tab Ramos, Michelle Akers-Stahl
Chevrolet/US Soccer Athletes of the Year: Tab Ramos, Michelle Akers-Stahl