Written by Jack Huckel on May 3, 2012 | 9 Comments »
Posted in General, History and Books

The North American Soccer league imported many players in the 70s who were among the best in the world; Pele, Beckenbauer, Cruyff, George Best, Gerd Mueller,  my personal favorite, Patrick ‘Ace” Ntsoelengoe, and others who were World Cup Champions, European Champions, Copa Libertadores champions.

But perhaps none was a bigger personality or longer lasting on the American stage than Giorgio. The outspoken Italian  began his professional soccer life in Wales, before returning to Italy and Lazio, the Italian National Team and the 1974 World Cup, and then, concluding one illustrious and controversial career and beginning another with the New York Cosmos.

In recent times Giorgio combined with Charlie Stillitano, who grew up in the shadow of Giants Stadium and the awesomeness of the Cosmos aura, to present an international soccer talk and call-in show in the United States on SiriusXM. Giorgio, as always, was more than willing to share his unfettered opinions on a range of subjects across the soccer world.

His endless supply of anecdotes from the past and observations on the present were always interesting, often caused debate, and always were good listening. “Let’s be honest” or “I’ll be honest” were his common refrains and his commentary was unblinkingly so!

Perhaps it is the Giorgios of the sports world our sport is missing. The major sports all have their respective “shock jocks” on various media platforms across the country. There is no lack of pontification about the NFL or college football, the NBA or college basketball, or Major League Baseball.

Was Giorgio providing a service, albeit with limited market penetration, that we demonstrably need? Eric Wynalda of Fox Soccer Channel and Alexi Lalas of ESPN have skirted along the margins of controversy (well Eric has a little more than skirted) but neither has consistently invoked the ire and reaction among fans and pros alike that Giorgio did.

So I wonder if we need the next Giorgio to step up and, we, the fans of the greatest game, need to clamor for someone we can debate, disagree with, detest or love, or more than simply listen to on a major media outlet. Anyone listening?

Another sad note: One of the Cosmos top newsman/reporters, Ike Kuhns, passed away recently as well. Ike was awarded the National Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum’s Colin Jose Media Award in 2008. He was popular and highly regarded by both his peers and the general public. Among his many possessions at the time of his honor was an impressive and highly valued collection of World Series programs. 

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Written by Jack Huckel on March 1, 2012 | 2 Comments »
Posted in History and Books

On May 27, 1934 the U.S. lined up against Italy for the first time. Most significantly it was the first match for the U.S. in the FIFA World Cup of that year, but for me the story of the tournament for the U.S. was the player who scored against Italy, Aldo ‘Buff’ Donelli.

A native of the Pittsburgh area, Buff was an outstanding forward with good speed and a strong shot. He had played for several teams in the area, most prominently the Morgan Soccer Club. Read the rest of this entry »

Written by Jack Huckel on January 12, 2012 | 6 Comments »
Posted in History and Books, MLS

Yes, we did! The American Soccer League played on the FIFA calendar, beginning the competitive year in September and concluding the season in May.

Using the well-researched, exquisitely detailed and documented Bethlehem Steel website, one can track the seasons of that perennial champion. The typical game schedule over the years included Christmas Day and New Year’s Day matches.

As one might imagine, not every scheduled game was played. For example the January 1, 1927 match was canceled “…because of the bad condition of the field. Every effort was made to put the ice-covered field in shape for the game. Steel harrows, scrapers and even picks and shovels were tried to make the ground fit for the contest, but the local management was compelled to call the game off. Sheets of ice and water have rendered the field unfit and dangerous.”

An overview of the years the team operated, from 1909 to 1930, shows there were, on average, one or two games postponed each year.

So, could Major League Soccer adopt the FIFA calendar, as Sepp Blatter has suggested?

The history indicates that it is possible. If the teams of the American Soccer League could play through the winter months in the Northeast, it seems entirely reasonable to think today’s teams could do the same.

Today’s pitches are constructed with subsurface heating systems, sophisticated coverings, and well-trained grounds crews, so the fields, the primary reason for cancelled matches in the teens and 20s, could be maintained well and field cancellations minimized.

The big challenge for today’s clubs is: Would the fans turn out on a 20-degree day in January?

They turn out in England and Scotland for winter games as do our diehard NFL fans. For these leagues the cold weather games are a long tradition and, in fact, the matches during the Christmas and New Year’s holiday are some of the best attended.

Are soccer fans in the United States and Canada any less hardy?

Probably not, but is that the right question? Are today’s MLS fans so committed to their respective clubs that the league could maintain the record per game attendance it set in 2011? Each one of us will form our own conclusion about that question.

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