What if we took the US Men’s National Team and dropped them into Major League Soccer as a standalone team?
It’s been done. Sort of. It didn’t go well.
The latest episode of Soccer Rewind is the story of Team America, the North American Soccer League franchise that aimed to prepare the US for the 1984 Olympics and the 1986 World Cup. Midfielder Perry Van Der Beck, who was the first high school player ever to be drafted by an NASL club, took a leap of faith and left a starting role with the glamorous Tampa Bay Rowdies to play for his country in an experiment that was short-lived and not repeated.
You’ll hear Perry’s story, his highs and lows and the behind-the-scenes of why Team America didn’t work, framed by the June 12, 1983 match at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC against the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.
THANK YOU to everyone who has watched the first four videos! (Apologies for the gap – more videos are coming.) If you missed the others, you can catch up on Episode 1 here, Episode 2 here, Episode 3 here and Episode 4 here.) It would also be great if you subscribed to the YouTube channel or liked the Facebook page or Instagram account.
First, check out the video below. The show notes follow.
SHOW NOTES:
- Here’s the Reader’s Digest condensed book version of Team America’s short life, from Fun While It Lasted.
- Pablo Maurer wrote an interesting piece about TA for The Athletic as well.
- For a really deep dive into that tumultuous 1983 season for Team America, check out this two-part series from (the apparently zombie) A Moment of Brilliance.
- Perry now helps run the Tampa Bay Soccer Hall of Fame, which you should definitely check out.
- An anecdote that didn’t make the final cut did become a YouTube short – check it out!
- The story is no longer online, but if you can find the March 7, 1983 issue of Sports Illustrated, there’s a story on Team America in it.
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