1984 North American Soccer League season

Soccer league season February 2023 February 2023 North American Soccer League 1984 season 1984 9 Chicago Sting (2nd title) Chicago Sting most total points *San Diego best Won/Loss record 108 YUG Steve Zungul (20 goals) 427 52,621 Tampa Bay at Minnesota (May 28) 2,267 Tampa Bay at San Diego (August 12) 10,759 1983 The 1984 North American Soccer League season was the 72nd season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer, the 17th with a national first-division league, in the United States and Canada. It was the 17th and final season of the NASL. Changes from the previous season New teams None Teams folding Montreal Manic Seattle Sounders Team America Teams moving Fort Lauderdale to Minnesota Name changes None Map of clubs left 10px Eastern Division 10px Western Division 1090 500 300 425 370 North America 870 North America 41.86 -87.62 Blue pog.svg 80 bottom Sting North America 40.81 -74.08 Blue pog.svg 80 right Cosmos North America 27.98 -82.50 Blue pog.svg 80 left Rowdies North America 43.66 -79.39 Blue pog.svg 80 top Blizzard North America 37.32 -121.87 Red pog.svg 80 left Earthquakes North America 44.97 -93.26 Red pog.svg 80 bottom Strikers North America 32.78 -117.12 Red pog.svg 80 bottom Sockers North America 36.15 -95.94 Red pog.svg 80 bottom Roughnecks North America 49.28 -123.03 Red pog.svg 80 right Whitecaps Season recap By 1983, the NASL had shrunk to half of the 24 teams that made up the league in 1980. The ongoing salary war with the Major Indoor Soccer League had taken its toll, along with shrinking attendance and a lack of interest from American network TV broadcasters.Miranda Randy Soccer: It flourishes for participants, but suffers at gate December 18, 1983 Lakeland Ledger https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=DKlOAAAAIBAJ&pg=6594,823438&dq=nasl&hl=en 6C 2012-06-04 The league made plans to have both an outdoor and indoor presence, with a 24-game outdoor season and 40-game indoor season scheduled for 1984 and beyond.Must Play in '84, Sting Is Told February 10, 1984 The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/10/sports/must-play-in-84-sting-is-told.html 2012-06-04 The off-season following the 1983 outdoor playoffs saw three more teams fall by the wayside: the Montreal Manic,Phillips Randy Molson Sounds Last Call For Manic November 5, 1983 Montreal Gazette https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=E6AkAAAAIBAJ&pg=1092,2204992&dq=nasl&hl=en H-2 2012-06-04 Seattle SoundersSeattle Sounders folding September 9, 1983 The Spokesman-Review https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gPhLAAAAIBAJ&pg=2945,2866604&dq=seattle+sounders&hl=en C1 2012-06-04 and Team AmericaNASL President Denies Team America Disbanded September 9, 1983 Palm Beach Post https://www.newspapers.com/image/135049436/?terms=Team%2BAmerica D2 2012-06-04 would all fold. The Fort Lauderdale Strikers decided to move to Minnesota because of a lack of suitable indoor arenas in Southeastern Florida.Marmor Jon Strikers' Departure Is Official December 1, 1983 Palm Beach Post https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vQEtAAAAIBAJ&pg=2997,502674&dq=lauderdale+strikers&hl=en D1 2012-06-04 July 2026 InternetArchiveBot Things had gotten so bad for the league that the champion Tulsa Roughnecks almost folded two weeks after winning the Soccer Bowl. They survived, thanks to a fundraiser that put $65,000 in the team's coffers.NASL results: 1 team lost, 1 team saved November 5, 1983 Milwaukee Journal https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=E24aAAAAIBAJ&pg=6950,2649450&dq=roughnecks&hl=en 12 2012-06-04 July 2026 InternetArchiveBot The league would soldier on with nine teams. While there would not be huge changes on the field, the single game Soccer Bowl would be no more. The league moved to a best-of-three championship series format, as was done back in the 1971 Final.NASL changes Soccer Bowl format September 27, 1983 St. Petersburg Times https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HLlaAAAAIBAJ&pg=6192,3664752&dq=nasl+soccer&hl=en 6C 2012-06-04 The revised NASL playoff format had the two division winners and the two next best teams qualify. The four teams would be seeded 1 through 4.N.A.S.L. Revises Playoff Format March 14, 1984 The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/1984/03/14/sports/nasl-revises-playoff-format.html 2012-06-04 When the season finally got underway in May, the nine teams were bunched together for most of the year as six teams finished within five points of each other. A hoped-for renaissance in New York never materialized, as the return of former Cosmos coach Eddie Firmani did not lead the team back to the playoffs. Rumors about a possible return by Pelé proved to be without merit. However, not everyone struggled on the field. In Oakland, Steve Zungul and Branko Segota were able to translate their talents from the MISL to the outdoor game, finishing 1–2 in the league's scoring race. Zungul would earn league MVP honors despite the Golden Bay Earthquakes' last-place finish. For the fifth time (and second year in a row), the NASL's points system rewarded a team other than the one with the best record (Chicago instead of San Diego) the regular season title and number one playoff seed. Moreover, Toronto and Minnesota also had better won-loss records than Chicago. Minnesota would not even qualify for the playoffs, despite having a better record than both Chicago and Vancouver.http://homepages.sover.net/~spectrum/year/1984.html The Year in American Soccer - 1984 2012-06-05 https://web.archive.org/web/20130713140618/http://homepages.sover.net/~spectrum/year/1984.html 2013-07-13 dead The Chicago Sting won the last NASL title with a two-game sweep over the Toronto Blizzard.Sting wins Soccer Bowl October 4, 1984 Milwaukee Sentinel https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gntQAAAAIBAJ&pg=3062,719443&dq=sting&hl=en B2 2012-06-04 The Sting needed a last-second victory over the Cosmos in their regular season finale to qualify for the playoffsYannis Alex COSMOS LOSE TO STING AND MISS PLAYOFFS September 16, 1984 The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/16/sports/cosmos-lose-to-sting-and-miss-playoffs.html E11 2012-06-04 and knock New York out. In the playoffs they won a deciding game over the Vancouver Whitecaps, who themselves only made the playoffs thanks to the Cosmos' loss. Vancouver's Bob Lenarduzzi scored the quickest goal in NASL playoff history 46 seconds into the match, but Chicago rallied for the win.Sting advances to NASL finals September 29, 1984 Milwaukee Sentinel https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=bJNSAAAAIBAJ&pg=4911,5515615&dq=nasl&hl=en B5 2012-06-04 There were still plans for a 1985 outdoor season as the year ended, but the departures of Chicago Sting, Minnesota Strikers, New York Cosmos and the San Diego Sockers to the MISL for the indoor season made that difficult.MISL takes four NASL teams August 31, 1984 Boca Raton News https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YaZYAAAAIBAJ&pg=4506,9574674&dq=nasl+misl&hl=en 2C 2012-06-04 The Cosmos left both the NASL and MISL on February 22.Cosmos pull out of MISL, NASL February 23, 1985 Ellensburg Daily Record https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oJlUAAAAIBAJ&pg=3301,5767072&dq=cosmos&hl=en 11 2012-06-02 A month later, on March 28, 1985, the NASL suspended operations when only Toronto and Minnesota were interested in fielding teams for a 1985 "outdoor" season.NASL down to two teams, won't play this season March 29, 1985 Eugene Register-Guard https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=t_RjAAAAIBAJ&pg=4003,7171376&dq=nasl&hl=en 2D 2012-06-04"NASL suspends operations for 1985" page 1D Minneapolis Star and Tribune March 29, 1985 Regular season W = Wins, L = Losses, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, BP = Bonus Points, Pts= point system 6 points for a win, 4 points for a shootout win, 0 points for a loss, 1 point for each regulation goal scored up to three per game. #B3B7FF darkgray-Premiers (most points). #BBEBFF darkgray-Best record. #ccffcc darkgray-Other playoff team. #ffebad darkgray-Tied for best record but did not qualify for playoffs. Eastern Division W L GF GA BP Pts Home RoadChicago Sting13115049441206-67-5Toronto Blizzard 14104633351179-35-7New York Cosmos13114342391159-34-8Tampa Bay Rowdies9154361 35879-30-12 Western Division W L GF GA BP Pts Home Road San Diego Sockers1410514240118 9-35-7Vancouver Whitecaps131151484311710-23-9Minnesota Strikers14104044351158-46-6Tulsa Roughnecks1014424638988-42-10Golden Bay Earthquakes816616249954-84-8 Scoring Leaders GP = Games Played, G = Goals (worth 2 points), A = Assists (worth 1 point), Pts = Points Player Team GP G A Pts YUG Steve Zungul Golden Bay Earthquakes 24 20 10 50 CAN Branko Šegota Golden Bay Earthquakes 24 18 11 47 ENG Ron Futcher Tulsa Roughnecks 23 18 8 44 GER Karl-Heinz Granitza Chicago Sting 24 16 12 44 ENG Peter Ward Vancouver Whitecaps 24 16 10 42 USA Ade Coker San Diego Sockers 22 16 7 39 RSA 1928 David Byrne Toronto Blizzard 20 12 13 37 ENG Alan Willey Minnesota Strikers 24 15 4 34 GER Jean Willrich San Diego Sockers 22 5 20 30 ITA Roberto Bettega Toronto Blizzard 23 8 13 29 Leading Goalkeepers Note: GP = Games played; Min - Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; SO = Shutouts Player Team GP Min GA GAA W L SO ENG Paul Hammond Toronto Blizzard 21 1937 25 1.16 14 7 7GER Hubert Birkenmeier New York Cosmos 22 2007 34 1.50 13 9 2CAN Tino Lettieri Minnesota Strikers 18 1622 28 1.55 10 8 4USA Victor Nogueira Chicago Sting 18 1663 30 1.62 9 9 3 USA Winston DuBose Tulsa Roughnecks 22 1931 38 1.77 10 12 4ENG Paul Bradshaw Vancouver Whitecaps 24 2161 46 1.92 13 11 4USA Jim Gorsek San Diego Sockers 15 1369 32 2.10 7 7 0 USA Arnie Mausser Tampa Bay Rowdies 23 2100 57 2.44 9 14 3NIR Bill Irwin Golden Bay Earthquakes 21 1964 54 2.48 7 14 2 All-NASL Teams First Team   Position   Second Team Honorable MentionGER Hubert Birkenmeier, New York GENG Paul Hammond, TorontoENG Paul Bradshaw, VancouverIRN Andranik Eskandarian, New York DNED Dwight Lodeweges, Minnesota USA Gregg Thompson, Tampa BayNED Johan Neeskens, New York DNIR Victor Moreland, TulsaUSA Fernando Clavijo, Golden BayUSA Kevin Crow, San Diego DCAN Bob Lenarduzzi, VancouverUSA Dan Canter, New YorkCAN Bruce Wilson, Toronto DCAN Terry Moore, Tulsa ENG Barry Wallace, MinnesotaENG Ray Hudson, Minnesota MARG Pato Margetic, Chicago POL Kaz Deyna, San DiegoNED Frans Thijssen, Vancouver MNIR Jimmy Nicholl, TorontoUSA Brian Quinn, San DiegoYUG Vladislav Bogićević, New York MIRL Fran O'Brien, Vancouver RSA 1928 Ace Ntsoelengoe, TorontoYUG Steve Zungul, Golden Bay FENG Alan Willey, MinnesotaCAN Carl Valentine, VancouverGER Karl-Heinz Granitza, Chicago FCAN Branko Šegota, Golden BayPAR Roberto Cabañas, New YorkENG Peter Ward, Vancouver FRSA 1928 David Byrne, TorontoENG Ron Futcher, Tulsa Playoffs Top team from each division qualified automatically. The next two teams with the highest point totals qualified regardless of which division they were in.https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=950&dat=19840428&id=EaBSAAAAIBAJ&sjid=V30DAAAAIBAJ&pg=6993,3735642 The Evening Independent - Google News Archive Search Bracket 25 150px SemifinalsBest-of-3 Soccer Bowl Series '84Best-of-3 1 Chicago Sting 0 3 4 4 Vancouver Whitecaps 1 1 3 2 San Diego Sockers 1 0 – 3 Toronto Blizzard 2 1 – 1 Chicago Sting 2 3 – 3 Toronto Blizzard 1 2 – Semifinals Higher seedSeriesLower seedGame 1Game 2Game 3*(higher seed hosts Games 1 and 3)Chicago Sting 2 - 1 Vancouver Whitecaps 0–1 (OT) 3–1 4–3 September 18 • Comiskey Park • 5,484September 23 • BC Place Stadium • 14,753September 28 • Comiskey Park • 10,139San Diego Sockers 0 - 2 Toronto Blizzard 1–2 0–1 x September 18 • Jack Murphy Stadium • 4,204September 21 • Varsity Stadium • 12,460 Soccer Bowl Series '84 Soccer Bowl '84 white Higher seedwhite Serieswhite Lower seedwhite Game 1white Game 2white Game 3white *(higher seed hosts Games 1 and 3)Chicago Sting 2 - 0 Toronto Blizzard 2–1 3–2 x October 1 • Comiskey Park • 8,352October 3 • Varsity Stadium • 16,842 Game One October 1 Chicago Sting 2–1 Toronto Blizzard Margetic 50:06 Seninho, GranitzaRojas 85:20 Seninho Wilson 15:23 Byrne, DeLucca Comiskey Park, Chicagohttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=aeJHAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9_8MAAAAIBAJ&pg=3034,181174&dq=toye+sting+champions&hl=en Record-Journal - Google News Archive Search 8,352 David Socha (USA)NASL Soccer Bowl 84 - Game 1 (Sting vs. Blizzard) - First Half - YouTube YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i85DTQa_m5s https://web.archive.org/web/20140106211520/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i85DTQa_m5s 2014-01-06 live 2013-06-29 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te2aKJWEpLQ NASL Soccer Bowl 84 - Game 1 (Sting vs. Blizzard) - Second Half YouTube Game Two October 3 Toronto Blizzard 2–3 Chicago Sting Paskin 70:55 NtsoelengoeBettega 72:28 Byrne, Ntsoelengoe Simanton 16:47 GranitzaMargetic 67:58 Gray, RojasMargetic 81:33 Rojas Varsity Stadium, Torontohttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=E3UfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DHIFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1307,762232&dq=margetic+leads+sting&hl=en The Day - Google News Archive Search 16,842https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ViozAAAAIBAJ&sjid=RO8FAAAAIBAJ&pg=1393,1734763&dq=sting+champs+again&hl=en Ottawa Citizen - Google News Archive Search Bill Maxwell (USA)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8acj_s5FciE NASL Soccer Bowl 84 - Game 2 (Sting at Blizzard) - First Half YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U73iltcza7U NASL Soccer Bowl 84 - Game 2 (Sting at Blizzard) - Second Half YouTube 1984 NASL Champions: Chicago Sting Playoff Scoring Leaders GP = Games Played, G = Goals (worth 2 points), A = Assists (worth 1 point), Pts = Points Player Team GP G A PtsARG Pato Margetic Chicago Sting 5 6 1 13GER Karl-Heinz Granitza Chicago Sting 5 3 6 12CHI Manny Rojas Chicago Sting 5 2 3 7RSA 1928 Ace Ntsoelengoe Toronto Blizzard 4 1 3 5 RSA 1928 David Byrne Toronto Blizzard 4 1 2 4 ITA Roberto Bettega Toronto Blizzard 4 1 2 4 Playoff Leading Goalkeepers Note: GP = Games played; Min - Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; SO = Shutouts Player Team GP Min GA GAA W L SOENG Paul Hammond Toronto Blizzard 4 360 6 1.50 2 2 1HUN Zoltan Toth San Diego Sockers 2 180 3 1.50 0 2 0 USA Victor Nogueira Chicago Sting 5 459 8 1.60 4 1 0 ENG Paul Bradshaw Vancouver Whitecaps 3 279 7 2.33 1 2 0 Post season awards Most Valuable Player: YUG Steve Zungul, Golden Bay Coach Of The Year: ENG Ron Newman, San Diego Rookie Of The Year: USA Roy Wegerle, Tampa Bay North American Player of the Year: CAN Branko Šegota, Golden Bayhttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VM1jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cAENAAAAIBAJ&pg=1813,6450390&dq=soccer+reviews+varied&hl=en Record-Journal - Google News Archive Search Team Attendance Totals ClubGamesTotalAverageVancouver Whitecaps12182,49415,208Minnesota Strikers12171,15114,263New York Cosmos12153,80712,817Toronto Blizzard12137,42011,452Tampa Bay Rowdies12131,19410,933Golden Bay Earthquakes12123,38310,282Chicago Sting12100,5128,376Tulsa Roughnecks1293,5677,797San Diego Sockers1268,4225,702OVERALL1081,161,95010,759 References NASL: A Complete Record of the North American Soccer League Jose Colin Breedon Books 1989 Derby, England North American Soccer League Encyclopedia Jose Colin St. Johann Press 2003 Haworth, NJ External links The Year in American Soccer – 1984 Chris Page's NASL Archive Complete Results and Standings Category:North American Soccer League (1968–1984) seasons Category:1984 in American soccer leagues Category:1984 in Canadian soccer