Post by usasoccerboy on Dec 31, 2022 8:52:37 GMT -6
At 53 years old, I am just barely old enough to remember Pele playing and I remember before I ever got into soccer.
Back in the late 70s, very few people played soccer within the state of Louisiana outside of New Orleans, BR, and Lafayette. It was a time when baseball was still the national pastime, and the NFL was just starting to find their dominance. Basketball had yet to have the Magic vs. Bird moment that began in the NCAA final and so we as Louisiana fans had the Jazz to pull for with Pistol Pete Maravich and Gale Goodrich.
The NASL, was at it's peak, thanks mostly because of the influence and excitement that Pele brought with him when he came out of retirement to play in the USA. Their games would sell over 70,000 tickets and the NASL was starting to make waves in the sporting entertainment world when they would be shown on ABC's Wide World of Sports show. Yet, this popularity was only in areas with NASL teams which meant mostly in north eastern and California west coast areas, with the heart of the country still focused solely on baseball and football.
As a kid, I remember hearing all sorts of anti soccer attitudes and it was common that only weak men played soccer. Pele and NASL began to fight that stereotype.
The thing I remember most about Pele playing, was that his team, the NY Cosmos were a good club that could take on some of the best in the world since they had greats like Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto as well as their best player on the team and maybe the league, Georgio Chinaglia. To this day, I can say the best goal I ever saw ever was a Cosmos goal that had a left wing volley cross to the right wing who himself volleyed a cross to the middle of a diving striker who hit the ball in mid air with the sole of his foot in what looked like a diving scorpion kick that went over the goal keepers hands and head in the center top of the goal.
Pele's influence in the states outlasted the demise of the NASL in the doldrums of the soccer days in the 80s. What was supposed to be an end to the soccer movement had produced seeds of development in the USA which paid off in the college ranks that eventually gave rise to the 1990 World Cup qualifying side. Pele's influence was the catalyst that got soccer started in this country beyond the immigrant pockets of this country. He did it with dignity in that he was always available to media despite being a star who hung out with the most popular people in the world of that time.
Pele was also the first mega sports superstar of the world. He was not just a star in his own country. He was an innovator who changed the game and opened the game up to hot dog play which was kind of going on in the basketball world when Pistol Pete was in college and guys like Dr. J were hooping it up.
But, Pele's biggest contribution was that he made Brazil a powerhouse. The story is that as an eight year old, he saw his father cry after Brazil lost the 1950 WC. He told his father not to cry because he would win a World Cup for Brazil. It didn't take long as he did it at 17 in 1958, and again in 1962, and 1970. We seem to think of Brazil as this giant, but before they had this idea of themselves as always being on the losing side and Pele changed that. He almost made Brazil invincible. In fact, it was Pele’s popularity that instilled pride into the country to develop into a modern power. The only complaint against Pele was that he did not take political sides against Brazil’s despotic dictatorship that killed innocent citizens for political purposes. Pele stayed out of politics all of his life and some held that against him.
So, do yourself a favor and watch the movie Victory. Remember that Pele was more influential to American soccer than probably any American ever and that his love for the game made it grow to what it is today. .
Back in the late 70s, very few people played soccer within the state of Louisiana outside of New Orleans, BR, and Lafayette. It was a time when baseball was still the national pastime, and the NFL was just starting to find their dominance. Basketball had yet to have the Magic vs. Bird moment that began in the NCAA final and so we as Louisiana fans had the Jazz to pull for with Pistol Pete Maravich and Gale Goodrich.
The NASL, was at it's peak, thanks mostly because of the influence and excitement that Pele brought with him when he came out of retirement to play in the USA. Their games would sell over 70,000 tickets and the NASL was starting to make waves in the sporting entertainment world when they would be shown on ABC's Wide World of Sports show. Yet, this popularity was only in areas with NASL teams which meant mostly in north eastern and California west coast areas, with the heart of the country still focused solely on baseball and football.
As a kid, I remember hearing all sorts of anti soccer attitudes and it was common that only weak men played soccer. Pele and NASL began to fight that stereotype.
The thing I remember most about Pele playing, was that his team, the NY Cosmos were a good club that could take on some of the best in the world since they had greats like Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto as well as their best player on the team and maybe the league, Georgio Chinaglia. To this day, I can say the best goal I ever saw ever was a Cosmos goal that had a left wing volley cross to the right wing who himself volleyed a cross to the middle of a diving striker who hit the ball in mid air with the sole of his foot in what looked like a diving scorpion kick that went over the goal keepers hands and head in the center top of the goal.
Pele's influence in the states outlasted the demise of the NASL in the doldrums of the soccer days in the 80s. What was supposed to be an end to the soccer movement had produced seeds of development in the USA which paid off in the college ranks that eventually gave rise to the 1990 World Cup qualifying side. Pele's influence was the catalyst that got soccer started in this country beyond the immigrant pockets of this country. He did it with dignity in that he was always available to media despite being a star who hung out with the most popular people in the world of that time.
Pele was also the first mega sports superstar of the world. He was not just a star in his own country. He was an innovator who changed the game and opened the game up to hot dog play which was kind of going on in the basketball world when Pistol Pete was in college and guys like Dr. J were hooping it up.
But, Pele's biggest contribution was that he made Brazil a powerhouse. The story is that as an eight year old, he saw his father cry after Brazil lost the 1950 WC. He told his father not to cry because he would win a World Cup for Brazil. It didn't take long as he did it at 17 in 1958, and again in 1962, and 1970. We seem to think of Brazil as this giant, but before they had this idea of themselves as always being on the losing side and Pele changed that. He almost made Brazil invincible. In fact, it was Pele’s popularity that instilled pride into the country to develop into a modern power. The only complaint against Pele was that he did not take political sides against Brazil’s despotic dictatorship that killed innocent citizens for political purposes. Pele stayed out of politics all of his life and some held that against him.
So, do yourself a favor and watch the movie Victory. Remember that Pele was more influential to American soccer than probably any American ever and that his love for the game made it grow to what it is today. .