The Hamilton Steelers were a Canadian soccer team in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a Canada 2016 Census, population of 569,353, and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington, ...

that competed in the original Canadian Soccer League, the original Canadian Professional Soccer League, National Soccer League and the

Challenge Trophy The Challenge Trophy (french: Trophée Challenge) is a national amateur soccer cup in Canada contested by the champions of individual provincial soccer competitions. It is one of the oldest soccer competitions in Canada, being held since 1913. ...

. The club played mainly out of

Brian Timmis Stadium Brian Timmis Stadium was a soccer stadium in Hamilton, Ontario. The stadium was built in 1968, and seated 5,000 people. The stadium most recently hosted association football (soccer) teams Hamilton Croatia, a Canadian Soccer League club, and th ...

, which was adjacent to

Ivor Wynne Stadium Ivor Wynne Stadium (formerly Civic Stadium) was a Canadian football stadium located at the corner of Balsam and Beechwood avenues, two blocks west of Gage Avenue North in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The stadium was the home of the Hamilton Tiger ...

History

Pre-history

In 1954, the Hamilton Italo-Canadian Soccer Club was founded and in 1958, they joined the National Soccer League. In 1961, the team changed names and became known as the Hamilton Steelers and moved to the

Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League The Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada. The league operated for six seasons from 1961 to 1966 across four cities in two Canadian provinces and one American state. In the 1960s, the Eastern Canada Professional ...

. In 1964, the club was renamed the Hamilton Primos Soccer Club and returned to the NSL in 1967 following the NSL-ECPSL amalgamation. The club folded after the 1967 season.

Club history

National Soccer League (NSL)
This edition of the Hamilton Steelers was formed in 1981 by Mario DiBartolomeo and joined the National Soccer League. The team was an off-shoot of the Hamilton Italo-Canadians that had competed in the NSL from 1972 to 1979, after which they had taken a leave of absence. When DiBartolemeo's partners decided to not return, he formed the Steelers on his own in 1981, choosing the name to give the club more of a Canadian identity. They captured the league triple crown in their inaugural season in the NSL winning the regular season, playoff, and league cup titles. In 1982, they finished in second place during the regular season, but advanced to the playoff championship final where they defeated Toronto Italia to win their second consecutive title. Canadian Professional Soccer League (CPSL)
In 1983, the Steelers decided to join the new national professional league, Canadian Professional Soccer League. Their first match was on May 22 against the Edmonton Eagles, in which they were defeated by the visiting side 2-1 in front of approximately 4,000 fans at

. After several draws and losses, the Steelers won their first game in the CPSL on June 15, when they defeated Inter-Montréal. This league proved to be unsuccessful, unable to complete its first season fully, lasting only 73 days in total. After two teams, folded mid-season, the remaining teams suspended the remainder of the season, and initiated a playoffs to determine a champion. After finishing in second at the time of the regular season suspension, Hamilton defeated Mississauga Croatia in the semi-finals, before falling to the Edmonton Eagles in the championship match. The Steelers fielded a reserve team in the NSL and some players returned to play for the NSL Steelers after the CPSL folded mid-season. Return to Amateur and Challenge Trophy
Following the CPSL folding in 1983, the Steelers returned to the amateur league and won the 1986

Ontario Cup The Ontario Cup is a soccer tournament for clubs based in the province of Ontario in Canada. It began play in 1901 under the Ontario Football Association League, now known as the Ontario Soccer Association, and is the oldest association football ...

as provincial champions. As a result, they qualified for the national tournament, where they won the 1986

after defeating Vancouver Croatia 1-0 in the final.The Hamilton Steelers also won the

, Canada's national amateur soccer cup in 1986. Hamilton also played in the Inter-City Soccer League in 1986 where they won the league

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

(McGuiness Trophy & Hiram Walker Cup). Canadian Soccer League
In 1987, they returned to professional status, joining the new national Canadian Soccer League as one of the original eight teams. In the league's inaugural season, they won the East Division and advanced to the playoff final where they were defeated by Calgary. This began a recurring pattern for Hamilton. During the 1988 and 1989 seasons, they repeated as East Division champions, and advanced to the championship finals, where they were defeated by the

Vancouver 86ers Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...

both years. In 1990, they failed to win their division for the first time, but they nevertheless advanced to the CSL Championship final for the fourth consecutive year, but for the third year in a row, they were defeated by the 86ers. Following the retirement of league commissioner Dale Barnes in 1991, Steelers owner Mario DiBartolomeo became the interim league president ahead of the 1991 season. In 1991, the Steelers failed to advance to the championship final for the first time, losing in the semi-finals. Following the 1991 season, the club folded due to financial difficulties, despite offers of cost sharing with the Vancouver and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

team owners. Future of Hamilton soccer
In 2019, professional soccer returned to the city of Hamilton with the founding of the

Canadian Premier League The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; french: Première ligue canadienne, links=no) is a professional men's soccer league in Canada. At the top of the Canadian soccer league system, it is the country's primary national soccer league compe ...

. The ''Hamilton Steelers'' name had been trademarked as a potential name for the franchise, which was ultimately named

Forge FC Forge FC is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Hamilton, Ontario, that competes in the Canadian Premier League, the top tier of Canadian soccer. The club plays its home matches at Tim Hortons Field. Forge FC joined the CPL in 2019 as ...

Seasons

Notable players

References