Mike Ivanow (born January 9, 1948 in
Shanghai, China
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
) is a retired U.S.
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
who was born in
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
. He spent eight seasons in the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to:
*North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league
*North American Soccer League (2011–2017)
The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...
and was a member of the U.S. soccer team at the
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
. He also earned ten
caps
Caps are flat headgear.
Caps or CAPS may also refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters
* Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...
with the
U.S. national team between 1973 and 1975.
Ivanow attended the
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...
where he played collegiate soccer under renowned coach
Steve Negoesco
Stephen "Steve" Negoesco ( ro, Ștefan Negoescu; September 12, 1925 – February 3, 2019) was a Romanian-American soccer player and coach.
Considered one of college soccer's all-time greatest coaches, he led the University of San Francisco to mo ...
. In 1968, he was an honorable mention as an All American.
In 1967, Ivanow played both Olympic qualifying matches against Bermuda. The U.S. tied Bermuda in Bermuda on May 21. Six days later, it lost in Chicago when Ivanow and his team mates thought the referee had awarded Bermuda an indirect free kick only to discover their mistake as Gladwys Daniels easily scored. Ivanow made it to the Olympics five years later when he was a member of the U.S. team at the
1972 Munich games. He played the first two games, but
Shep Messing
Shep Norman Messing (born October 9, 1949) is a retired American soccer goalkeeper and current broadcaster who works as the lead analyst for New York Red Bulls matches on the MSG Network. In 2021 he took the position of chairman of the Major Arena ...
replaced him in goal for the third game, against host West Germany. In 1973, Ivanow earned his first
cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...
with the senior national team when he came on for
Mike Winter in a 4-0 loss to
Bermuda
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = National song
, song = " Hail to Bermuda"
, image_map =
, map_caption =
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. He went on to play another seven games that year and one in 1974. His last cap came in a 7-0 loss to
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
on March 26, 1975.
USA - Details of International Matches 1970-1979
In 1974, Ivanow became the San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete as a member club of the Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). Originally as the San Jose Clash, the franchise ...
( NASL) starting goalkeeper. In 1975, Ivanow played much of the season injured which dropped his GAA from the 1974 1.53 to 2.15. In 1976, he resumed his outstanding play before falling out of favor with the San Jose front office. He was transferred to the Seattle Sounders
Seattle Sounders Football Club is an American professional men's association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference of Major League Soccer (MLS). The club w ...
after six games. In Seattle, he was the backup goalkeeper to Tony Chursky
Tony Chursky (born June 13, 1953 in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada) is a former Canadian national soccer team and NASL goalkeeper.
Playing career
Chursky grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia and attended Simon Fraser University w ...
. In 1977, Ivanow continued to back up Chursky, but came on for Chursky 17 minutes into the Sounders first post-season game, a victory over Vancouver. He started both games in the series with Minnesota, shutting out the Kicks on August 17. However, Chursky was back in the net for the rest of the post-season, including the Sounders’ loss to the New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to
* New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada)
* New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independe ...
in the 1977 Soccer Bowl. In 1978, Ivanow never made a game-day squad, However, in January 1979, the Sounders traded Chursky to the California Surf
The California Surf were an American Association football, soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (1968–1984), North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1978 North American Soccer League season, 1978 to 1981 North American ...
for Al Trost
Alan Trost (born February 7, 1949) is an American retired soccer midfielder. He played collegiate soccer at Saint Louis University where he won the 1969 and 1970 Hermann Trophy as the player of the year. His professional career includes year ...
. That year, Ivanow came alive, playing 28 games and finishing the season ranked fourth in the league. He was also the primary keeper during the Sounders' 1980-1981 indoor season. He played 15 of the team's 18 games and sixth in the goalkeeper standings. By the 1981 outdoor season, Ivanow was fading. His weight was increasing, decreasing his mobility and he found competition from Paul Hammond who was taking over in goal. At the end of the season, Ivanow retired from the Sounders and the NASL.
Besides playing soccer, Ivanow has been involved in numerous businesses including co-founding and managing a credit union in San Francisco during his time playing with the Earthquakes. Today he is the sales manager for Jaguar of Bellevue.
References
External links
1976 Ivanow Bio
Soccerplayers.com Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ivanow, Mike
1948 births
Living people
Footballers from Shanghai
American soccer players
Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players
NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament Most Outstanding Player winners
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players
San Francisco Dons men's soccer players
San Jose Earthquakes (1974–1988) players
Seattle Sounders (1974–1983) players
Olympic soccer players of the United States
Footballers at the 1972 Summer Olympics
United States men's international soccer players
Wichita Wings (MISL) players
Association football goalkeepers
American people of Russian descent