NASL Final 1968 was 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 ...

's postseason championship final of the 1968 season, and the first championship final for the NASL. The event was contested in a two-game aggregate match between the

Atlanta Chiefs The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1967 and the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1968 to 1973 and again from 19 ...

and the

San Diego Toros The San Diego Toros were a professional soccer team based in San Diego, California. Founded in 1967 as the Los Angeles Toros, the team was one of the ten charter members of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL). When the NPSL and th ...

. The first leg was played to a, 0–0, draw on September 21, 1968, at

Balboa Stadium Balboa Stadium is an American football and soccer stadium on the west coast of the United States, located in San Diego, California. Just east of San Diego High School, the original stadium was built in 1914 as part of the 1915 Panama–California ...

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

. The return leg was contested on September 28, 1968, at

Atlanta Stadium Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

with the Chiefs winning by the score of 3–0. After the two-day competition was completed, the Atlanta Chiefs held a 3–0 aggregate lead and were crowned the 1968 NASL champions.

Background

The Atlanta Chiefs qualified for the playoffs by virtue of winning the Atlantic Division with 174 points. They faced the Lakes Division champion

Cleveland Stokers The Cleveland Stokers were a soccer team based in Cleveland, Ohio that played in the United Soccer Association during 1967 and the North American Soccer League in 1968. Their home field was Cleveland Stadium. History United Soccer Association In ...

in a two-game aggregate match for the Eastern Conference championship. The first game was played on September 11 and ended in a, 1–1, draw. The second leg, played on September 14, also finished regulation at 1–1, but the Chiefs were able to score in overtime to win the Eastern Conference title and advance to the finals.Soccer history: Atlanta Chiefs
by Clemente Lisi on US Soccer Players, 20 Aug 2018 The San Diego Toros qualified for the playoffs by virtue of winning the Pacific Division with 186 points. They faced the Gulf Division champion

Kansas City Spurs The Kansas City Spurs were an United States, American professional soccer team who played in the North American Soccer League (1968-1984), North American Soccer League, based in Kansas City, Missouri. They played their home games at Kansas City M ...

in a two-game aggregate match for the Western Conference championship. Like the other match played that day, the first leg ended in a, 1–1, draw on September 11. After 90 minutes of regulation the second leg ended with neither team able to score. The September 16 match moved into overtime, and then into a second overtime before Toros' reserve Novak Tomić scored in 118th minute to end it. The victory gave San Diego the Western Conference title and advanced them to the finals.

Series summary

Match details

First leg

Assistant referees:
Artie Wachter
John GreenhalghNorth American Soccer League Championship, Leg 1 program, published September 1968 Television:

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...

Announcers:

Mario Machado Mário Machado (born Mário José de Souza Machado; April 22, 1935 – May 4, 2013) was a Portuguese-Chinese-American television and radio broadcaster and actor. He made television history when, in 1970, he became the first American of Chine ...

Clive Toye Clive Roy Toye (born Devonport, Plymouth, 23 November 1932) was inducted to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in the United States in 2003. Toye was born in Plymouth, United Kingdom, to Thomas Roy Toye (1906–65) and Irene Turner. He was a sport ...

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Second leg

1968 NASL Champions:

Assistant referees: Television:

Announcers:

References

{{1968 in American soccer

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...