Ruben Mendoza
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Ruben Michael Mendoza (June 2, 1931 – April 11, 2010) was an American
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 ...
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...
who was a dominant player in the St. Louis leagues during the 1950s and 1960s. He earned four caps with the U.S. national team and was a member of the 1952 U.S. Olympic, 1956 U.S. Olympic and 1960 U.S. Olympic teams.


Youth

Although he was born in
St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
, Mendoza's family moved to the
Mexican state The states of Mexico are first-level administrative territorial entities of the country of Mexico, which is officially named Mexico, United Mexican States. There are 32 federal entities in Mexico (31 states and the capital, Mexico City, as a sepa ...
of
Durango Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in ...
when he was eight. Mendoza began playing street soccer, as most young boys did at the time, while living in Durango. However, he eventually joined an organized team, the Atlante' Juniors team, going on to win the championship title in 1946. When he was 16, Mendoza returned to the U.S. where he settled in his home town of Granite City, IL. Upon his return to the St Louis area he played for many local teams until he landed a spot with Zenthoefer Furs in 1951.


St. Louis leagues

Mendoza played ten seasons in the St. Louis Major League, St. Louis Municipal League and
St. Louis Soccer League The St. Louis Soccer League was based in St. Louis, Missouri and existed from 1915 to 1938. At its founding, it was the only fully professional soccer league in the United States. The league was founded from two teams from the St. Louis Soccer F ...
with
Zenthoefer Furs Zenthoefer Furs were an amateur U.S. soccer club which played in St. Louis, Missouri during the late 1940s and early 1950s. They had played as a junior squad named Schumachers in the 1947-48 season where they fell short of national honors when they ...
, St. Louis Raiders and St. Louis Kutis between 1951 and 1960. A prolific goal scorer, he spent most of his years either on the left wing or as a
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...
where he had a reputation for skillful and accurate headers. Wearing the number 10 jersey, he was known throughout the league for his ability to perform and score using the "bicycle kick". Unfortunately, St. Louis teams and leagues rarely kept accurate statistics for these years so we no longer know Mendoza's goals totals. Mendoza won the league title in 1951 with Zenthoefer before moving to
Raiders Raider(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Paul Revere & the Raiders, an American rock band * "Raider", a track from the 1969 album ''Farewell Aldebaran'', by Judy Henske and Jerry Yester * "Raiders", a track from the 1987 album ''Young an ...
for the 1952 season. That year the Raiders won both the league title and National Amateur Cup. After Raiders won the Amateur Cup, Tom Kutis, owner of the Kutis Funeral Home, began sponsoring the team. The team, now known as St. Louis Kutis, went on to win the 1953, 1954, 1957 and 1960 league titles. St. Louis Kutis went on to win the National Amateur Cup every year from 1956 to 1960. In 1954, SL Kutis was runner-up in the
National Challenge Cup The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country. The 2023 U.S. O ...
before taking the title in 1957. In the 1950s, the
U.S. Soccer Federation The United States Soccer Federation (USSF), commonly referred to as U.S. Soccer, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, the federation is ...
(USSF) frequently had difficulty fielding the U.S. national team and in 1957, USSF selected SL Kutis to represent the U.S. in the qualifying rounds for the
1958 FIFA World Cup The 1958 FIFA World Cup was the sixth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Sweden from 8 to 29 June 1958. It was the first FIFA World Cup to be played in a Nordic country. Brazil be ...
. Despite its domestic success, the SL Kutis team was unable to take the U.S. to the cup finals. His teammates with SL Kutis included such U.S. greats as
Bill Looby Bill Looby (November 20, 1931 in St. Louis, Missouri – December 9, 1998 in St. Louis) was an American soccer forward who spent his entire career in the St. Louis Leagues. He was a member of the U.S. Olympic soccer team at the 1956 Summer O ...
,
Harry Keough Harry Joseph Keough (November 15, 1927 – February 7, 2012) was an American soccer defender who played on the United States national team in their 1–0 upset of England at the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He spent most of his club career in his ...
and
Frank Borghi Frank Borghi (April 9, 1925 – February 2, 2015) was an American soccer player who earned nine caps at goalkeeper for the national team. He played in the team's famous 1–0 victory against England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. Athletic career ...
.


Yearly record


Exhibitions

Mendoza's teams played various touring European club teams, winning more than they lost. For example, in 1951
Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The team is currently playing in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the Germa ...
toured the U.S. They racked up a record of 6–2 with the only losses coming from Zenthoefers and fellow European club
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
. In 1955,
Nürnberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ci ...
toured the U.S., running to a 5-1-1 record. This time Kutis, led by Mendoza, was the only U.S. team to defeat the German club, the tie coming from English club
Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
. Finally, in 1956
Schwaben Augsburg TSV Schwaben Augsburg is a football in Germany, German football club which is part of a larger sports association whose origins go back to the 1847 formation of the gymnastics club Turnverein Augsburg. The association's football department was f ...
toured the U.S., finishing 5–1. The only loss coming again from Kutis.


National team

Mendoza earned four caps with the U.S. national team between 1954 and 1959, scoring two goals.
/sup> While this number does not seem impressive by today's standards, it must be recalled that these caps were earned during an era when the U.S. National Team did not play very frequently. He earned his first cap in an April 4, 1954, World Cup qualifier victory over Haiti national football team, Haiti in
Port-au-Prince Port-au-Prince ( , ; ht, Pòtoprens ) is the capital and most populous city of Haiti. The city's population was estimated at 987,311 in 2015 with the metropolitan area estimated at a population of 2,618,894. The metropolitan area is define ...
,
Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
. Mendoza scored the second U.S. goal in the thirty-first minute. Mendoza did not play again for the U.S. for two more years. His second game with the national team did not go as well as the first, as the U.S. was crushed 7–2 by
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
in an April 28, 1957, World Cup qualifying match. Six weeks later, the U.S. hosted
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
in a World Cup qualifying game. While the score was closer than the Mexico game, the U.S. still lost, 3-2 despite a goal from Mendoza. Two weeks later, the U.S. was officially out of the
1958 FIFA World Cup The 1958 FIFA World Cup was the sixth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Sweden from 8 to 29 June 1958. It was the first FIFA World Cup to be played in a Nordic country. Brazil be ...
when Canada again defeated the U.S. 5–1. This was the last game played by Mendoza.


Olympic teams

In addition to his games with the U.S. national team, Mendoza was in the starting lineup for the U.S. at both the
1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...
in
Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
,
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
and the
1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...
in
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and was a member of the 1960 U.S. Olympic squad. The U.S. played only one game in 1952, an 8–0 loss to Italy. It had also lost to Scotland in a pre-game exhibition match. In 1956, the U.S. Olympic team went on an Asian tour prior to the games. During this tour, the U.S. performed well, raising hopes which were crushed by a 9–1 loss to Yugoslavia in the only U.S. match of the tournament. The 1960 Olympic team did not qualify for and did not attend the 1960 games.


Pre-1956 Olympic Games tour

* Japan 3-5 U.S. * Kansei 0-6 U.S. * South Korea 1-0 U.S. * Taiwan 1-6 U.S. * Hong Kong 2-1 U.S. * Philippines 0-4 U.S. * Singapore 1-2 U.S. * Indonesia 7-5 U.S.


Coaching

After suffering numerous knee injuries Mendoza retired from playing and moved into the coaching ranks. He began a soccer program across the river from St. Louis in Granite City, Illinois, becoming a pioneer in an area which later produced national team defender
Steve Trittschuh Stephen "Steve" Trittschuh (born April 24, 1965) is an American soccer coach and former player who most recently served as head coach of USL Championship side Saint Louis FC. As a player, he played as a defender in the Major Indoor Soccer Lea ...
, a former player under Mendoza. By the mid-1970s, Mendoza could claim with some accuracy that nearly every soccer player from Granite City had been either coached by him personally or by a coach trained by Mendoza. His club teams won the Illinois State Cup each year throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. One U-13 team advanced to and won the Midwest Regional competition (Detroit, MI) against 7 neighboring states. Mendoza had the satisfaction of seeing the local high school, consisting of players who had almost entirely been coached as youth players by himself, win the Illinois high school state championship in 1972 and each year from 1976 to 1980, then again in 1982, 1987, 1989 and 1990. On October 4, 1984, he was inducted into the St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame.


Death

Ruben Mendoza died on April 11, 2010, at Barnes–Jewish Hospital. His family said he had been battling
Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
,
diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
and congestive
heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...
.


References


External links

* *
National Soccer Hall of Fame eligibility bio



American Soccer History Archives

Ruben Mendoza Oral History
o
Madison Historical
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendoza, Ruben 1931 births 2010 deaths American expatriate men's soccer players American soccer coaches American sportspeople of Mexican descent Footballers at the 1952 Summer Olympics Footballers at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic soccer players for the United States St. Louis Kutis S.C. players United States men's international soccer players Zenthoefer Furs players Soccer players from St. Louis American men's soccer players Men's association football forwards