Seattle Sounders (1974–1983)

The Seattle Sounders were a U.S. professional soccer team based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1974, the team belonged to the North American Soccer League where it played both indoor and outdoor soccer. The team folded after the 1983 NASL outdoor season.

History

A Seattle expansion team for the North American Soccer League was proposed in early 1973 as part of a new Western Division that would include Los Angeles, San Jose, and Vancouver. On December 11, 1973, the league awarded an expansion team to Seattle that would be owned by a group of local businessmen led by Walter Daggatt of the Alpac Corporation; the team would play at Memorial Stadium in the Western Division alongside new teams in Los Angeles, San Francisco (later moved to San Jose), and Vancouver. A naming contest was held in January 1974, with a shortlist of six finalists: Cascades, Evergreens, Mariners, Schooners, Sockeyes, and Sounders. "Sounders" was announced as the winner of the contest on January 21, having been chosen in 32 percent of the 3,735 votes cast by the public.

The Sounders made their debut on May 5, 1974, against hosts Los Angeles Aztecs; the team lost 2–1. Their home debut, a week later at Memorial Stadium in Seattle, was a 4–0 victory against the Denver Dynamos in front of 12,132 spectators. The club played the first sporting event at the new Kingdome on April 9, 1976, hosting the New York Cosmos in an exhibition match that they lost 3–1 with 58,128 in attendance. The Sounders went on to play in two Soccer Bowls, losing in 1977 and 1982 to the Cosmos.

Frank and Vince Coluccio bought a majority stake in the Sounders franchise in 1979. The team folded on September 6, 1983, after the Coluccios struggled to keep the club afloat through the regular season; the team did not qualify for the playoffs. The Sounders lost an estimated $7 million in their final years of operation; the rights to the Sounders name were sold to former coach Alan Hinton. The NASL folded a year later and a new team, F.C. Seattle Storm, was formed to continue playing outdoor professional soccer in the city. The Storm later played in the American Professional Soccer League in 1990, but folded two years later. A new Sounders team formed in 1994 and played in the American Professional Soccer League (later the A-League and USL First Division). They were replaced by a Major League Soccer team, named Seattle Sounders FC in honor of both predecessors, which debuted on March 19, 2009.

Stadium

The Sounders played at Memorial Stadium for their first two seasons before moving to the Kingdome. On April 25, 1976, 58,218 watched the Seattle Sounders and the New York Cosmos in the first sports event held in the Kingdome.

From 1979 to 1982, they competed in three NASL Indoor campaigns, playing their home games also at the Kingdome.

Supporters

The Seattle Sounders were supported by the "Seattle Sounders Booster Club" in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Year-by-year

This is a complete list of seasons for the NASL club. For a season-by-season history including the current Seattle Sounders FC MLS franchise, see List of Seattle Sounders FC seasons.

1. Avg. Attendance include statistics from league matches only.

2. Top Goalscorer(s) includes all goals scored in League, League Cup, U.S. Open Cup, CONCACAF Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, and other competitive continental matches.

Indoor

Honors

Team honors

NASL Championships
* 1977 runner-up
* 1982 runner-up

NASL Conference Championships
* 1977 Pacific Conference

NASL Division Championships
* 1977 Western Division, Pacific Conference

NASL Division Titles ''(regular season)''
* 1980 Western Division, National Conference
* 1982 Western Division

Trans-Atlantic Challenge Cup
*1981 Winner

Europac Cup
*1982 Winner

League MVP
* 1980 Roger Davies
* 1982 Peter Ward

Rookie of the Year
* 1977 Jim McAlister

North American Player of the Year
* 1980 Jack Brand