St. Louis Simpkins-Ford ''(also known as Simpkins)'' was a U.S. amateur soccer team based in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

from 1947 to 1956. It won three league championships and the 1948 and 1950 National Challenge Cups, and lost in the finals of the 1954 National Amateur Cup. Five members of the U.S. team at the

1950 FIFA World Cup The 1950 FIFA World Cup was the fourth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and held in Brazil from 24 June to 16 July 1950. The planned 1942 and 1946 World Cups were ...

came from Simpkins.

Origin

In 1947, a St. Louis amateur soccer team sponsored by Carrenti Cleaners changed sponsorship to the Joe Simpkins Ford Auto dealership. Renamed St. Louis Simpkins-Ford, the team entered the new St. Louis Major League in 1948. The team revamped its roster, bringing in several top St. Louis players. Five of them, Robert Annis,

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and Frank Wallace, were on the U.S. team which competed at the 1950 World Cup.

Year by Year

1947-1948

Despite its outstanding roster, Simpkins struggled in its first season in the St. Louis Major League. The League featured only four teams, De Andreis, St. Louis Raiders, Steamfitters and Simpkins. Simpkins finished third with eleven points and a 4–5–3 record. While it struggled in league play, it dominated the National Challenge Cup winning the title with a 3–2 victory over the professional New York Brookhattan of the American Soccer League (ASL).
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1948-1949

In 1949, Simpkins improved on its finish the previous season when it ended in second place. This year the team placed three players on the national team at the

1949 NAFC Championship The 1949 NAFC Championship was the second edition of the association football championship for the North American Football Confederation. In 1949, the NAFC Championship served both as a regional championship as well as the regional qualification ...

.
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1949-1950

In 1950, Simpkins took both the league title and the National Challenge Cup. While most National Cups have been decided in a single game, this year the organizers opted for a home and away series. On April 22, 1950, Simpkins defeated Fall River Ponta Delgada 2–0. The second leg, held on May 7, 1950, ended in a 1–1 tie with Simpkins taking the title on aggregate. It was this year that Simpkins contributed five of its players to the U.S. team at the

. In that tournament, the U.S. went 1–2, but its victory was the greatest upset of World Cup history as the U.S. defeated heavy favorites

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

1950-1951

Simpkins success of 1949-1950 did not continue into the 1950–1951 season. While the team began strong, it ended up second behind Zenthoefer Furs in the standings.
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1951-1952

Simpkins again finished second in the league, this time to St. Louis Raiders.

1952-1953

While Simpkins was beginning to fade, finishing third in the league, it won the St. Louis Major League's first post season round-robin by defeating St. Louis Kutis S.C., Kutis 3–1. Despite the addition of a post-season, the St. Louis Major League folded at the end of the season when their stadium was sold. Simpkins and Kutis moved to the Municipal League, essentially a second division league, for the 1954 season.

1954

As a lower division league, the Municipal League fielded several more teams, divided into a North and South Division, than the old St. Louis Major League. Simpkins showed its strength by taking the South Division. Simpkins also went to the finals of the

National Amateur Cup The National Amateur Cup, also known as the USASA Amateur Cup, is an American soccer competition open to all amateur teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation through United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA). In 1923, U.S. ...

only to fall to

Pittsburgh Beadling Pittsburgh Beadling is an amateur American soccer team founded in 1898 in the Pittsburgh suburb of Upper St. Clair, Pennsylvania. It won the 1954 National Amateur Cup. It claims to be the oldest continuously operating soccer club in the United S ...

7–6 on aggregate. While Simpkins had just joined the Municipal League, mismanagement by the league's front office convinced the team to leave the league and join with several other ex-Municipal League teams to form a competing league, known as the Khoury League as it was formed by George Khoury.

1955

Simpkins won the first year of the Khoury League with a perfect 13-0-0 record.

was selected as the league MVP. Simpkins also went to the semifinals of the National Challenge Cup before falling to Los Angeles Danes.

1956

In 1956 Simpkins again won the Khoury League.

Record

Coaches

* Joe Numi 1950

External links

History of soccer in St. Louis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Louis Simpkins-Ford Association football clubs established in 1947 Defunct soccer clubs in Missouri Simpkins-Ford 1947 establishments in Missouri U.S. Open Cup winners