Barry Barto is an American retired

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

and college coach. He played in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...

and coached for thirty years at Philadelphia Textile and

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. ...

Player

College and NASL

Barto grew up in Philadelphia where he began playing soccer when eleven years old. He attended Philadelphia Textile where he played on the school's soccer team from 1969 to 1972. He was a two-time second team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n. He graduated with a degree in marketing. That year the

(NASL) held its first college draft and the

Montreal Olympique The Montreal Olympique were a Canadian Association football, soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (1968–1984), North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1971 North American Soccer League season, 1971 to 1973 North Americ ...

selected Barto in the third round. Despite his low standing in the draft, Barto finished second to Mike Winter for Rookie of the Year. At the end of the season, the

Philadelphia Atoms The Philadelphia Atoms were an American soccer team based out of Philadelphia that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL). They played from 1973 to 1976, at Veterans Stadium (1973–75) and Franklin Field (1976). The club's colors ...

, an NASL expansion franchise, traded for Barto as part of its efforts to create a team dominated by American, and preferably local, players. In 1973, the Atoms took the NASL championship and Barto was selected as an All Star Honorable Mention (third team). Barto remained with the Atoms through the 1976 season, the Atoms last. He then moved to the

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994) The Fort Lauderdale Strikers were an American soccer team establishe ...

where he played in only one game as a defender in 1977. At the end of the season, he retired from playing. By that time, he had already begun his second career, coaching.

National Team

Barto earned sixteen

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 1972 and 1975. He was the captain for most of his games in 1974 and 1975. His first game with the national team came in a 3–2 loss to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

on August 20, 1972. He became a regular through 1973 and played both U.S. games in 1974. His last cap came in the first U.S. game of 1975, a 7–0 loss to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

on March 26, 1975.

Coaching

By the time he retired from playing, Barto had spent time as a business manager and the Associate Dean for Students at Philadelphia Textile. In 1976, the school hired him as the head coach of its soccer team. In his six years as head coach of the Rams, he took the team to an 85–15–6 record. Textile went to the NCAA tournament, including the Final Four in 1978 and 1981, while under Barto. In 1982,

hired Barto as its first men's soccer coach. Barto remained in this position for 24 years. On November 29, 2005, the university removed Barto as head coach and reassigned in the athletic department. He left the team with a 221–200–38 record and five NCAA tournament appearances.

References

External links

UNLV bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barto, Barry 1950 births Living people American soccer coaches American men's soccer players American expatriate men's soccer players American expatriate sportspeople in Canada Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983) players Montreal Olympique players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players Philadelphia Atoms players Jefferson Rams men's soccer players United States men's international soccer players UNLV Rebels men's soccer coaches Soccer players from Philadelphia Men's association football midfielders 20th-century American sportsmen