Bill Becher (born 15 February 1965) is a former American soccer player and

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...

Player

Youth

Born in West Virginia, Becher grew up in St. Louis. He began his collegiate career at

Lewis and Clark Community College Lewis and Clark Community College is a public community college in Godfrey, Illinois. It serves approximately 15,000 credit and non-credit students annually. The college has nine locations throughout the St. Louis Metro East, including a camp ...

. He then transferred to

Sangamon State University The University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) is a public university in Springfield, Illinois. The university was established in 1969 as Sangamon State University by the Illinois General Assembly and became a part of the University of Illinois s ...

. In 1986, Becher was a Third Team NAIA All American. In 1987, he scored the winning goal as Sangamon won the

NAIA national men's soccer championship The NAIA Men's Soccer Championship is the annual tournament to determine the national champions of NAIA men's collegiate soccer in the United States and Canada. It has been held annually since 1959. The most successful program is Quincy (IL), w ...

and Becher was named the tournament MVP.

Professional

In 1987, Becher turned professional with the Fort Wayne Flames of the

American Indoor Soccer Association American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. He played two season with the Flames. When the Flames folded in 1989, Becher moved to the newly created

Indiana Kick The New York Kick was a professional indoor soccer team based in Albany, New York playing at the Knickerbocker Arena and competed in the National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001). The team was previously known as the Indiana Kick in 1989– ...

. In 1990, the Kick moved to New York to become the

New York Kick The New York Kick was a professional indoor soccer team based in Albany, New York playing at the Knickerbocker Arena and competed in the National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001). The team was previously known as the Indiana Kick in 1989– ...

. Becher began the 1990-1991 AISA season with the Kick, but left the team in January 1991 after the team cut salaries. In 1991, Becher played for the

Colorado Foxes The Colorado Foxes were a professional soccer team, based in Commerce City, Colorado, that played in the American Professional Soccer League, and later in the A-League, between 1990 and 1997. The Foxes won two APSL titles, in 1992 and 1993. In 1 ...

in the

American Professional Soccer League The American Professional Soccer League (APSL) was a professional men's soccer league with teams from the United States and later Canada. It was formed in 1990 by the merger of the third American Soccer League with the Western Soccer League. It ...

. In 1993 and 1994, Becher played summer seasons with the

Arizona Sandsharks Arizona Sandsharks was a U.S. indoor soccer team that played in the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL). It was founded in 1992 and folded in 1997, along with the CISL. Club history The Sandsharks were founded on August 3, 1992, under the own ...

of the

Continental Indoor Soccer League The Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL) was a professional indoor soccer league that played from 1993 to 1997. History In the summer of 1989 Dr Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers and California Sports, told his executive Vice Pr ...

. On October 22, 1999, the Heat traded Becher to the St. Louis Ambush for undisclosed considerations. He spent one season with the Ambush, then retired from professional soccer. He also played for the

Hershey Impact The Hershey Impact was an indoor soccer club based in Hershey, Pennsylvania Hershey is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Derry Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is home to The Hershey Compa ...

Statistics

Coach

Honors

2005 United Soccer Leagues The 2005 Season was the 19th edition of the United Soccer Leagues season. General * A-League renamed USL First Division. * Pro Soccer League renamed USL Second Division. * The newly renamed top two divisions each become single table. * The Syracuse ...

Coach of the Year *2007

USL Second Division The USL Second Division (commonly referred to as USL-2) was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, operated by United Soccer Leagues (USL). It was at the third tier of soccer in the United States, behind Major League Soccer ...

Championship * 2011 USL Pro Finalist * 2014 USL Pro Finalist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Becher, Bill 1965 births Living people American Indoor Soccer Association players American soccer players American Professional Soccer League players Arizona Sandsharks players Colorado Foxes players Continental Indoor Soccer League players Fort Wayne Flames players Indiana Kick players National Professional Soccer League (1984–2001) players New York Kick players Sportspeople from Wheeling, West Virginia Soccer players from St. Louis St. Louis Ambush (1992–2000) players Penn FC coaches Association football midfielders American soccer coaches Harrisburg Heat (NPSL) players USL Championship coaches UIS Prairie Stars University of Illinois at Springfield alumni