William ''("Bill" or "Billy")'' Straub (born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

) is a former U.S.

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 ...

player. He spent five seasons 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 ...

. He also earned three

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

s with the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1975.

College

Straub attended the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

where he played on the men's soccer team from 1970 to 1972. He was a third 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 in 1972. In 2005, he was named to the University of Pennsylvania All Century soccer team.
/sup>

NASL

In 1973, Straub was drafted by 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 ...

. After only six games, the Olympique traded him to the expansion

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 ...

. He did not play a game with the Atoms until the championship game. In that game, he replaced Jim Fryatt, who had been on loan from English team Southport F.C. at forward when Southport recalled Fryatt.
/sup> Straub went on to score the second goal of the Atoms' 2–0 win with an 85th-minute header, to secure the 1973 North American Soccer League season, 1973 NASL championship. He missed the entire 1977 season with injuries, but came back in 1978 to play twenty-five games for the expansion Philadelphia Fury. After one season with the Fury, he retired in 1979.

National team

Straub earned three

s with the

United States men's national soccer team The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT), officially recognized as USA by FIFA, represents the United States in men's international Association football, soccer. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation, which is ...

at the 1975 Mexico City Cup. On August 19, 1975, he played his first game with the U.S. in a 3–1 loss to

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

. Two days later, the U.S. lost, 6–0, to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. His last game was a 2–0 loss to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

on August 24. While he started and played every minute of the first two games, in the third game, he came on for Archie Roboostoff in the 87th minute.
/sup>

References

External links

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NASL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Straub, Bill 1957 births Living people American men's soccer players American expatriate men's soccer players Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada American expatriate sportspeople in Canada Men's association football defenders North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Montreal Olympique players Philadelphia Atoms players Philadelphia Fury (1978–1980) players United States men's international soccer players Soccer players from Philadelphia 20th-century American sportsmen