Neil Cohen (born September 12, 1955, in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

) 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 ...

defender. He played eight 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 ...

and six in the Major Indoor Soccer League. He also earned one

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 ...

with the U.S. national team in 1976. In 2008, Neil was elected to the FC Dallas, "Texans Credit Union Walk of Fame" for his contributions to soccer in Texas.

Player

Youth

Cohen grew up in

, graduating from

Bryan Adams High School Bryan Adams High School Leadership Academy is a public high school located in the Casa View neighborhood of East Dallas, Texas, United States and is a part of the Dallas Independent School District. The school serves the area of Dallas east of W ...

in 1973. He was the first high school All American soccer player from Texas in 1973.

Professional

In 1974, he signed with the

Dallas Tornado The Dallas Tornado was a soccer team based in Dallas, Texas that played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1967 to 1981. Of the twelve teams that comprised the U.S. in 1967, the Tornado franchise played the longest–15 seasons. T ...

of the

(NASL). He played five seasons with the Tornado before moving to the

Tulsa Roughnecks Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...

in 1979. He played only three games before moving to the

San Jose Earthquakes The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional association football, soccer club based in San Jose, California. The Earthquakes compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Origin ...

. He sat out the 1980 season with injuries, but returned to the Tornado for the 1981 season. The Tornado folded at the end of the season. When the Tornado folded in 1981, Cohen was already established in the Major Indoor Soccer League. In 1979, he signed with the

Houston Summit Houston Summit were a professional indoor soccer team that operated from 1978 to 1980. They played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League. In 1980, the franchise was moved to Baltimore to become the Baltimore Blast. Their roster mainly inclu ...

. The team moved to Baltimore following the 1979–1980 season, changing its name to the

Baltimore Blast The Baltimore Blast are an American professional indoor soccer team based in Baltimore, Maryland, that competes in the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL). Including one championship victory as the original Baltimore Blast, the team has won 10 c ...

. Cohen played one season in Baltimore before moving to the Denver Avalanche for the 1981–1982 season. When the Avalanche folded, Cohen moved to the

St. Louis Steamers St. Louis Steamers has been the name of two different indoor soccer franchises based in St. Louis, Missouri: *St. Louis Steamers (1979–88); American soccer team which played in the first Major Indoor Soccer League *St. Louis Steamers (1998–2006 ...

for two seasons before signing with the Dallas Sidekicks as a free agent on July 19, 1984. He injured his knee on December 30, 1984, which put him out for the rest of the season. He retired on September 24, 1985. In 1983, Cohen also played for the

Dallas Americans Dallas Americans was an American professional soccer club based in Dallas, Texas. The team played in the American Soccer League in 1983 and the United Soccer League in 1984 and 1985. Both leagues unofficially served as the second division of pr ...

of the American Soccer League in 1983 and the

United Soccer League The United Soccer League (USL) is an organizer of various professional and amateur soccer leagues in the United States league system. It currently organizes its Championship, League One, and League Two for men, its Super League and W Leag ...

in 1984 and 1985.

National team

Cohen began playing with the U.S. junior teams in 1974, taking part in the failed qualification campaign for the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

. He went on to play for the U.S. at the

1975 Pan American Games The 1975 Pan American Games, officially known as the VII Pan American Games () and commonly known as Mexico 1975 (), were held in Mexico City, Mexico, from October 12 to October 26, 1975, exactly twenty years after the second Pan American Games ...

. The U.S. went 0–2 in group play and did not qualify for the second round. On October 3, 1976, Cohen earned his lone

with the U.S. national team in a scoreless tie with

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 ...

in a World Cup qualification game. He started, then came off for

Santiago Formoso Santiago Formoso (born July 4, 1953) is an American soccer defender who spent five seasons in the North American Soccer League. He also earned seven caps with the U.S. national team in 1976 and 1977. Club career Santiago Formoso was born in Vi ...

in the 80th minute.USA – Details of International Matches 1970–1979
/ref>

Coach

Cohen coached youth soccer in the Dallas area with FC Lynx and Solar. He recently retired in 2006 from youth soccer. Cohen was the first player to represent his country at all three levels: Youth, Olympic and National Team. Also at the time in 1973, he was the youngest American player ever signed into the North American Soccer League at the age of 18.

References

External links

1984–1985 Sidekicks media guide
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Neil 1955 births Living people Soccer players from Dallas Bryan Adams High School alumni American men's soccer players Baltimore Blast (1980–1992) players Dallas Americans players Denver Avalanche players Dallas Sidekicks (original MISL) players Dallas Tornado players Houston Summit players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players St. Louis Steamers (original MISL) players San Jose Earthquakes (1974–1988) players Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984) players United Soccer League (1984–85) players United States men's international soccer players Pan American Games footballers for the United States Footballers at the 1975 Pan American Games Men's association football defenders 20th-century American sportsmen