The Philadelphia Atoms were an American

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 ...

team based out of

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 ...

that 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 ...

(NASL). They played from 1973 to 1976, at

Veterans Stadium Veterans Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, at the northeast corner of Broad Street (Philadelphia), Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The seating ca ...

(1973–75) and Franklin Field (1976). The club's colors were blue and white. The club was succeeded by the Philadelphia Fury in 1978.

History

The Atoms were founded by Philadelphia construction mogul Thomas McCloskey in 1973 at the urging of

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

and

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 ...

owner

Lamar Hunt Lamar Hunt Sr. (August 2, 1932 – December 13, 2006) was an American businessman most notable for his promotion of football, soccer, and tennis in the United States. With his brothers, he also attempted to corner the silver market. He was t ...

. Playing a largely American line-up, they won the NASL title in their first year of existence by defeating Hunt’s Dallas club 2–0. After this championship match, Philadelphia goalkeeper and Ridley Park, Pennsylvania native Bob Rigby became the first soccer player to be featured on the cover of ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

''. The Atoms could not sustain the success of their first season as the club missed the playoffs in each of their remaining three NASL campaigns. Attendance began to flag and, after the 1975 season, the team was sold to a group of Mexican clubs, which included Club Deportivo Guadalajara. Fielding a primarily Mexican side (almost 30 years before

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competed in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conf ...

would try a similar approach in

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

), attendance continued to wane and the club folded after the 1976 season. Although

Clive Toye Clive Roy Toye (born 23 November 1932) was inducted to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in the United States in 2003. Toye was born in Plymouth, United Kingdom, to Thomas Roy Toye (1906–65) and Irene Turner. He was a sports writer for the '' ...

reports in his recent book that the franchise was sold to an ownership group from Montreal, he apparently confuses the fate of the next Philadelphia NASL team for that of the Atoms; the Atoms were, in fact, going to be relocated to San Antonio by their Mexican owners, who planned to replace the San Antonio Thunder franchise (which itself had just relocated to Honolulu to play as Team Hawaii). This plan never came to fruition, and the Philadelphia franchise was placed into

receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver – a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights" – especia ...

by the NASL. The franchise was removed from receivership two years later when the Philadelphia Fury began their three-year run in Philadelphia in 1978. The Atoms were also part of what is considered by soccer historians to be the birth of modern

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer is a form of five-a-side football, five-a-side or six-a-side version of minifootball. It is derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arenas. It differs from the FIFA, FIFA ...

in the United States. On February 11, 1974, they hosted the

Soviet Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of Peop ...

team at the

Spectrum A spectrum (: spectra or spectrums) is a set of related ideas, objects, or properties whose features overlap such that they blend to form a continuum. The word ''spectrum'' was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of co ...

in an exhibition match. That night, 11,790 roaring fans watched the reigning league champions hold their own into the final period before the Russians finally pulled away for a 6–3 victory. The following year the NASL staged its first league-wide indoor tournament, and within a few years both the NASL and the MISL were playing full indoor seasons. In 2017 a new team began play in the American Soccer League called Philadelphia Atoms SC. The club claims the heritage and colors of the original Atoms.

Year-by-year

Honors

NASL championships *

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

NASL Division Titles *

Eastern Division NASL Rookie of the Year * 1975 Chris Bahr NASL Coach of the Year * 1973 Al Miller NASL Leading Goaltender * 1973 Bob Rigby ''(GAA: 0.62)'' U.S. Soccer Hall of Fame * 1990

Manfred Schellscheidt Manfred "Manny" Schellscheidt (born January 17, 1941) is a German-American Association football, soccer coach and former player. Born in Solingen in the Free State of Prussia, Prussian Rhine Province, he emigrated to the United States in the 197 ...

* 1995 Al Miller * 2007 Bobby Smith All-Star first team selections * 1973

Chris Dunleavy Chris Dunleavy (born 30 December 1949) is an English former professional footballer who played for Everton, Southport, Philadelphia Atoms, Chester, Halifax Town and Wollongong FC. Dunleavy was voted Chester's player of the year for 1973– ...

, Jim Fryatt, Andy Provan * 1974

* 1975 Bobby Smith All-Star second team selections * 1973

Roy Evans Roy Quentin Echlin Evans (born 4 October 1948) is an English former footballer who played as a defender for Liverpool, where he also had a spell as manager. Aside from his time at Liverpool, he had a short spell in the United States; and also ...

, Bob Rigby, Bobby Smith, Derek Trevis * 1974 Bob Rigby, Derek Trevis * 1975

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

, Tony Want * 1976 Bobby Smith All-Star honorable mentions * 1973 Barry Barto, George O'Neill * 1974 Jim Fryatt, Bobby Smith

Head coaches

* Al Miller (1973–1975)

References

External links