Statistics of American Soccer League in season 1931.

Overview

At the start of this season the American Soccer League was in decline, suffering from the effects of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. Clubs had begun to fold, merge and disappear. The eventual champions,

New Bedford Whalers New Bedford Whalers was the name of three American soccer teams based in New Bedford, Massachusetts. The first Whalers played in the Southern New England Soccer League between 1914 and 1918. The second Whalers played in the American Soccer Leag ...

, had been formed by

Sam Mark Samuel Mark (born Markelevich; September 22, 1896 – August 9, 1980) was an American soccer club owner. During the 1920s and early 1930s he was the owner of Fall River FC, often referred to as the ''Marksmen'', one of the era's most successful ...

following the merger of Fall River F.C. and

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

. Long time ASL members

Brooklyn Wanderers The Brooklyn Wanderers was a U.S. soccer team which was a founding member of the National Association Football League in the late nineteenth century. Later versions joined the original American Soccer League and the reorganized American Socce ...

folded before the season. However

New York Americans The New York Americans, colloquially known as the Amerks, were a professional ice hockey team based in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the second to play ...

, later to become a perennial contender in the second ASL, made their debut. The season began on February 29, 1931. The first half ended on May 31, 1931. The second half began September 19, 1931, and the season concluded on December 27, 1931. The season saw strong performances by New Bedford Whalers,

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

and a resurgent

Pawtucket Rangers J. & P. Coats was an American soccer club founded in 1900 as the team of the Pawtucket, Rhode Island branch of the J. & P. Coats threadmaking company of Paisley, Scotland (following a 1952 merger this firm became part of the Coats Group Coats ...

Hakoah All-Stars Hakoah All-Stars is a former United States soccer club, based in New York City, that played in the American Soccer League between 1930 and 1932. The club was formed after the merger of Brooklyn Hakoah of the ASL and New York Hakoah of the Easter ...

improved markedly to take fourth place. Although the Whalers won this season, they lost the playoff series for the overall 1931 champion, being defeated by Spring 1931 champions New York Giants in a play-off. Whalers took the first game at home 8-3 before the Giants came back to win 6-0, taking the series on a 9-8 aggregate score.

League standings

* The percentage is a percentage of points won to points available, not a win-lose percentage.

First half

Second half

Playoff

First leg

Second leg

''New York Giants won, 9–8, on aggregate.''

Top goalscorers

External links

The Year in American Soccer - 1931

References

{{American Soccer League (1921-1933) seasons

American 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, p ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...