American soccer league was born from ‘tartan invasion’

The links between Scotland and soccer in America go back to 1967 when the first league was set up.

The live transmission of the 1966 World Cup Final had accelerated the imaginations of several wealthy fans who had been considering the formation of a nationwide soccer league in America.

The main problem was a lack of players and they got round that by importing entire teams from Europe and South America.

The teams were reborn with new exotic American names including the Washington Whips which were represented by Aberdeen while Dundee United played the season as the Dallas Tornado.

But 1967 provided a kick-start and soccer gained momentum in the 1970s with the NASL, which brought players like Pele, George Best, Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer to America.

Players including Charlie Cooke, Jocky Scott, Gordon Wallace, David Harvey, Peter Lorimer and Graeme Souness all played in the NASL.

Former Dundee striker Jocky Scott almost stole the show as Pele took his final bow in 1977 at the Soccerbowl, the then big-spending NASL’s version of the Superbowl.

On the day the Brazilian great bowed out, Jocky was part of the Seattle Sounders team that, despite being underdogs, came close to upsetting the party.

Pele’s swansong could have ended on a very different note.

With the scores level, Jocky hit the bar and Tommy Ord scored from the rebound which was chalked off for offside.

Eventually, the problem for the NASL was that not enough clubs got good crowds.

The league eventually disbanded in the mid-1980s.

In 1988, in exchange for Fifa awarding the right to host the 1994 World Cup, US Soccer promised to re-establish a professional soccer league.

The MLS was born which sparked a tartan invasion a few years ago when Kris Boyd, Stevie Smith, John Spencer, Barry Robson and Kenny Miller performed in America’s top league.