New York Cosmos

1970 The Cosmos joined the North American Soccer League on December 10, 1970.

1971 On April 17th in St. Louis, the Cosmos played their first game beating the Stars by a score of 2-1. On May 5th, 3,746 fans attended the Cosmos first home game at Yankee Stadium—a 1-0 victory over the Washington Darts. Coached by Gordon Bradley, the Cosmos finished second in the Northern Division of the NASL with a record of nine wins, ten defeats, and five ties. That qualified them for the playoffs where the Atlanta Chiefs defeated them in both games.

1972 The Cosmos moved their home from Yankee Stadium to Hofstra Stadium on Long Island. The team finished first in the Northern Division becoming NASL champions with seven wins, three defeats, and four ties. They qualified for the playoffs where they beat the Dallas Tornado 1-0 in the semifinal and then the St. Louis Stars 2-1 in the final. Randy Horton of the Cosmos finished as the league’s leading scorer with nine goals and four assists in 13 games.

1973 The team finished second in the Eastern Division with a record of 7-5-7. During the playoffs, they lost in the semifinal to the Dallas Tornado.

1974 The Cosmos moved to Downing Stadium on Randall’s Island and finished last in the Northern Division and missed the playoffs with a record consisting of four wins, fourteen losses, and two ties.

1975 The season started slowly with three wins and six defeats in the first nine games. However, on June 10th, the Cosmos announced the signing of the world renowned soccer star known as Pele to a three-year deal reportedly worth $7 million and shook the soccer world. Pele’s first game as a Cosmo was an exhibition game against the Dallas Tornado. He made his NASL debut against Toronto Metros-Croatia on June 18th before a crowd of 22,500. The Cosmos won 2-0; providing a boost for United States Soccer and the NASL. Pele played in nine games that season, tallying five goals and four assists. The team as a whole, however, finished third in the Northern Division with a record of 10-12 and missed the playoffs for the second year in a row.

1976 The Cosmos returned to Yankee Stadium and started the season under new head coach, Ken Furphy. On May 17th, Italian international striker Giorgio Chinaglia joined the team and scored twice to secure a 6-0 win over the Los Angeles Aztecs before a crowd of 24,292. Chinaglia finished the season as the league’s leading scorer with 19 goals and 11 assists in 19 games. Before the season was over, Gordon Bradley returned as head coach and the Cosmos finished second in the Northern Division with a record of 16-8. In the playoffs, the Cosmos beat the Washington Diplomats 2-0 in New York. However, the Cosmos lost the Division Championship to the Tampa Bay Rowdies 3-1 in Tampa. Pele played 22 games that season, registering 13 goals and 18 assists.

1977 The team moved to Giants Stadium and played its first game against the Rochester Lancers winning 2-0. Eddie Firmani replaced Gordon Bradley during the season as more elite players joined the team. On May 25th, German international Franz Beckenbauer joined the club followed by Brazilian international Carlos Alberto later in the year. The Cosmos finished second in the Eastern Division to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers with a record of 15-11. In the playoffs, however, the Cosmos turned the tables on the Strikers winning 8-3 at Giants Stadium before a record crowd of 77,691. The Cosmos won the return game in Florida 3-2. In the Conference Final, the Cosmos beat the Rochester Lancers 2-1 in Rochester. Again, the Cosmos beat the Lancers 4-1 in Giants Stadium before 73,669 to advance to the Soccer Bowl, the NASL final game. In the final game in Portland, Oregon, the Cosmos defeated the Seattle Sounders by a score of 2-1 winning their second NASL Championship. The championship proved to be Pele’s last game. As a proper farewell to Pele, the Cosmos played the star’s former Brazilian Club, Santos, at Giants Stadium. Pele played one half for each team ultimately winning for the Cosmos 2-1 before 75,646 people.

1978 Still playing under Eddie Firmani, the Cosmos were the Eastern Division champions. The team continued to add international stars to their roster. Vladislav Bogicevic from Yugoslavia, as well as Canadian internationals Robert Iarusci and Bruce Wilson were invited to join a Cosmo team that finished the regular season with a record of 24-6. In the playoffs, the Cosmos defeated Seattle by a score of 5-2 in the first round. Then, however, the Cosmos were defeated on the road by a score of 9-2 by the Minnesota Kicks in the first game. The Cosmos were able to come back the next game 4-0 in New York and win a mini-game decider in a shootout to eliminate the Kicks. After the Cosmos shutout the Portland Timbers twice in the Conference Championship, the Cosmos moved on to their second Soccer Bowl in a row that was scheduled for Giants Stadium. A crowd of 74,901 watched as Chinaglia and Dennis Tueart gave the Cosmos a 3-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rowdies. Chinaglia was the league’s leading scorer with 34 goals and 11 assists in 30 games.

1979 Another coaching change took place as Ray Klivecka replaced Eddie Firmani, who had started the season. Brazilian international Francisco Marinho, Iranian international Andranik Eskandarian, and German goalkeeper Hubert Birkenmeier joined the club as the Cosmos won the Eastern Division of the NASL’s National Conference again with a record of 24 wins and 6 losses. The season seemed to be going well when the Cosmos beat Toronto in the quarter conference semifinals. However, the season ended in disappointment when the Cosmos fell to the experienced Vancouver Whitecaps in the Conference Final.

1980 The coaches’ carousel continued to turn in 1980, as the Brazilian Prof. Julio Mazzei started the season and the famous German coach Hennes Weisweiler ended it. The Cosmos were again champions of the Eastern Division of the National Conference (24-8) and Giorgio Chinaglia was again the league’s leading scorer with 32 goals in 32 games. In the playoffs, the Cosmos advanced past the Tulsa Roughnecks winning two games in a row easily in the quarterfinal matchup. They continued to move past their opponents as they defeated Dallas in the semifinals and Los Angeles in the Conference Finals. In the Soccer Bowl, the Cosmos beat Fort Lauderdale 3-0 before a crowd of 50,768 thanks to goals from Julio Cesar Romero and Chinaglia. In addition to their stellar record, the Cosmos also gained notable new players. Paraguay’s Romero and Roberto Cabanas and Belgium’s Francois Van der Elst joined the team. A farewell game was held for Franz Beckenbauer, who would return to Germany, while Pele made a guest appearance.

1981 Hennes Weisweiler returned as coach and again the Cosmos were Eastern Division champions with a record of 23 wins and 9 losses. In the playoffs, the Cosmos eliminated Tampa in three games, Fort Lauderdale in two, but lost the Soccer Bowl to the Chicago Sting in a shootout. Chinaglia was once again the league’s leading scorer with 29 goals in 32 games.

1982 Professor Julio Mazzei returned as coach and the Cosmos won another Eastern Division title with a record of 23 wins and 9 losses. In the first round of the playoffs, the Cosmos beat Tulsa in three games and San Diego twice to reach the Soccer Bowl for the fifth time in Cosmo history. Just as they did in 1977, the Cosmos faced off against Seattle’s Sounders in San Diego for the Soccer Bowl. Chinaglia’s goal gave the Cosmos a 1-0 win. Chinaglia was again the league’s leading scorer with 20 goals in 32 games.

1983 Once more the Cosmos topped the Eastern Division winning 22 and losing 8 of their 30 games as Franz Beckenbauer returned to the club. However, they were defeated in the first round by the Montreal Manic in two games. Robert Cabanas was the league’s leading scorer with 25 goals and 16 assists in 28 games.

1984 Though Johan Neeskens, Bogicevic, Cabanas, Eskandarian, and Birkenmeier remained, Chinaglia and Beckenbauer were gone. Eddie Firmani returned to coach the team in their final season. Unfortunately for the Cosmos’ faithful, the team finished with a record of 13 wins and 11 losses. They placed third in the Eastern Division and failed to make the playoffs. Because of over-expansion and the inability to afford excessive player salaries, the North American Soccer League was forced to stop play after this season. The Cosmos played its final game on September 15th against the Chicago Sting.