1988 American Soccer League
| Season | 1988 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
Washington Diplomats (1st title) |
| Premiers |
New Jersey Eagles (1st title) |
| Top goalscorer |
Jorge Acosta (14 goals) |
|
← First Season 1989 → | |
The 1988 American Soccer League was the first season of the third American Soccer League which took place during the summer of 1988.
History
The third American Soccer League owed its creation to several events in the early 1980s. In 1983, the second American Soccer League collapsed from over-expansion, runaway spending and a restricted fan base. A year later, the North American Soccer League collapsed for essentially the same reasons. In 1985, the West-coast based Western Soccer Alliance was created as a regional, financially austere league. This new league kept expenditures low while building its fan base. In 1987, the Lone Star Soccer Alliance began its first season, mimicking the WSA model with teams in or near Texas. On May 7, 1987, several team executives led by Clive Toye announced the creation of an east coast-based league using the WSA model.[1] This new league, named the American Soccer League, planned to begin its first season in 1988. Chuck Blazer was announced as the league's commissioner and Clive Toye was named its chairman. The league planned a twenty-game schedule with at least six teams having a $75,000 salary cap.[2] The league initially concentrated on the northeast, but in August 1987, plans expanded to include teams situated in Florida.[3] This was soon followed by announcements of the entry of the Fort Lauderdale Strikers and Tampa Bay Rowdies. By October 1987, the list of teams was finalized with the addition of the Orlando Lions and Miami Sharks. The league now divided itself into two five-team divisions. On April 9, 1988, the American Soccer League began its first season when the New Jersey Eagles defeated the Miami Sharks, 2-1. When the regular season ended the first week of August, Eagles had topped the standings with forty-five points. Four teams made the playoffs, the top two from both the Northern and Southern Divisions. The Washington Diplomats which had the worst record of the four playoff teams, stunned the league by defeating first the New Jersey Eagles, then the Fort Lauderdale Strikers to win the first league championship.
League standings
Northern Division
| Place | Team | GP | W | L | GF | GA | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Jersey Eagles | 20 | 15 | 5 | 39 | 24 | 45 |
| 2 | Maryland Bays | 20 | 12 | 8 | 32 | 31 | 36 |
| 3 | Washington Stars | 20 | 11 | 9 | 31 | 28 | 33 |
| 4 | Boston Bolts | 20 | 9 | 11 | 31 | 33 | 27 |
| 5 | Albany Capitals | 20 | 7 | 13 | 26 | 35 | 21 |
Southern Division
| Place | Team | GP | W | L | GF | GA | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 20 | 14 | 6 | 46 | 25 | 42 |
| 2 | Washington Diplomats | 20 | 10 | 10 | 27 | 30 | 30 |
| 3 | Tampa Bay Rowdies | 20 | 10 | 10 | 23 | 21 | 30 |
| 4 | Orlando Lions | 20 | 8 | 12 | 21 | 31 | 24 |
| 5 | Miami Sharks | 20 | 4 | 16 | 24 | 42 | 12 |
Playoffs
Semifinal 1
| Maryland Bays (MD) | 2-5 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers (Florida) |
|---|---|---|
Sylvanus Oriaikhi  44'Kurt Dasbach 80' |
17' Ray Hudson 65', 75', 85' Steve Kinsey 85' Ricardo Alonso |
Byrd Stadium, Columbia, Maryland Attendance: 1,808 |
| Fort Lauderdale Strikers (Florida) | 6-0 | Maryland Bays (MD) |
|---|---|---|
| Steve Kinsey 5', 46', 88' Miljce Donev 44'Ray Hudson 64'Marcelo Carrera 69' |
Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida Attendance: 1,406 |
Semifinal 2
| Washington Diplomats (DC) | 4-1 | New Jersey Eagles (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
| Duncan Reynard 13' Jean Harbor 18', 65'Leonel Suazo 84' |
78' Mario Chavez |
RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C. Attendance: 2,346 |
| New Jersey Eagles (NJ) | 1-0 | Washington Diplomats (DC) |
|---|---|---|
| Ken Lolla 64' |
Hinchliffe Stadium, Paterson, New Jersey Attendance: 1,531 |
August 14, 1988 |
| New Jersey Eagles (NJ) | 1-4 | Washington Diplomats (DC) |
|---|---|---|
| Mario Chavez 2' |
11' Jean Harbor 13', 26' Marco Casas-Cordero 20' Fernando Iturbe |
Hinchliffe Stadium, Paterson, New Jersey Attendance: 1,531 |
Final
| Washington Diplomats (DC) | 5-3 | Fort Lauderdale Strikers (Florida) |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Brady 18', 22' Joaquin Canales 55'Ronald Simmons 90' (pen.) |
57' Ricardo Alonso 58' Mark Schwartz 87' Thomas Rongen |
RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C. Attendance: 5,745 |
| Fort Lauderdale Strikers (Florida) | 2-3 | Washington Diplomats (DC) |
|---|---|---|
| Ricardo Alonso 28', 34' |
30' Leonel Suazo 31' Keith Trehy 36' Michael Brady |
Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida Attendance: 4,257 |
Points leaders
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jorge Acosta | New Jersey Eagles | 14 | 4 | 32 |
| 2 | Steve Kinsey | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 10 | 3 | 23 |
| 3 | Teófilo Cubillas | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 7 | 5 | 17 |
| 4 | Mark Lamb | Orlando Lions | 8 | 1 | 17 |
| 5 | Scott Snyder | Washington Stars | 8 | 1 | 17 |
| 6 | Maicol Antelo | New Jersey Eagles | 6 | 4 | 16 |
| 7 | Roger Chavez | New Jersey Eagles | 5 | 6 | 16 |
| 8 | Marcelo Carrera | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 4 | 8 | 16 |
| 9 | Mirko Castillo | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| 10 | Guillermo Pizzaro | Miami Sharks | 6 | 2 | 14 |
| 11 | Andy Bing | Boston Bolts | 5 | 4 | 14 |
| 11 | Russ Downing | Albany Capitals | 4 | 6 | 14 |
| 11 | Leonel Suazo | Washington Diplomats | 6 | 1 | 13 |
| 11 | Mike Sweeney | Boston Bolts | 5 | 3 | 13 |
| 11 | Kurt Manal | Boston Bolts | 5 | 3 | 13 |