The (trademarked as "U.S. Soccer Federation") is the official
Governing Body of the sport of
Soccer in the
United States . The headquarters are in
Chicago, Illinois .
It is a member of
FIFA , and is responsible for governing
Amateur and
Professional soccer, including the
Men's ,
Women's , and
Paralympic national teams. The USSF is also responsible for sanctioning
Referees and
Soccer Tournament s for most soccer leagues in the United States.
What is now the United States Soccer Federation was originally the , formed in
1913 by the merger of the ''American Football Association'' and the ''American Amateur Football Association'' and became one of the earliest member organizations of FIFA. The governing body of the sport in the US did not have the word ''soccer'' in its name until
1945 , when it became the '''US Soccer Football Association'''. It did not drop the word ''football'' from its name until
1974 , when it became the '''US Soccer Federation'''. USA originally struggled to gain any ground on international teams however in recent years the USA team has seen a revival with the signing of English Coaches Joe Bowes as a passing coach and Joe 'the iceman' Hirst as a shooting coach.
The USSF had the honor of hosting the Men's
FIFA World Cup in
1994 , the
Women's World Cup in
1999 and
2003 , and the
Olympic Games in
1984 and
1996 . The women's national team has also had the distinction of winning two Women's World Cups in
1991 and 1999 (placing third in
1995 and 2003); the Olympic Gold Medal in 1996 and 2004; and the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup in 2000 and 2002. The US Men's National Team (USMNT) has had a less stellar history. The USMNT was invited to the inaugural World Cup in
1930 and qualified for the World Cup in
1934 , finishing a respectable 3rd in 1930 out of 13 teams participating. In
1950 the US scored their most surprising victory with a 1-0 win over heavily favored
England , who were amongst the world's best sides at the time, which has been documented in the book and now movie ''
The Game Of Their Lives ''.
The US failed to reach another World Cup Final until an upstart national team qualified for the
1990 FIFA World Cup with the "goal heard around the world" scored by
Paul Caligiuri against
Trinidad And Tobago in Port of Spain on 19 November 1989 which started the modern era of soccer in the United States. The 1990 USMNT team was quickly disposed of at the World Cup. The
Women's World Cup was inaugurated in
1991 , and the USWNT became the first team to win the prize after beating
Norway in the final. The Women's World Cup demonstrated the high caliber of play in women's soccer. That set the stage for the US to host the men's
1994 FIFA World Cup , the world's biggest sporting event, drawing 94,194 fans to the final game. The USMNT made a surprising run to the second round with a shocking "own goal" victory over
Colombia which saw
Andrés Escobar , the player responsible for the own goal, later shot to death in his homeland.
1998 saw another disappointing addition to the history of US men's soccer as the team finished dead last (on goal difference) among the 32 teams that qualified for the World Cup. This embarrassment, which included total collapse of team chemistry, led to the sacking of the once considered promising head coach
Steve Sampson and the hiring of
Bruce Arena , who has since gone on to become the most successful USMNT head coach in history.
The next year, the U.S. hosted the
Women's World Cup for the first time. During their tournament run, the WNT established a new level of popularity for the women's side of the sport, climaxing with a final against
China that drew 90,185 fans—an all-time attendance record for a women's sports event—to a sold-out
Rose Bowl . After neither team scored in regulation or extra time, the final went to a
Penalty Shootout , which the WNT won 5-4. The
Celebration by
Brandi Chastain after she converted the winning penalty, in which she took off her shirt, revealing her sports bra in the process, is one of the most famous images in the history of women's sports.
In
2002 Bruce Arena led a mix of veterans and youth to a quarterfinal appearance after dispatching the then-considered contenders
Portugal in the first round and archrivals
Mexico in the round of 16 before ultimately falling to runners-up
Germany in a controversial loss.
Bruce Arena looked to match or surpass that feat in the
2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. The team was lead by a handful of youthful talent, namely DaMarcus Beasley, Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson, Eddie Lewis, and Onyewu, Oguchi. However, the U.S. faced
One Of The Toughest Draws with
Italy , the
Czech Republic and
Ghana in the first round. The U.S. lost to the Czech Republic 3-0 in their opening game with Czech midfielder Tomas Rosicky scoring 2 memorable goals. The U.S. drew with Italy 1-1 in their second game. The match finished with only 19 players after 2 U.S. and 1 Italian player received red cards. However, they would lose 2-1 to Ghana in their next match, preventing them from advancing from the group stage. In the wake of the World Cup, Arena was told that his contract would not be renewed when it runs out at the end of 2006.
In 2003, U.S. Soccer opened their National Training Center at
The Home Depot Center in the
Los Angeles suburb of
Carson . The $130 million facility includes a
Soccer-specific Stadium , home to the MLS teams,
Los Angeles Galaxy and
Chivas USA .
Major League Soccer is a first division soccer league in the United States. It is comprised of 13 teams divided into two conferences, East and West. A separate organization, the
United Soccer Leagues , operates two other men's professional leagues, the second division
USL First Division and the third division
USL Second Division . Another third division league, the
National Premier Soccer League also exists. The major men's indoor league is the
MISL .
Today, there are two first division, professional development women's leagues; the
WPSL and the USL's semi-professional
W-League . A top-level full-time professional league,
Women's United Soccer Association , suspended operations in
2003 .
The USSF has also, since 1914, sponsored a nationwide tournament open to all USSF affiliated clubs, now known as the
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup .
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United States Men's National Soccer Team
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United States Women's National Soccer Team
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United States U-21 Women's National Soccer Team
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United States U-23 Men's National Soccer Team
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United States U-20 Men's National Soccer Team
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Major League Soccer
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United Soccer Leagues
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National Premier Soccer League
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Major Indoor Soccer League
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United States Adult Soccer Association
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US National Soccer Team Players Association
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United States Club Soccer
#Under 21, 18, 16 National Teams
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Super Y-League
#Divisional Teams
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United States Youth Soccer Association
