New Bedford Whalers
| Full name | New Bedford Whalers |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1921 |
| Dissolved | 1933 |
| Chairman |
 Sam Mark: 1931–1932 |
| League |
SNESL: 1914–1918 American Soccer League: 1924–1932 → International Soccer League: 1926 → Eastern Soccer League: 1929 |
New Bedford Whalers was the name of three United States 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 League between 1924 and 1931 before merging into Fall River F.C.. The third Whalers were then formed when Fall River merged with New York Yankees. They played in the ASL between 1931 and 1932.
Founded in September 1913, the first Whalers originally played as New Bedford F.C. and played in the Southern New England Soccer League between 1914 and 1918. Immediately after their founding, they entered the 1913–14 National Challenge Cup. They went to the semifinals, falling to eventual champions, Brooklyn Field Club. They first played used the Whalers name in 1915. This team finished as league champions in both 1915 and 1917. Other teams in the league included Fall River Rovers. Of the five men who founded the club, John Fernley later became the president of the USFA and is in the National Soccer Hall of Fame. New Bedford was noted as having three full kits, a home, away and third kit.
In 1924 a second New Bedford Whalers, formed by former members of Fall River Rovers, joined the American Soccer League. In both 1926 and 1928 they finished as runners-up in the league and quickly developed a rivalry with Fall River Marksmen. In 1926 the second Whalers won their only major trophy when they defeated New York Giants 5–4 in a two-game series to win the Lewis Cup. 1926 also saw the Whalers play in the one-off 1926 International Soccer League season which featured teams from both the United States and Canada. In 1929 the ASL and the US Football Association became involved in a power struggle, sometimes referred to as the Soccer Wars. This resulted in the emergence of a rival Eastern Soccer League, organized by the USFA. The Whalers began the year in the ASL but subsequently joined the ESL. However, after just 8 games they rejoined the ASL. On their return they finished as ASL runners-up in both the Spring 1930 and Fall 1930 seasons. However the Great Depression severely effected the teams support and they failed to complete the Spring 1931 season. On April 19, 1931 they merged into Fall River F.C..
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