St. Louis Stars (NASL)
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| Full name | St. Louis Stars |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1966 |
| Dissolved | 1977 |
| Stadium |
Busch Memorial Stadium; Francis Field at Washington University St. Louis Arena (indoor) |
| Capacity | 55,000 & 6,000 18,006 (indoor) |
| Chairman | Bob Hermann |
| Manager | defunct |
| League |
NPSL (1967) NASL (1968–1977) |
| 1976/77 | NASL, Atlantic Conference, Northern Division 2nd |
The St. Louis Stars were a soccer team based in St. Louis, Missouri that played in the original North American Soccer League from 1968 to 1977. The Stars were known for playing mostly American players, many from the St. Louis area, in contrast to other NASL teams' reliance on foreign players. The team relocated to Anaheim in 1978 and became the California Surf.
The St. Louis Stars, founded in 1967 as a team in the National Professional Soccer League, were the first ever professional soccer team in St. Louis, although St. Louis had a long history of strong play in amateur leagues and college soccer. The Stars were headed by St. Louis businessman Bob Hermann. Hermann later went on to become president of the NPSL, and to create the Hermann Trophy, college soccer's version of the Heisman Trophy. The Stars immediately stole the spotlight from the local amateur clubs and attracted many mainstream sports fans. The first Stars team included players from nine different countries, with nine players from Yugoslavia, and the majority of the team did not speak English. The Stars' average attendance 7,613 was the highest in the league. After the season, the NPSL merged with the rival United Soccer Association to form the North American Soccer League. The Stars became a member of the newly merged league.
Following the 1968 NASL season, the league was in trouble with ten franchises having folded. The team's owners cut back on players' salaries, and the team became semi-pro. The 1969 season was split into two halves. The first half was called the International Cup, a double round robin tournament in which the remaining NASL clubs were represented by teams imported from the United Kingdom. The Stars were represented by Kilmarnock F.C. of Scotland. The Stars came in last for the Cup with a 2–5–1 record. For the second half of the 1969 season, the teams returned to their normal rosters, and played a 16-game schedule with no playoffs.
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