My first memory of soccer as a spectator sport is probably 1967, the year of the NPSL (precursor to the NASL), which had a contract with CBS. The color commentator was the legendary Danny Blanchflower (I had no idea then he was a legend), who was the best thing about the games:
The real star of the TV game was a retired soccer player who is regarded as the best produced in Ireland in a generation—Danny Blanchflower. Blanchflower was the color man for Jack Whitaker, a CBS sports announcer who struggled manfully, and, on the whole, successfully with the problem of presenting soccer intelligibly to an audience that must have known little or nothing about the nuances of the game. Blanchflower, speaking in a crisp, engaging accent, was refreshingly honest in his comments. It is quite evident he has a lot to learn before he becomes as reluctant as American announcers to criticize. His estimate of the action on the field was clear and biting.
My first live match was 1978, the only year of the Oakland Stompers in the NASL (their goalie was Shep Messing).
My first experience with the ways soccer captured the fans was 1984, when I was in Europe during the European Championships (Spain lost in the final).
My first international live match was later that same year, USA-Costa Rica in the Olympics. The U.S. won, 3-0, and Ricky Davis scored twice.
My first concentrated dose of Spanish-language televised soccer was the 1986 World Cup, with Tony Tirado doing play-by-play for SIN, the Spanish International Network, which later became Univision.
My first experience with a local team to call my own was 1996, when the San Jose Clash and MLS began (that ticket you can see at the top of this blog is from the very first MLS match, which I attended).
And now it comes to this: the first time either of the national teams I care most about is in the final. Maybe before I die I’ll get to see the U.S. make it this far. For now, Spain will have to do. It’s going to be excruciating for the next few hours.
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