SASH Sessions

EP 39: "'How about that trip to Worcester!' Building sporting links between Britain and the USA in the 1920s.”

On Friday, May 8,  Dilwyn Porter presented a SASH Session titled, “How about that trip to Worcester!’ Building sporting links between Britain and the USA in the 1920s.” In the presentation, Porter discussed the history behind a series of games featuring clubs from Worcester, Massachusetts and Worcester, England in the 1920s. Originating during the First World War with the establishment of the British American Fellowship, a forerunner of today’s “twinning” or “sister cities” movement, the partnership between the two cities resulted in teams from the American Worcester visiting the English Worcester in 1926 and 1929, and teams from Worcestershire crossing the Atlantic in the other direction in 1927 and 1930. Porter has written an essay describing some of the background that can be read on the SASH website [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/how-about-that-trip-to-worcester-building-sporting-links-between-britain-and-the-usa-in-the-1920s/]. Soccer historians are most likely to have come across Dil Porter via English Gentlemen and World Soccer: Corinthians, Amateurism and the Global Game [https://www.amazon.com/English-Gentlemen-World-Soccer-Corinthians/dp/1472466136], co-authored with Chris Bolsmann, or through his online contributions to the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography [https://www.oxforddnb.com/] on various iconic figures in English football, especially members of the 1966 World Cup winning squad (most recently Jimmy Greaves, Bobby Charlton, forthcoming). As a historian of sport, he has been drawn to a number of broad themes – amateurism, Cold War sport and sports tourism being three of them. Now retired from teaching at De Montfort University, Leicester, he chairs the Friends of Worcestershire Archives in his home town of Worcester, England, which is how he got interested in this topic. –0– Podcast produced by Brian Quarstad. Music created by LiteSaturation [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2Fusers%2Flitesaturation-17654080%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=GKkpgslorQRP0%2BfDvAxgjdgj21E0byIL9lGYGpxQsmw%3D&reserved=0] and found at Pixabay [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2F%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PXeZloSDP9Rse24ULu9HsPOr4dKkjYuFgViouTNlRww%3D&reserved=0]. View the video of the session at httpshttps://youtu.be/RDV0Ba-At9g [https://youtu.be/RDV0Ba-At9g] Visit the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDRUc0RxVnVBRXpia2hRQldDTU41X25TZGEtd3xBQ3Jtc0ttLVJCWTNCb0NGb1lBM25hUjlMUHgzOUc2UVBjWGxSU1l1YzlqcFc3d2ttZzV1Z2ZFcW5DTFhpczh6V0U5VFV4VDJRNGJyN3dIVXRsenlETnc3Sm1XMjZQTkJfLXRQT29JSXRsZUN2bFRMazVrTzIycw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ussoccerhistory.org%2F&v=PIjpg0QDVko] Join SASH at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/] Donate to SASH at https://gofund.me/89e657f93 [https://gofund.me/89e657f93]   Twitter: https://x.com/USSoccerHistory [https://x.com/USSoccerHistory] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/ussoccerhistory.org [https://bsky.app/profile/ussoccerhistory.org] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/103886903 [https://www.linkedin.com/company/103886903] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SocietyforAmericanSoccerHistory [https://www.facebook.com/SocietyforAmericanSoccerHistory] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ussoccerhistory/ [https://www.instagram.com/ussoccerhistory/]

EP 38: "WUSA 2001 — The Game That Launched Women's Pro Soccer"

On Friday, April 10, 2026, women's soccer historian and NWSL stats manager Jen Cooper discussed the lead-up to the Women's United Soccer Association's inaugural league game on April 14, 2001 — the world's first fully-professional women's league game — and the precedent is set for all the women's pro leagues that followed. 1999 Women's World Cup champions Mia Hamm (Washington Freedom) and Brandi Chastain (Bay Area CyberRays) faced off in the match in front of 34,148 fans at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC, a number that was not surpassed in the USA until 2024. The link for the the ESPN 30-for-30 podcast mentioned in the session about the WUSA featuring Julie Foudy is: https://30for30podcasts.com/episodes/back-pass/ [https://30for30podcasts.com/episodes/back-pass/] –0– Podcast produced by Brian Quarstad. Music created by LiteSaturation [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2Fusers%2Flitesaturation-17654080%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=GKkpgslorQRP0%2BfDvAxgjdgj21E0byIL9lGYGpxQsmw%3D&reserved=0] and found at Pixabay [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2F%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PXeZloSDP9Rse24ULu9HsPOr4dKkjYuFgViouTNlRww%3D&reserved=0]. View the video of the session at httpshttps://youtu.be/RDV0Ba-At9g [https://youtu.be/RDV0Ba-At9g] Visit the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDRUc0RxVnVBRXpia2hRQldDTU41X25TZGEtd3xBQ3Jtc0ttLVJCWTNCb0NGb1lBM25hUjlMUHgzOUc2UVBjWGxSU1l1YzlqcFc3d2ttZzV1Z2ZFcW5DTFhpczh6V0U5VFV4VDJRNGJyN3dIVXRsenlETnc3Sm1XMjZQTkJfLXRQT29JSXRsZUN2bFRMazVrTzIycw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ussoccerhistory.org%2F&v=PIjpg0QDVko] Join SASH at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/] Donate to SASH at https://gofund.me/89e657f93 [https://gofund.me/89e657f93]   Twitter: https://x.com/USSoccerHistory [https://x.com/USSoccerHistory] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/ussoccerhistory.org [https://bsky.app/profile/ussoccerhistory.org] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/103886903 [https://www.linkedin.com/company/103886903] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SocietyforAmericanSoccerHistory [https://www.facebook.com/SocietyforAmericanSoccerHistory] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ussoccerhistory/ [https://www.instagram.com/ussoccerhistory/]

EP 37: “Gil Heron and ‘Pito’ Villalon: Black Players Breaking Barriers in US Soccer”

On Friday, February 20, 2026, Jermaine Scott, professor of history at Florida Atlantic University, Maxwell Murray of Detroit City FC and the Urban Football League, and SASH board member Chuck Carlson presented a SASH Session about two Black soccer players who broke racial barriers in US during the 1940’s and 1950’s. Murray and Carlson discuss the Jamaica-born Gil Heron. In addition to playing for Ontario, Detroit, and Chicago sides, Heron was the first Black player signed by Glasgow Celtic. Scott discusses the American Soccer League’s first Black player, Jesus “Pito” Villalon, who was born in Cuba before playing in the US. You can see footage of Villalon in action playing for the Kearny All Stars against Scotland on June 5, 1949 on the SASH YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/QdXXEYZ9dy8. [https://youtu.be/QdXXEYZ9dy8.] The session includes discussion of Villalon and Heron’s lives on and off the field, and also explored broader issues of race in soccer in the US, including the team selection of the US Men’s National Team for the 1950 World Cup in Brazil. Podcast produced by Brian Quarstad. Music created by LiteSaturation [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2Fusers%2Flitesaturation-17654080%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=GKkpgslorQRP0%2BfDvAxgjdgj21E0byIL9lGYGpxQsmw%3D&reserved=0] and found at Pixabay [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2F%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PXeZloSDP9Rse24ULu9HsPOr4dKkjYuFgViouTNlRww%3D&reserved=0]. View the video of the session at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo] Visit the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDRUc0RxVnVBRXpia2hRQldDTU41X25TZGEtd3xBQ3Jtc0ttLVJCWTNCb0NGb1lBM25hUjlMUHgzOUc2UVBjWGxSU1l1YzlqcFc3d2ttZzV1Z2ZFcW5DTFhpczh6V0U5VFV4VDJRNGJyN3dIVXRsenlETnc3Sm1XMjZQTkJfLXRQT29JSXRsZUN2bFRMazVrTzIycw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ussoccerhistory.org%2F&v=PIjpg0QDVko] Join SASH at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/]

EP 36: "Ranking the USMNT World Cup coaches"

On January 16, 2026 at the United Soccer Coaches Convention in Philadelphia, SASH hosted a discussion ranking the US World Cup coaches. Eighteen members and friends gathered to discuss and debate “Ranking the USMNT World Cup Coaches.” Board member, Michael Lewis, providing opening remarks, followed by Dr. David Kilpatrick, who explained the game and its rules for the session: ranking the ten USMNT head coaches of the eleven teams to appear in FIFA World Cup Finals, based entirely on matches played in World Cup Finals (not qualification, other competitions, friendly matches, or any other achievements in their coaching careers). A brief summary of the USMNT performances in World Cup Finals was provided as everyone in attendance was encouraged to make their own list from best to worst. Lewis gave his rankings, emphasizing his personal take from covering forty years of World Cups as a journalist, followed Dr. Joe Machnik, who declined to provide a list, explaining that because he was Bob Gansler’s assistant coach at the 1990 World Cup he had a bias and sense of loyalty, while providing unique insight to the issues faced coaching. Cosmos legends Boris Bandov, Fred Grgurev, Erhardt Kapp, and Ferdinando De Matthaeis were in attendance, offering invaluable perspective as players. Jack Huckel emphasized the role of trust in coaching, followed by Kilpatrick, who stressed style of play and aesthetic judgement. The floor was then opened for attendees to share their opinions, with Roger Allaway, Charles Cuttone, and Remy Lupica sharing valuations before Lewis and Kilpatrick provided closing comments. Of the eighteen in attendance, nine cast their ballots for best coach with Bruce Arena coming out on top. You can view a breakdown of the results of the vote at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/sash-session-at-the-united-soccer-coaches-convention-votes-bruce-the-best/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/sash-session-at-the-united-soccer-coaches-convention-votes-bruce-the-best/] Podcast produced by Brian Quarstad. Music created by LiteSaturation [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2Fusers%2Flitesaturation-17654080%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=GKkpgslorQRP0%2BfDvAxgjdgj21E0byIL9lGYGpxQsmw%3D&reserved=0] and found at Pixabay [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2F%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PXeZloSDP9Rse24ULu9HsPOr4dKkjYuFgViouTNlRww%3D&reserved=0]. View the video of the session at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo] Visit the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDRUc0RxVnVBRXpia2hRQldDTU41X25TZGEtd3xBQ3Jtc0ttLVJCWTNCb0NGb1lBM25hUjlMUHgzOUc2UVBjWGxSU1l1YzlqcFc3d2ttZzV1Z2ZFcW5DTFhpczh6V0U5VFV4VDJRNGJyN3dIVXRsenlETnc3Sm1XMjZQTkJfLXRQT29JSXRsZUN2bFRMazVrTzIycw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ussoccerhistory.org%2F&v=PIjpg0QDVko] Join SASH at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/]

EP 35: "Memories of the First US Junior National Team, 1964" with Alex Popovich

On Friday, January 9, 2026, Alex Popovich discussed his time with the first Junior US Men’s National team. The team was assembled to participate in the second CONCACAF Youth Tournament, which was staged in Guatemala City in April 1964. Alex’s essay, “Memories of the first US Junior National Team: Guatemala, 1964,” was recently published on the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/memories-of-the-first-us-junior-national-team-guatemala-1964/. [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/memories-of-the-first-us-junior-national-team-guatemala-1964/.] The session was hosted by David Kilpatrick and several of Alex's teammates joined the discussion. Podcast produced by Brian Quarstad. Music created by LiteSaturation [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2Fusers%2Flitesaturation-17654080%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=GKkpgslorQRP0%2BfDvAxgjdgj21E0byIL9lGYGpxQsmw%3D&reserved=0] and found at Pixabay [https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpixabay.com%2F%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlink-attribution%26utm_medium%3Dreferral%26utm_campaign%3Dmusic%26utm_content%3D113907&data=05%7C01%7C%7C0dbafdd2af834dd1a5ed08dbccd9b91a%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638329007737828335%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PXeZloSDP9Rse24ULu9HsPOr4dKkjYuFgViouTNlRww%3D&reserved=0]. View the video of the session at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6cCsZCxPAo] Visit the SASH website at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/ [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbDRUc0RxVnVBRXpia2hRQldDTU41X25TZGEtd3xBQ3Jtc0ttLVJCWTNCb0NGb1lBM25hUjlMUHgzOUc2UVBjWGxSU1l1YzlqcFc3d2ttZzV1Z2ZFcW5DTFhpczh6V0U5VFV4VDJRNGJyN3dIVXRsenlETnc3Sm1XMjZQTkJfLXRQT29JSXRsZUN2bFRMazVrTzIycw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ussoccerhistory.org%2F&v=PIjpg0QDVko] Join SASH at https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/ [https://www.ussoccerhistory.org/store/sash-membership-one-year/]