North American Soccer League (1971-1974)
Tombstone
Born: 1971 – NASL expansion franchise
Re-Branded: February 5, 1975 (Toronto Metros-Croatia)
First Game:
Last Game:
NASL Championships: None
Stadium
Varsity Stadium (21,753)11973 North American Soccer League Press Guide
Opened: 1911
Demolished: 2002
Marketing
Team Colors: White, Blue & Red21973 North American Soccer League Press Guide
Ownership
Owners: Prosoccer Ltd. (John Fisher, et al.)
Our Favorite Stuff
Toronto Metros NASL
Logo T-Shirt
Fun logo from this low-key Toronto pro soccer entry that patrolled Varsity Stadium during the pro soccer dark ages of the early 1970’s. The Metros would continue in one form or another until 1978, but dropped this colorful wordmark after merging with the Toronto Croatia amateur club and adopting the ethnically based “Metros-Croatia” identity in 1975.
This Metros design is available in sizes Small though 4XL today from Old School Shirts!
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Background
The Toronto Metros were a North American Soccer League franchise founded in 1971. The Metros followed closely behind two other failed pro soccer clubs in Toronto during the late 1960’s: Toronto City (1967) and Toronto Falcons (1967-1968).
The club was financially stressed throughout much of its initial four-year run. In early 1975, the Metros merged with Toronto Croatia of Canada’s amateur National Soccer League. Much to the exasperation of NASL officials, the new management imposed a Croat ethnic identity onto the organization and re-branded the club as Toronto Metros-Croatia. Metros-Croatia won the 1976 NASL Soccer Bowl championship but continued to scuffle financially.
The team changed hands again in early 1979. New owner Global Television Network re-named the club the Toronto Blizzard. The Blizzard played on until the demise of the NASL following the 1984 season.
Toronto Metros Shop
Editor's Pick
Rock n' Roll Soccer
The Short Life and Fast Times of the North American Soccer League
by Ian Plenderleith
The North American Soccer League – at its peak in the late 1970s – presented soccer as performance, played by men with a bent for flair, hair and glamour. More than just Pelé and the New York Cosmos, it lured the biggest names of the world game like Johan Cruyff, Franz Beckenbauer, Eusebio, Gerd Müller and George Best to play the sport as it was meant to be played-without inhibition, to please the fans.
The first complete look at the ambitious, star-studded NASL, Rock ‘n’ Roll Soccer reveals how this precursor to modern soccer laid the foundations for the sport’s tremendous popularity in America today.
When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!
In Memoriam
Scottish head coach, Graham Legatt (Metros ’71-’72) passed away on August 29th, 2015. The former Aberdeen and Fulham winger was 81. The Scotsman obituary.
Downloads
8-25-1971 Metros vs. St. Louis Stars Game Program (Complete)
8-25-1971 Toronto Metros Program
Links
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