Baltimore Spirit

National Professional Soccer League (1992-1998)

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Baltimore Spirit
Logo T-Shirt

I suppose this is the gift for the Baltimore Blast fan who has everything…

The Spirit were the mid-1990’s interlopers who kept indoor soccer alive in the Charm City while the Blast were temporarily defunct. The team never totally settled on its identity, cycling through several logos and sets of team colors in just six seasons. This “ghostly” red, white & black design probably best captures the Spirit’s look. 

This design is also available as a Long Sleeve T, in a Women’s cut or as a Hoodie Sweatshirt from our partners at Extra Time Vintage Soccer!

 

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Background

Baltimore, Maryland has long been the most resilient outpost for the fading sport of indoor soccer. The city has enjoyed Blast soccer at the ancient Baltimore Arena for over 40 years now, dating back to club’s arrival in the fall of 1980. At the peak of the indoor game’s popularity in the mid-80’s, the Blast packed 10,000 a night into the building.

The Blast’s fortunes began a long steady decline in the late 1980’s. But the team has stubbornly soldiered on, surviving the rise and fall of countless leagues, rivals, rule changes and business model gimmicks. The one exception was a six-year stretch in the 1990’s, after the original Blast folded and a successor franchise, the Baltimore Spirit, took up residence at the Arena.

Cooper & Stealey

On July 10, 1992 the Major Soccer League (MISL) folded after 14 seasons. Several MISL clubs soldiered on in the non-union National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) or the start-up Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL). But Blast owner Ed Hale, a Baltimore trucking & transportation magnate who lost several million dollars operating the team for its final three MISL seasons, elected to let his club fold.

With the MISL’s survival looking bleak that summer, Kenny Cooper scrambled to put together new ownership. Cooper was the only coach the Blast had ever known, starting with the team back in 1980. Cooper lined up “Wild Bill” Stealey as his financial backer. Stealey was the co-founder of video game company MicroProse and a passionate Blast fan and season ticket holder. He sponsored overseas trips by the Blast in the early 1990’s and even put the name of a fairly obscure 1980’s Blast goalkeeper named Keith Van Eron on MicroProse’s Commodore 64 soccer video game.

Just one week after the Blast’s closure, the NPSL introduced Bill Stealey as the owner of its Baltimore expansion franchise on July 16, 1992. Cooper would serve as General Manager & Head Coach. A number of former Blast players signed on with Stealey’s Baltimore Spirit including Joe Koziol, Mike Stankovic, Rusty Troy, Cris Vaccaro and Tim Wittman.

Rivalry with Harrisburg

Under Cooper, the Spirit won back-to-back NPSL division titles in 1993 and 1994. But the Spirit were swept out of the playoffs in the first round by the Harrisburg Heat both years.

After the Spirit’s second season in 1993-94, Cooper and Stealey had a falling out. Cooper recruited William Collins III, a Virginia-based baseball fanatic who worked throughout the 1990’s to bring Major League Baseball to Northern Virginia, to buy out Stealey. Stealey declined to sell and Cooper resigned. One year later, Cooper and Collins joined the NPSL with an expansion franchise – the Tampa Bay Terror. The Terror flopped on the field and at the box office and folded within two years.

Former Blast player Dave MacWilliams replaced Cooper on the bench for the 1994-95 season. For the third straight year, the Harrisburg Heat eliminated Baltimore in the first round of the playoffs.

In 1996 the Spirit met Harrisburg in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth straight year. They finally got past the Heat, only to lose in the 2nd round to the Cleveland Crunch.

Blast From The Past

The 1997-98 season was a grim slog for the Spirit. Baltimore finished with the worst record (12-28) in the 13-team NPSL. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported (4/4/98) that Stealey had lost $3 million on the Spirit over the past six seasons.

Re-enter MISL-era Blast owner Ed Hale. Hale was flush after expanding his transportation interests into banking during the 1990’s. Hale bought the Spirit from Stealey in the spring of 1998 and immediately restored the ‘Blast’ name and logo for the 1998-99 NPSL campaign.

The Blast continue to play in 2019 in the Major Arena Soccer League under the ownership of Ed Hale.

Baltimore Spirit Shop

FUN WHILE IT LASTED COFFEE SHOP

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Baltimore Spirit Ceramic mug

Available now from our friends at Extra Time Vintage Soccer, this fully-insulated porcelain mug is ideal for your morning brew. 

• Ceramic | Capacity: 11 fl oz

• Dishwasher safe

• Lead and Cadmium free

• Imported; processed and printed in the U.S.A.

 

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!

Spirit Video

Baltimore Spirit 30-second TV spot, circa mid-1990’s.

Spirit visit the Cleveland Crunch. 1996-97 NPSL season.

Links

National Professional Soccer League Media Guides

National Professional Soccer League Programs 1990-2001

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