St. Patrick's Day Soccer in 1892

What's better than drinking on St. Paddy's? Calling out your local rivals for a holiday game via newspaper and ending up in soccer history forever. This week, we take a look back at the earliest documented reference to soccer in the DeKalb County Granite District in Georgia. It’s a story we found as we rolled through The Peach State on the way up to North Carolina on our bus. Plus, we revisit a 70-goal game, a Puskas contender in USL, and more.

This week’s stories:

• 🚍 Maiden Voyage

• 🤯 70 Goals in One Game

• ☘️ St. Patrick's Day Soccer in 1892

• ⏳ Coming Soon FC

• 🗳️ Poll + Last Week’s Answers

• ➡️ And More

CLUBELEVEN
Maiden Voyage

We finally set sail on Sunday, ready to hit three cities in three days during the first round of the Open Cup.

For our maiden voyage, we’re taking our soccer bus and The Soccer Odyssey magazine to Asheville, Boone, and High Point in North Carolina to enjoy the magic of the Cup and host memorable events with each community on the ground.

Our first destination is one that holds a special place in our hearts. Last year, we were able to cover their first-ever US Open Cup game, and meeting the owners, players, and fans, was an experience that in many ways inspired our American Soccer Tour this year.

Back in 2024, they welcomed us with open arms and eagerly encouraged us to continue our dreams of covering as much soccer as possible in this country—from top to bottom. So, when we were thinking of where to go for our first tour stop, it only felt right that it’d be right back to them.

In a way, returning to Asheville feels like a homecoming of sorts, and as we finalized our plans, we realized this journey was also an opportunity to give back to this community that unwittingly shaped us as soccer storytellers. A community that is still finding its feet after the devastating Hurricane Helene, but is eager to celebrate its first major sports game since the disaster.

During our tour of North Carolina (today through the end of Thursday), we will donate $5 per magazine sold in person and online to relief efforts in Asheville. While it’s only one small part of everything we’ll be doing through this first leg of our trip, we hope it’s an initiative that highlights the unifying power of soccer and its ability to bring communities together across America.

We can’t wait to see everyone in Asheville, Boone, and High Point this week 🚌

OUR HISTORY
70 Goals in One Game

It’s an insane stat, but it really happened. On March 15, 1997, the Cleveland Crunch of the indoor NPSL defeated the Columbus Invaders 52-18.

That night, legendary indoor forward Hector Marinaro broke the all-time single game scoring record, with 25 points (12 goals + 13 assists) making it one of the most prolific offensive performances ever in American indoor soccer history. Take a bow.

No less than seven other league records were broken/tied that night. Just insane. It’s one of those matches that happen once every few decades, and 28 years later, it’s good to take a moment to celebrate it.

COVER STORY
St. Patrick's Day Soccer in 1892

As we crossed from Florida to Georgia (on our way to NC), we gave ourselves a challenge. Could we find a soccer story that encompassed St. Patrick’s Day and The Peach State? We had a lot of time to kill.

Anyways, Tyler (CLUBELEVEN videographer extraordinaire) was the clear winner. He dug up a Georgia-based newspaper article from 1892 that outlined a challenge from the “Atlanta Irishmen,” with the St. Patrick’s Day organizing committee, to the “brawny-armed, powerful” Scottish stonecutters in Lithonia and Stone Mountain for a friendly match of association football (soccer) as part of the holiday festivities.

It’s a brilliant article, to be honest. In it, the Atlanta Irishmen absolutely roast American Football and try to build as much excitement as possible for this potential match. It’s funny that it’s so relatable over 130 years later.

Interestingly enough, some local historians claim this is the earliest documented reference to soccer in the DeKalb County Granite District in Georgia. The more you know.

You just have to read it. It’s the perfect cure for your Saint Patrick’s Day hangover.

BUSINESS
Coming Soon FC

Okay, we finally have confirmation that BOS Nation FC is changing its name. It’d been months since their original announcement got met with widespread backlash, but since then, there hadn’t been any word on whether they were actually changing their name or not. That is until this past week.

There should be a new name announcement in the coming weeks and a crest unveiling this summer. It’s been a long saga, but I hope they get it right this time. I need my new city to have a cool NWSL team. I was spoiled with the Washington Spirit when I was in Maryland.

CLUBELEVEN
The Supporters Section

Trying to prove a point with this one. We’ll highlight your best answers next week—let us know what local team you’re following!

CLUBELEVEN
Aggregates

Puskas Contender in USL: Down one, five minutes left, and you pull this one-in-a-million goal out of your bag. The club better build you a statue as soon as the game is over. Roberto Carlos would be proud.

OKC Final Round: We’re down to five finalists. Thanks to everyone here who went over and voted on the poll to choose OKC’s new name. The field has been narrowed to five options, and you can select your favorite here.

Brooklyn on TV: Making soccer more accessible is always a positive. This new initiative by Brooklyn FC is great.

Through Ball: DAZN is coming in hot. They’ve linked up Darian Jenkins, Elischa Edouard, and Kaylyn Kyle to lead a brand new show. Loved the first episode. 

Grizz: LAFC are flirting with signing this Atletico Madrid star. It’d be a blockbuster move.

RECORDS
The Youngest Ever

McKenna Whitham, 14, wrote her name in the history books this past weekend, becoming the youngest player in NWSL history to appear in a regular-season match.

It’s funny because almost exactly a year ago, she became the youngest player to score for an NWSL team (in an unofficial pre-season match) at just 13 years old. It’s always so awesome to see how much growth can happen in a year, and it’s crazy that Whitham has already managed to work her way up to the first team.

It’ll be interesting to see how she develops on the pitch this season. Hopefully she can continue to kill it.

FESTIVITIES
PL Summer Series

I’m not gonna make fun of Manchester United for not making the Club World Cup, purely out of respect for all my Red Devil friends.

But in all seriousness, it’s cool that we’ll get more of those European clubs on our shores this year. Truth is, no one knows what this summer is going to look like with CWC, and although I was skeptical that other “summer tours” would be happening this year, I’m excited to try and catch some of these Prem clubs if my wallet allows it.

At a quick glance the prices aren’t that bad plus the matchdays are double-headers. Kind of a steal.

CLUBELEVEN
Your Takes 🗯️ 

Last week, we asked you: What cities should we visit with our soccer bus? Here are some of your best answers:

• “Grand Rapids Soccer has rapidly become a staple of GR. I recommend you look into the Soccer Rebellion League at las canchas in GR. Street football at it's finest. There is nothing like it anywhere else.” - Carson R

• “Hartford, CT and Portland, ME.” - Kathryn

• “Chicago.” - Trumpet Papi

• “Queens NY. And you know why. Astoria, Jackson Heights, Flushing, Forest Park etc. etc. etc. Each its own city, all with a global soccer culture.” - M.M.

• “Harrison NJ, the supporters of RBNY and Gotham come from so many different and beautiful communities and have been so integral to soccer in this area for so long. Empire Supporters Club was the first ever supporters group for an MLS team and this year celebrates their 30th anniversary! The work they’ve been doing to blend different supporters culture to create something uniquely their own is unmatched. And on the women’s side you have cloud 9, founded by long time ESC members and rbny fans, they use their voice to elevate the women’s game but also to speak out against abuse and injustice in the game and our communities.” - M. Liguori

• “Naples! (Florida lol)” - JD

• “Alexandria, Virginia / Washington DC!” - Katie

• “Tucson.” - Chris

Thank you to everyone who dropped a recommendation! We’ll be considering all of these as we chart our path across the US this year. Ultimately, we want to celebrate communities that hold the true fabric of soccer in America, and it helps us to hear from you on what we should do at each destination. Stay tuned for an announcement later next week regarding our dates after North Carolina.

UP NEXT
Bus Opening Week

It’s gonna be one for the ages. We have a few friends flying in or driving out to see the bus. We even have “Bullhorn Ben” ready to welcome us to Asheville, a pub-gate lined up, jersey raffles, ticket giveaways, squatchy surprises, and more in the cards. But the most exciting part will be getting to meet all of these dedicated soccer communities and get to experience the Magic of the Open Cup with them. Truly, a dream come true. Keep up with our travels here! The official unveiling of the inside of the bus is tonight…

Enjoying This?

Make sure to forward this email to a friend and help us spread the soccer gospel far and wide! We’ll see you next week with even more untold stories of soccer.

Have a great Tuesday!

Pablo