I was a fresh-faced college kid when the Tampa Bay Rowdies made their debut in 1975. The North American Soccer League was also brand new, with lots of international soccer stars, many a year or two past their peak, sprinkled throughout the league.
Those stars included Pele, Franz Beckenbauer, Carlos Alberto, and, Clyde Best. To its credit, the NASL required teams to have a certain percentage of North American players.
The Rowdies won the Soccer Bowl that debut year and the young people around Tampa Bay found a team to love. The Rowdies image was of a hard-playing, hard-partying team that was “a kick in the grass.”
Their games at Tampa Stadium drew upwards of 30,000 fans. Most of them in their 20s and 30s. We were young and looking for excitement. So was the team. Unlike the terrible Bucs of that era, the Rowdies didn’t lumber around in heavy pads. They raced across the turf, showing off their physique in shorts and T-shirts. And when they weren’t on the field, you were very likely to see them out at a pub or a bar.
We loved them.
I wasn’t much of a musician, but I was recruited to play under the stands before and after games, with a guitar-playing pal. That gig actually launched me into what has been a decades-long sideline of playing music. When I made mistakes, it was likely because I was staring at some cluster of young women who had turned out in shorts or short skirts for the game.
I was driving a VW bug convertible then. I arrived one sunny afternoon for a playoff game and left the top down. Later a massive thunderstorm rolled through, and I remember Rodney Marsh sliding through the wet turf to score the winning goal. I was so happy about the victory, I didn’t mind the foot of water inside my car.
You can relive some of those crazy fun years through a documentary coming to the Palladium next week. It is called “Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story.”
Best was a key member of the Rowdies team that captured the 1975 NASL Championship. His presence brought international experience, physicality, and professionalism to a young squad that quickly became one of the league’s most exciting teams. The championship run helped cement the Rowdies’ place in American soccer history and introduced a passionate fan base in Tampa Bay for the global game. For Best, the 1975 title represented both a career milestone and a powerful extension of his pioneering legacy beyond English football.
There are multiple showings next week at the Palladium, May 7 through 9, including a VIP red carpet showing. For tickets and information, please follow this link.
I will be there to enjoy the show and I promise I won’t be playing the piano! Yes!
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