United Soccer Association In 1966 a group of
American and
Canadian sports entrepreneurs, led by
Jack Kent Cooke, formed the
United Soccer Association with the intention of organizing a professional
soccer league. The USA originally intended to launch its league in the spring of 1968. However a rival league, the
National Professional Soccer League, announced it was ready to launch in 1967. Not wanting to lose ground to its rival, the USA decided to fast track its launch. Without any players of its own, it opted to import whole teams from
Europe and
South America. It was intended that these teams would represent the franchises during the inaugural season, giving them time to build their own squads for the following season.
Wolverhampton Wanderers, who had won promotion to the
English First Division at the end of the
1966–67 season subsequently represented the
Los Angeles franchise. Cooke had originally intended to call the team the Los Angeles Zorros, but when the agreement with Wolverhampton Wanderers was made, it was decided to use their nickname of Wolves. Wolves played in the Western Division alongside
San Francisco Golden Gate Gales,
Chicago Mustangs,
Houston Stars,
Vancouver Royal Canadians and
Dallas Tornado. These teams were represented by
ADO Den Haag,
Cagliari Calcio,
Bangu AC,
Sunderland and
Dundee United. Of the twelve teams in the league, Wolves with a team coached by
Ronnie Allen and featuring
Derek Dougan, emerged as one of the strongest sides. After winning the Western Division, a flip of a coin gave them the right to host the championship play-off game against the Eastern Division champions,
Washington Whips, who were represented by
Aberdeen. The match drew 17,824 to
Los Angeles Coliseum. Wolves won the championship beating the Whips 6–5 after 36 minutes of extra-time. Four goals were scored within a 4-minute period midway through the second half and each team scored during extra time. The game was decided after Whips defender
Ally Shewan scored an own goal.
NASL In December 1967 the USA merged with the
National Professional Soccer League to form the
North American Soccer League (NASL). As a result, Wolves became founding members of the new league. During the inaugural 1968 season Wolves played in the
Pacific Division alongside the
San Diego Toros,
Oakland Clippers and
Vancouver Royals. With a team coached by
Ray Wood and featuring
Carlos Metidieri, but no
Wolverhampton Wanderers players, they failed to repeat the success of the previous season. After finishing third in their division, Wolves were one of several NASL franchises that folded after just one season. The idea of importing teams to represent franchises was revived during the
1969 North American Soccer League season and
Wolverhampton Wanderers returned to the
United States, this time representing
Kansas City Spurs, and winning the NASL International Cup. == Media coverage ==