This incarnation of the Timbers is the third in US soccer history. They took the name of the original franchise that played in the
North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1982.
Timbers I: North American Soccer League In 1974, the
North American Soccer League awarded an expansion franchise to
Portland, Oregon. The new team, named the Timbers, began play in the 1975 season. In their inaugural season, the Timbers went to the championship game
Soccer Bowl but lost to the
Tampa Bay Rowdies 2–0. It was during this magical season that the Timbers endeared themselves to the City and Portland became known as "Soccer City USA". While the Timbers boasted some of the league's best fan support, they sometimes struggled on the field. Despite going to the championship game in their first season, they missed the playoffs in 1976 and 1977. In 1978, they went to the Conference Finals before falling to the
New York Cosmos. The team folded at the end of the 1982 season as player salaries outpaced team revenue. These Timbers established soccer as a sport in the greater Portland area. Their legacy lives on in the current Timbers following and the many thousands who continue to play and follow the game. Many of these Timbers continued to live in the area after their playing careers and helped establish the soccer as a vital local sport.
Timbers II: WSA/APSL In 1985, a local amateur Portland club,
F.C. Portland, became a charter member of the
Western Soccer Alliance (WSA). In 1989, the team adopted the name Portland Timbers, becoming the second Timbers team and the WSA became the Western Soccer League (WSL). This time the Timbers lasted only two years, 1989 and 1990, before folding. However, in 1990, the WSL merged with the
American Soccer League to form the
American Professional Soccer League the predecessor of the A-League. While this iteration of the Timbers lasted only two years, it had five significant players,
national team goalkeeper and
University of Portland alumnus,
Kasey Keller; former NASL Timbers player
John Bain, who also coached the team;
Scott Benedetti who would return as a star of the A-League/USL Timbers; future MLS player
Shawn Medved; and finally
Peter Hattrup who is best known as a member of the
Seattle Sounders.
Timbers III: United Soccer Leagues Through the 2003 season, the Timbers compiled an inconsistent record, qualifying for league playoffs two out of the three years. They did, however, established themselves as one of the best-drawing teams in the A-League, averaging attendance above 5,000 in each of their four years of existence. In the 2004 season, the Timbers finished first in the Western Conference, with a record of 18 wins, 7 losses, and 3 draws (57 points). However, they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by their long-standing rival, the
Seattle Sounders. 2005 proved to be a bittersweet year for the Portland Timbers. A sweet end of the year playoff run ended by a bitter playoff loss once again to arch-rival
Seattle Sounders. However, many exciting moments went along with the 2005 season, including a 6–1 thumping of the
Atlanta Silverbacks on September 8, 2005; Portland being the only team to give the
Montreal Impact a home loss, and Timbers players
Scot Thompson,
Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar, and
Dan Antoniuk winning league awards. 2006 was a very disappointing season for many reasons for the Portland Timbers, and their fans. The team finishing tied for last in the table with a franchise worst 7–15–6 (27 points) record, the Offensive production was last in the league as the club only netted 25 goals, and the Timbers lost their derby with heated rival
Seattle Sounders. 2007 had many moments for the Timbers. Portland finished second in the league, with first going to rival
Seattle Sounders. They enjoyed successful friendlies against
Preston North End (2–1),
Club Necaxa (1–0) and
Toronto FC (4–1) while drawing even with the
A.C. Milan Primavera squad (1–1) and winning on penalties, and went unbeaten at home during the regular season. 2008 was a disappointing year to most Timbers' fans for many reasons, although this was offset by the record high season attendances. The team finished dead last with a 7–13–10 record, scored a league worst 26 goals, while conceding 33. However, the 2008 Portland Timbers attendance grew 25.5% averaging 8,567 spectators (second in the USL-1 behind Montreal Impact), and
Cameron Knowles won an All-League Second Team spot. On November 21, 2008,
Amos Magee was named Director of Soccer Development for the Timbers. 2009 was a record setting season for the Timbers. They went unbeaten for a USL-1 record 24 matches in a row, which started following a 1–0 loss to Vancouver in the first game of the season, and ended with a Sep 3 defeat to Rochester Rhinos at PGE Park. They finished their season at the top of the table (16-4-10 58 points) winning The Commissioner's Cup and a first round bye in the playoffs. With their 3–1 victory over the Miami FC Blues, the Timbers also were the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the 2009 season. The Timbers were eliminated from the playoffs in their first two games (1–2, 3–3) on goal aggregate to Cascadia rival
Vancouver Whitecaps. ==List of seasons==