1966 National Soccer League season

The 1966 National Soccer League season was the forty-third season under the National Soccer League (NSL) name. The season began in late May and concluded in late October with Windsor Teutonia claiming their first NSL Championship against Toronto Croatia.[1][2][3] The regular-season title was secured by Sudbury Italia by finishing first throughout the regular season.[4][5]

National Soccer League
Season1966
Champions
  • Sudbury Italia (regular season)
  • Windsor Teutonia (playoffs, 1st title)
← 1965
1967 →

The ownership of Stanley Park Stadium was transferred back to the city of Toronto as the league accumulated a heavy debt, and failed to make the necessary payments to retain the ownership.[6] After the conclusion of the 1966 season, the Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League (ECPSL) merged with the National Soccer League.[7][8]

Overview

The league's ownership of Stanley Park Stadium was put further in jeopardy as the league officials were summoned to the Toronto Board of Control to address the outstanding debt owed to the city, and other financial institutions.[9] Originally the board members voted to repossess the stadium, and place it under the control of the Toronto Department of Parks and Recreation.[9] The decision was later rescinded and an agreement was reached which required the league to pay only their taxes owed from the 1963 season within eight weeks.[9] If the league failed to pay the installment within the time frame then the city would take possession of the stadium.[9] The league ownership, unfortunately, failed to honor the agreement, and the stadium was transferred back to the ownership of the city.[10][6] The city assumed the league's debts, and in return charged the league for the usage of the faculty in hopes of repaying off the debt.[10][11]

The membership in the National Soccer League decreased from twelve to eight clubs.[11] The departing clubs were Toronto Abruzzi, Toronto Azzurri, and Toronto Hakoah while Toronto Olympia took a sabbatical.[12] The attendance at Stanley Park Stadium saw a 25% increase since their initial decrease in the early 1960s.[13] Signs of financial difficulties were becoming apparent with the NSL's competitor the Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League as some teams were expressing intentions of defecting to American-based leagues.[14] The reports proved to be factual as the ECPSL decided to merge with the NSL after the conclusion of both seasons.[8] The initial intentions of the merger consisted of plans of transforming the NSL into a feeder league for the ECPSL with further expansion throughout the country and into the United States.[15] Ultimately the result of the merger saw the remaining ECPSL clubs join the NSL and elevate the status of the NSL to a secondary league behind the American-based National Professional Soccer League, and the United Soccer Association.[16][7]

Teams
Team City Stadium Manager
Kitchener Kickers Kitchener, Ontario
Portuguese United Toronto, Ontario Stanley Park Stadium[17] Joe Gonsalves[18]
Sudbury Italia Sudbury, Ontario Queen's Athletic Field[19]
Toronto Croatia Toronto, Ontario Stanley Park Stadium[17]
Toronto Hellas Toronto, Ontario Stanley Park Stadium[17]
Toronto Hungaria Toronto, Ontario Stanley Park Stadium[17]
Toronto Ukrainia Toronto, Ontario Stanley Park Stadium[17]
Windsor Teutonia Windsor, Ontario Wigle Park[12] Henry Wolf[20]

Standings
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Sudbury Italia (C) 28 18 6 4 30 12 +18 42 Qualification for Playoffs
2 Toronto Hellas 28 18 6 4 60 26 +34 42
3 Toronto Ukrainians 28 17 5 6 51 28 +23 39
4 Toronto Hungaria 28 14 2 12 50 36 +14 30
5 Toronto Croatia 28 12 5 11 33 29 +4 29
6 Windsor Teutonia (O) 26 10 4 12 22 27 −5 24
7 Kitchener Kickers 28 4 4 20 23 42 −19 12
8 Portuguese United 26 0 2 24 21 95 −74 2
Updated to match(es) played on October 1, 1966. Source: CNSL Standings
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners

Playoffs

The preliminary round of the playoffs was contested in a round-robin style with two separate groups where the two group winners would qualify for the final.[21] Sudbury Italia, Toronto Croatia, and Toronto Ukrainia were placed in the first group, while Toronto Hellas, Toronto Hungaria, and Windsor Teutonia were placed in the second group.[22] Croatia and Windsor finished as their respective group champions, and as a result, qualified for the NSL Championship final.[21] The championship final was originally scheduled in a best-of-three series but was later changed to a two-game series.[23]

Finals
October 23, 1966 Toronto Croatia 1–1 Windsor Teutonia Toronto, Ontario
15:00 Mike Horvath 12' [[24] Report] Charlie Szabo 18' Stadium: Stanley Park Stadium
October 30, 1966 Windsor Teutonia 1–0 Toronto Croatia Windsor, Ontario
15:00 Carl Gaier [[25] Report] Stadium: Wigle Park
Attendance: 1000

References
  1. Jose, Colin (2001). On-Side - 125 Years of Soccer in Ontario. Vaughan, Ontario: Ontario Soccer Association and Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum. p. 116.
  2. "CSL Past Champions" (PDF). canadiansoccerleague.ca. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-04-14. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
  3. "Windsor wins soccer crown". Toronto Daily Star. October 31, 1966. p. 26.
  4. "Heritage Museums - The Sudbury Italia Flyers". www.sudburymuseums.ca. Archived from the original on 2007-10-23. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
  5. "1966 Sudbury Italia". National Soccer League. 2021-02-06. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  6. "City won't pay bill for soccer washroom". The Globe and Mail. June 16, 1966. p. 24.
  7. Waring, Ed (December 21, 1966). "Semi-pro soccer: ECPSL decides to amalgamate with National". The Globe and Mail. p. 30.
  8. "Alter soccer setup". Windsor Star. December 21, 1966. p. 31.
  9. Waring, Ed (January 13, 1966). "Soccer league granted reprieve if portion of tax arrears met". The Globe and Mail. p. 26.
  10. "City asked to assume debts of National soccer loop". The Globe and Mail. April 12, 1966. p. 32.
  11. "NSL opens Sunday". The Globe and Mail. May 13, 1966. p. 33.
  12. "Home opener - Teutonia NSL host to Sudbury". Windsor Star. May 20, 1966. p. 22.
  13. Waring, Ed (June 1, 1966). "Karras goal winner for Hellas squad 1-0". The Globe and Mail. p. 31.
  14. Waring, Ed (September 1, 1966). "Soccer executive still wants to play despite losses totalling $57,000". The Globe and Mail. p. 23.
  15. Gillespie, Norman (December 23, 1966). "ECPSL Future May Be Decided Tuesday". Montreal Gazette. p. 27.
  16. Dineen, Patrick (June 16, 1967). "Amateur holds first-round lead in U.S. Open: Hellas bows to Roma 5-2 in NSL tilt". The Globe and Mail. p. 28.
  17. "NSL opens Sunday". The Globe and Mail. May 13, 1966. p. 33.
  18. Kernaghan, Jim (June 8, 1966). "Soccer loop president backs officials' call". Toronto Daily Star. p. 14.
  19. Waring, Ed (June 6, 1966). "National League". The Globe and Mail. p. 25.
  20. "Young, fast German club Teutons' foe". Windsor Star. May 9, 1966. p. 24.
  21. "Teutonia opens final in Toronto". Windsor Star. October 21, 1966. p. 28.
  22. "Soccer - National League". Windsor Star. October 17, 1966. p. 24.
  23. "Teutons chasing title". Windsor Star. October 29, 1966. p. 27.
  24. "Croatia, Teutons deadlock". Windsor Star. October 24, 1966. p. 18.
  25. Dunnell, Mike (October 31, 1966). "Teutons grab the marbles". Windsor Star. p. 24.
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