San Diego Sockers (2009)
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| Full name | San Diego Sockers | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2009 | ||
| Stadium | Valley View Casino Center | ||
| Capacity | 12,920 | ||
| Owner | David Pike, Carl Savoia | ||
| General Manager | Sean Bowers | ||
| Coach | Phil Salvagio | ||
| League | MASL | ||
| 2017–18 | 1st, Pacific Division Playoffs: Conference final | ||
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San Diego Sockers are an American professional indoor soccer franchise playing in the Western Division of the Major Arena Soccer League, representing the San Diego area since 2009. Their first arena was the Chevrolet Del Mar Arena at the Del Mar Fairgrounds adjacent to the Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California.[1] They switched to the Valley View Casino Center, the original home of the MISL Sockers, for the 2012–2013 season.[2][3][4]
The Sockers hold the record for the longest winning streak in United States professional soccer history.[5] The streak, which began on December 29, 2010, was snapped after 48 games by a 6–5 overtime road loss to the Dallas Sidekicks on January 27, 2013.[6][7]
History
1978– 1996: The team began as the Baltimore Comets in 1974 but moved to San Diego as the San Diego Jaws in 1976. After a one-year stay in Las Vegas as the Las Vegas Quicksilvers, the team returned as the San Diego Sockers in 1978.[8][9] They were owned by Bob Bell and played their indoor games at the San Diego Sports Arena.[10]
Initially, victories came slowly for the club but mounted quickly and they experienced moderate success over their outdoor history winning several division titles. However, the San Diego Sockers won the North American Soccer League (NASL) Indoor Championships of 1981–82 and 1983–84. Success was far from over for the San Diego Sockers. When the NASL folded, the San Diego Sockers moved to the Major Indoor Soccer League and won eight championships: 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992. The Sockers carried their success from one league to the next. They switched to the Continental Indoor Soccer League for three more years from 1993 to 1995. However, after several ownership changes, Sockers folded after the 1996 season.
2001–2004: The second version of the San Diego Sockers were a team in the new Major Indoor Soccer League. The team began play in the World Indoor Soccer League in 2001, and joined the MISL when it merged with the WISL for the 2002–2003 season. Just before the beginning of the 2004–2005 season, the Sockers were sold to Raj Kalra, owner of the Vancouver Ravens of the National Lacrosse League. However, barely two months after the purchase, it was revealed that Kalra had not paid the Sockers' players, staff, or rent since taking over, and the league voted to discontinue the franchise on December 30, 2004.
2009–Present: The Sockers were founded in 2009 by David Pike, Carl Savoia and Phil Salvagio. This was the second attempt to revive the Sockers name. The first team played in the NASL, original MISL, and CISL. The first revival attempt to play in the WISL and second MISL. The Sockers have enjoyed a significant amount of success since they began play having won both the PASL-Pro championship and US Open Cup of Arena Soccer in their first four seasons.[11][12]
Colors and badge
At their inception the Sockers featured a color scheme primarily consisting of the royal blue, white, and yellow colors often used by the previous Sockers teams and utilized a modified version of their immediate predecessor's logo. For the 2011 season the team modified their uniforms dropping the yellow in favor of a smaller amount of gold. Their logo also changed their to a new shield logo that corresponded to their new uniforms that utilized the 1978 founding date of the original Sockers franchise which the team claims ties to as well as stars representing the 14 titles won by the combined Sockers franchises.[citation needed]
Arena
- Chevrolet Del Mar Arena (2009–2012)
- Valley View Casino Center (2012–present)
Personnel
As of February 11, 2018.[13]
Active players
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Inactive players
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Staff
- Head Coach: Phil Salvagio (2009–present)
- Assistant Coach: Ray Taila (2009–present)
- General Manager: Sean Bowers (2016–present)
- Owners: David Pike and Carl Savoia (2009–present)
Honors
- 2009–10, 2010–11 PASL-PRO Western Division Champions
- 2011–12 PASL Western Division Champions
- 2012–13 PASL Pacific Division Champions
- 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18 MASL Pacific Division Champions
- 2009–10, 2010–11 PASL-PRO Champions
- 2011–12, 2012–13 PASL Champions
- 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12 U.S. Open Cup of Arena Soccer Champions
- 2012 FIFRA Club Champions
Year-by-year
| League Champions | Runners-Up | Division Champions* | Playoff Berth |
| Season | League | Won | Lost | GF | GA | Playoff | Avg. Attendance | U.S. Open Cup | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–10 | PASL-Pro | 13 | 3 | 146 | 91 | Champions | 1,705 | 2009–10 Champions | |
| 2010–11 | PASL-Pro | 14 | 2 | 136 | 79 | Champions | 2,608 | 2010–11 Champions | |
| 2011–12 | PASL | 16 | 0 | 165 | 78 | Champions | 2,197 | 2011–12 Champions | FIFRA Club Champions |
| 2012–13 | PASL | 15 | 1 | 188 | 71 | Champions | 3,744 | 2012–13 Runners-up | |
| 2013–14 | PASL | 13 | 3 | 141 | 83 | Divisional Final | 3,625 | Round of 16 | |
| 2014–15 | MASL | 16 | 4 | 179 | 99 | Divisional Final | 2,881 | N/A | |
| 2015–16 | MASL | 13 | 7 | 138 | 111 | Divisional Final | 3,051 | N/A | |
| 2016–17 | MASL | 14 | 6 | 149 | 90 | Conference Final | 3,844 | ||
| 2017–18 | MASL | 19 | 3 | 166 | 84 | Conference Final | 3,284 | ||
| Total | 9 Seasons | 133 | 29 | 1408 | 786 |
Playoff record
| Year | Win | Loss | GF | GA | Avg. Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–10 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 13 | |
| 2010–11 | 2 | 0 | 17 | 9 | |
| 2011–12 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 13 | 2,390 |
| 2012–13 | 4 | 0 | 39 | 26 | 3,557 |
| 2013–14 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 4,116 |
| 2014–15 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4,276 |
| 2015–16 | 3 | 2 | 37 | 36 | 2,497 |
| 2016–17 | 2 | 3 | 27 | 30 | 5,047 |
| 2017–18 | 2 | 2 | 21 | 16 | 3,421 |
| Total | 18 | 9 | 195 | 165 | 3,647 |
References
- ^ Hiro, Brian (June 11, 2012). "SOCCER: San Diego Sockers leaving Del Mar to return to old Sports Arena". North County Times. Escondido, CA. Archived from the original on January 30, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Sockers Returning To Original Home
- ^ Leonard, Tod (November 2, 2012). "Sockers make return to historic home". North County Times. Escondido, CA. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Pinella, Bill (February 18, 2014). "Sockers aren't going anywhere soon". U-T San Diego. San Diego, CA: MLIM Holdings. Retrieved February 19, 2014.
- ^ Barron, J. David (January 27, 2013). "Sidekicks sock San Diego from unbeaten ranks: Dallas deals Sockers historic first loss". Allen American-Star. Allen, TX. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
- ^ "Sidekicks Snap San Diego's Record 48-Game Win Streak". Our Sports Central. January 27, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
- ^ "The Streak Is Over: Dallas beats San Diego 6–5 in OT to snap 48-game winning streak". Our Sports Central. January 27, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2013.
- ^ Salazar, Jo-Ryan (July 26, 2010). "The San Diego Sockers: A Legacy Renewed". Bleacher Report. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
- ^ Brents, Phillip (December 29, 2010). "Time to re-connect between Sockers, old and new". The Star-News. Chula Vista, California. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
- ^ Maffei, John (July 6, 2013). "Sports site No. 3: San Diego Sports Arena". U-T San Diego. MLIM Holdings. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
- ^ Hiro, Brian (June 12, 2012). "SOCKERS: GM Kentera guides team back to old home". North County Times. Escondido, CA. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|dead-url=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Leonard, Tod (March 10, 2012). "Sockers seize third straight PASL championship". U-T San Diego. San Diego, CA. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
- ^ "San Diego Sockers roster". Major Arena Soccer League. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
