Bethlehem Steel Football Club (1907–1930) was one of the most successful early American soccer clubs. Known as the Bethlehem Football Club from 1907 until 1915 when it became the Bethlehem Steel Football Club, the team was sponsored by the Bethlehem Steel corporation. Bethlehem Steel FC played their home games first at East End Field in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley, then later on the grounds Bethlehem Steel built on Elizabeth Ave named Bethlehem Steel Athletic Field.

History

The first soccer team in Bethlehem was founded in 1904, according to a June 2, 1925, article in The Bethlehem Globe. The sport took hold of the town and local steel workers formed a recreational team.

On November 17, 1907, the Bethlehem Football Club played its first official match, an 11–2 loss to West Hudson A.A., at the time one of the top professional teams in the country.

thumb|left|230px|Bethlehem Steel F.C. prior to its final game of the 1914–15 season against [[Brooklyn Celtic]]

In 1913, the steel company created Bethlehem Steel Athletic Field, the country's first soccer field with stadium-seating. In 1914 Charles Schwab, owner of the Steel Company, took the team professional, using his wealth to induce several top players to move to Bethlehem Steel and changing the team name to the Bethlehem Steel Football Club. Schwab would eventually begin importing players from Scotland and England. From 1911 to 1915, the club was a member of the amateur Allied American Foot Ball Association before moving to the American Soccer League of Philadelphia, another amateur league, for the 1915–1916 season.|group=n|name=aafa

| N/A

| Final

| bgcolor=#efefef| –

| did not enter

|-

| 1912–13

|N/A

| AAFA

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| bgcolor=#efefef| –

|did not enter

|-

| 1913–14

|N/A

| AAFA

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| Third round

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

|1914–15

|N/A

| ALAFC

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|Semifinal

|-

| 1915–16

| N/A

| ALP

| 2nd

|No playoff

| style="background:gold;"| Champion

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

|1916–17

|N/A

|N/A

|N/A

|N/A

| bgcolor=silver| Runners-up

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

| 1917–18

|N/A

|NAFL

|2nd

|No playoff

| style="background:gold;"| Champion

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

| 1918–19

|N/A

|NAFL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| style="background:gold;"| Champion

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

| 1919–20

|N/A

|NAFL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| Quarterfinal

| bgcolor=silver| Runners-up

|-

| 1920–21

|N/A

|NAFL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| Second round

| Semifinal

|-

| 1921–22

| colspan=6| (see Philadelphia Field Club)

|-

| 1922–23

| 1

| ASL

| 2nd

|No playoff

| Forth round

| Second round

|-

|1923–24

|1

|ASL

|2nd

|No playoff

| Semifinals

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|-

| 1924–25

|1

|ASL

|2nd

|No playoff

| did not enter

|N/A

|-

| 1925–26

|1

|ASL

|4th

|No playoff

| style="background:gold;"| Champion

|N/A

|-

| 1926–27

|1

|ASL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| East. Division

|N/A

|-

| 1927–28

|1

|ASL

|2nd; 4th

|Semifinals

| Second Round

|N/A

|-

| 1928–29

|1

|ASL

|–

|N/A

|N/A

|N/A

|-

| 1928–29

|N/A

| ESL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

| Semifinals

|N/A

|-

| 1929

|N/A

| ESL

| style="background:#ccffcc;"|1st

| style="background:gold;"|Champion

|N/A

|N/A

|-

|1930

|1

|ACL (ASL)

|7th

|No playoff

| Semifinals

|N/A

|}

;Notes

Honors

Leagues

  • Allied American Football Association
  • Winner (2): 1912–13, 1913–14
  • ALAFC
  • Winner (1): 1914–15
  • National Association Football League
  • Winner (3): 1918–19, 1919–20, 1920–21
  • Runner Up (1): 1917–18
  • American Soccer League
  • Winner (1): 1926–27
  • Runner Up (3): 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25
  • Eastern Professional Soccer League
  • Winner (2): 1928–29, 1929

National cups

  • National Challenge Cup
  • Winner (5): 1914–15, 1915–16, 1917–18, 1918–19, 1925–26
  • Runner Up (1): 1916–17
  • American Cup
  • Winner (6): 1914, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1924
  • Runner Up (1): 1920
  • Lewis Cup
  • Winner (1): 1928
  • Allied Amateur Cup
  • Winner (1): 1914
  • Runner Up (1): 1912

Notable players

  • Archie Stark, world record holder for the highest season scoring record with 67 goals in the 1924–25 season

Coaches

  • Harry Trend: 1909
  • Carpenter: 1913
  • Jimmy Lawson: 1914
  • William Sheridan: ?–1924
  • Jimmy Easton: 1924–
  • William Sheridan: 1930

References

  • History of Bethlehem Steel F.C. by Dan Morrison.
  • The Rise and Fall of the Bethlehem Steel Football Club by Julian Brown (archived)