August 28

This Day in History

Also on This Day

Lead Story
Charles and Diana divorce, 1996
American Revolution
St. Elizabeth born in New York City, 1774
Automotive
Charles S. Rolls born, 1877
Civil War
Union General Alfred Terry is promoted, 1864
Cold War
Riots in Chicago fracture the Cold War consensus, 1968
Crime
Murdered students are discovered at the University of Florida, 1990
Fugitive polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is arrested, 2006
Disaster
Air-show accident burns spectators, 1988
General Interest
Zulu king captured, 1879
The death of Emmett Till, 1955
King speaks to March on Washington, 1963
Protests at Democratic National Convention in Chicago, 1968
Hollywood
John Huston dies, 1987
Literary
Robertson Davies is born, 1913
Music
Mahalia Jackson, the Queen of Gospel, puts her stamp on the March on Washington, 1963
Old West
Three leave Powell's Grand Canyon expedition, 1869
Presidential
President Woodrow Wilson picketed by women suffragists, 1917
Sports
Pele leads Cosmos to title, 1977
Vietnam War
North Vietnamese pilots being trained in Soviet Union, 1966
More voices raised against the war, 1967
DNC endorses Johnson administration platform on the war in Vietnam, 1968
U.S. Air Force gets its first ace since Korean War, 1972
World War I
Battle of Heligoland Bight, 1914
World War II
Mass slaughter in Ukraine, 1941

Sports

Aug 28, 1977:

Pele leads Cosmos to title

Previous Day August 28 Calendar Next Day

On this day in 1977, Brazilian soccer superstar Pelé leads the New York Cosmos to victory in the Soccer Bowl, the championship of the North American Soccer League (NASL). With the help of international talent on its rosters, the NASL enjoyed surprising success in the mid-to-late 1970s in the United States, a country not particularly noted for its love for soccer. The 1977 Cosmos were a star-studded team that, at least for a short time, put soccer on nearly equal footing with the other major American sports.

In 1968, a group of investors founded the NASL to capitalize on the excitement generated by England’s victory in the 1966 World Cup. The league’s marquee team was the New York Cosmos, owned by famous music mogul brothers Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegun. The Cosmos assembled a roster of aging international superstars to give their team and their league name recognition in the United States and respect in the international soccer community. Franz Beckenbauer from Germany, Giorgio Chinaglia from Italy and Carlos Alberto from Brazil were among the well-known players who finished their career with the Cosmos. The team signed Brazilian striker Pelé, widely considered the greatest soccer player in history, in 1975.

The 1977 NASL championship featured the Cosmos against the Seattle Sounders in Portland, Oregon. A record-setting crowd of 35,548 in Portland’s Civic Stadium looked on as the Cosmos’ Steve Hunt stole a pass from Seattle’s star goalkeeper Tony Chursky and then scored on the empty Seattle goal in the 19th minute to put the Cosmos up 1-0. Just four minutes later, Sounder Tommy Ord responded with a booming low kick past keeper Shep Messing into the Cosmos’ goal to tie the score. For the next 70 minutes, the game was tense, with neither team controlling play. The Sounders made up for their lack of individual stars with stellar teamwork. While the Sounders broke through the Cosmos midfield to set up their attack, keeper Chursky denied free kicks by Pelé and Beckenbauer. With 13 minutes remaining, the Cosmos’ Giorgio Chinaglia broke the tie with a header into Seattle’s net for a 2-1 lead, which the Cosmos preserved for their second NASL championship.

On October 1, 1977, Pelé played his last professional soccer match, an exhibition between the Cosmos and Santos, his club team from Brazil. He played the first half for the Cosmos and the second half for Santos. The Cosmos won the match 2-1.

Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!

Previous Day August 28 Calendar Next Day

This Week in History, Aug 28 - Sep 3

Aug 28, 1977
Pele leads Cosmos to title
Aug 29, 2004
Marathoner assaulted at Olympics
Aug 30, 1965
Casey Stengel retires
Aug 31, 1959
Sandy Koufax strikes out 18
Sep 01, 1964
First Japanese player makes MLB debut
Sep 02, 1991
Connors celebrates birthday with win at U.S. Open
Sep 03, 1977
Sadaharu Oh hits 756th home run

Related Topics

What Happened on Your Birthday?

Pick a Date

Editor’s Picks

Bio.com

  • On This Day

    On This Day

    Read about notable birthdays and celebrity deaths at On This Day.

Shop HISTORY

See More