Minnesota Soccer History
(Professional)

Minnesota got it's start in pro soccer in 1976 when the Denver Dynamos of the NASL moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Kicks. The Minnesota Kicks played in the NASL for 6 seasons, playing 174 games, compiling a record of 104 Wins and 74 Losses, scoring 352 goals and giving up 273 goals, amassing 208 points and earnng a winning percentage of 0.597%. In addition, while playing outdoor soccer in the NASL, the team attendance over the 6 years averaged 24,381, with a high of 32,775 in 1977 (their 2nd year) and a low of 16,605 in 1981 (their last year). During this time frame, the Minnesota Kicks also played 30 games in two seasons in the NASL Indoor League from 1979 to 1981, compiling a record of 20 Wins, 10 Losses, scoring 168 goals and giving up 125 goals, with a winning percentage of 0.667%. The team folded following the completion of the 1981 season, however they made a 1 season return in 1984 when the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers moved to Minnesota, and the team was renamed the Minnesota Strikers. At the conclusion of the 1984 season, the team left the NASL and moved to the MISL Indoor League.

Minnesota continued it's pro soccer career joining the MISL in the fall of 1984 as the Minnesota Strikers. They would play for four seasons, before folding again. During those four seasons the Minnesota Strikers played in 204 games, compiling a record of 107 Wins and 97 Losses, and earning a winning percentage of 0.524%.

Minnesota returned to the professional outdoor soccer scene in 1994, after a 6 year hiatus, as the Minnesota Thunder playing in the USISL.
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Minnesota got it's start in pro soccer in 1976 when the Denver Dynamos of the NASL moved to Minnesota and became the Minnesota Kicks. The Minnesota Kicks played in the NASL for 6 seasons, playing 174 regular season games, compiling a record of 104 Wins and 70 Losses, scoring 352 goals and giving up 273 goals, amassing 208 points and earnng a winning percentage of 0.597%. In addition, while playing outdoor soccer in the NASL, the team attendance over the 6 years averaged 24,381, with a high of 32,775 in 1977 (their 2nd year) and a low of 16,605 in 1981 (their last year). During this time frame, the Minnesota Kicks also played 30 regular season games in two seasons in the Indoor League from 1979 to 1981, compiling a record of 20 Wins, 10 Losses, scoring 168 goals and giving up 125 goals, with a winning percentage of 0.667%. The team folded following the completion of the 1981 season, however they made a 1 season return in 1984 when the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers moved to Minnesota, and the team was renamed the Minnesota Strikers, before moving to the MISL Indoor League at the completion of the 1984 season.

NASL Outdoor
Year G W L GF GA PTS % Att. Teams League Div.
1976 24 15 9 54 33 138 .625 23,121 20 2 1
1977 26 16 10 44 36 137 .615 32,775 18 7 1
1978 30 17 13 58 43 156 .566 30,928 24 8 1
1979 30 21 9 67 48 184 .700 24,580 24 10 1
1980 32 16 16 66 56 147 .500 18,279 24 12 2
1981 32 19 13 63 57 163 .593 16,605 21 5 2
Following the 1981 season, Minnesota folded.
Before the 1984 season, Ft. Lauderdale moved to Minnesota.
1984 24 14 10 40 44 115 .583 14,263 9 5 3

During the fall Minnesota joined the MISL for the indoor season.

NASL Indoor
Year G W L GF GA PTS % Teams League Div.
1979-1980 12 8 4 75 52 1 .667 10 4 2
1980-1981 18 12 6 93 73 1 .667 19 5 2

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The Major Indoor Soccer League was the first attempt to create an indoor professional soccer league in the United States. For many years it was also the most successful, with some teams averaging close to 10,000 fans a season. However, the league engaged in a costly bidding war with the North American Soccer League, which ultimately helped lead to the NASL's demise, and weakened the MISL. Later, it engaged in a fraternal bidding war with the AISA (Later the NPSL) for indoor soccer fans, which brought both of the leagues to the brink of bankruptcy. The MISL was far worse off by 1991 with franchises folding in alarming numbers. Finally, the league folded with a few of the remaining teams joining the NPSL. Sources for this information include old newspaper articles, the Information Please Almanac, as well as Soccer Digest Magazine and Mark Pollak for some of the playoff scores.


Minnesota continued it's pro soccer career joining the MISL in the fall of 1984 as the Minnesota Strikers. They would play for four seasons, before folding again. During those four seasons the Minnesota Strikers played in 204 regular season games, compiling a record of 107 Wins and 97 Losses, and earning a winning percentage of 0.524%.

MISL Indoor
Year G W L % Teams League Div.
1984-1985 48 24 24 .500 14 4 4
1985-1986 48 26 22 .542 12 2 2
1986-1987 52 26 26 .500 12 8 4
1987-1988 56 31 25 .554 11 3 1
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The Birth of the Minnesota Thunder occurred in 1990 with the hard work and determination of Buzz Lagos and Tom Engstrom. During their five amateur seasons the Minnesota Thunder played in 81 games, compiling a record of 65 Wins, 11 Draws and 5 Losses, and earning a winning percentage of 0.870% (based on awarding 1/2 pt for a Draw).
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Minnesota entered the Professional Player Development arena in 1997, with the launch of the Twin Cities Tornado. The team opened it's first develpmental season featuring 16 Division I College players. During their five seasons of existance, the Twin Cities Tornado (last half of their 2001 season, the Twin Cities Phoenix)have played in 86 regular season games, compiling a record of 38 Wins, 2 Shootout Wins, 2 Shootout Losses, 2 Draws and 46 Losses, and earning a winning percentage of 0.488%.