The First Soccer Team in Hawaii

In 1977, the heir to the Frito-Lay potato chip empire decided to put a pro soccer team in Hawaii. The result was an absolute disaster. This week, we look back at Team Hawaii of the NASL, in all its tragic glory. Plus, we look back at the San Diego Loyal on a painful anniversary, visit the Marshall Islands soccer team in Arkansas, examine how Josef Martinez beat Messi, and much more.

This week’s stories:

• 🌵 Loyal Forever

• 🛞 Saving the Soccer Bus

• 🌺 The First Soccer Team in Hawaii

• 🏆 Become a 2026 World Cup Volunteer

• 🗳️ Poll + Last Week’s Answers

• ➡️ And More

OUR HISTORY
Loyal Forever

Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.

For four seasons, the San Diego Loyal were a phenomenon in USL. One of those teams you couldn’t help but root for, even if you lived thousands of miles away.

Unfortunately, on August 24th, 2023, the club announced that they would be folding. It was a devastating loss, but they’ll always have a place in many fans’ hearts.

Also, they had one of the best jerseys of all time. I’ll never get over it…

CLUBELEVEN
Saving the Soccer Bus

Just when we thought we were done, they pulled us back in. Right after our popped tire incident last week, Continental stepped in to give us a fresh set and make sure the Soccer Bus could stay on the road. Here’s how it all went down. Thank you, legends!!

And so, with new tires, we were able to make it down to DC for our stop in collaboration with the Washington Spirit and Guerrilla FC this past weekend.

It was super special to honor the history of the club, celebrate the local pickup culture of the city, and come together to highlight all the best parts of soccer in DC.

I’d also like to give a special thank you to Ashley Hatch, Tori Huster, the Maryland SoccerPlex, the Spirit Squadron, club staff, former & current players, and supporters for donating amazing items to the bus exhibition, and for all those who came to hang out before the game on Friday and play pickup on Saturday.

For a few of us at CLUBELEVEN, the DMV is home, so getting to finally share the Soccer Bus with friends and family made things extra special—plus getting to do it with the Spirit and Guerrilla was a dream come true!

COVER STORY
The First Soccer Team in Hawaii

This week in 1959, Hawaii became the 50th state in the Union. So, of course, to mark the anniversary of Hawaii’s statehood, I figured it’d be perfect to look back at Team Hawaii from the NASL—the only major professional soccer team ever from the island.

The club technically began as an NASL expansion franchise in Texas as the San Antonio Thunder, but after a couple of seasons of poor support, 32-year-old owner Ward Lay Jr. decided to move the franchise to Hawaii at the end of 1976.

Ward Lay Jr. was the son of Herman Warden Lay Sr., founder of the Frito-Lay potato chip empire. So if you’re watching a Lay’s Champions League or Messi ad, and wonder where their ties to soccer might trace back, just think to the NASL days.

On paper, the idea of having a pro soccer team in Hawaii sounds pretty cool. That is, until you start factoring in the travel costs and the countless logistical hurdles you’d have to tackle to make the whole thing viable.

The entire league had to adjust the schedule to make sure clubs could make it out to Hawaii in the most cost-effective way possible. They’d often make sure to play an away game in California first and then make the trek over to the island.

For Team Hawaii, it was even worse. They routinely had to take 10 to 15-hour flights just to play away matches, and their swings through the East Coast would mean they’d sometimes be on the road for weeks on end.

The travel was brutal, but at home, life was awesome. The players had wonderful high-rise apartments in Aiea and would often be seen training on various beaches across the island. Many of the players were from the UK, so getting to spend a season out in paradise was probably quite the distraction, and I really don’t blame them for not getting a lot of results.

When Team Hawaii would host visiting teams, players and staff would try their best to distract their opponents with the beautiful beaches and tropical entertainment ahead of games, but Aloha Stadium never became the impenetrable fortress that Ward Lay Jr. may have envisioned.

The team would end the 1977 season with an 11-15 record, averaging just 4,543 fans per match, and losing close to a million dollars. For the next season, the team promptly moved to Oklahoma and rebranded as the Tulsa Roughnecks, ending major league pro soccer in Hawaii until this very day.

Still, the stories from that one year in Hawaii are incredible, masterfully told and compiled by the great Pablo Maurer in this deep-dive article. The anecdotes told by some of the former Team Hawaii players are just fantastic. Makes you wonder if someday we’ll get another pro soccer team out in Hawaii to run it back.

JOBS
Become a 2026 World Cup Volunteer

Now is your chance to help bring a World Cup to life!

Applications to be a volunteer at the 2026 World Cup are now officially open, and there are a ton of roles available across all host cities.

You can find all the info right here.

CLUBELEVEN
The Supporters Section

Let us know why or why not! We’ll highlight your best answers next week.

CLUBELEVEN
Aggregates

Docu Discourse: The last two episodes of the Pulisic documentary were released last week, leaving USMNT fans divided. You can see for yourself right here. 

Wadison: Huge news out of Madison, WI. Can’t wait to see them on the field!

85ers: The USWNT originals were honored in Seattle yesterday. Here’s the story behind the important anniversary.

Premier Pennant: You can always count on TuesdayPickup to come up with the perfect art piece for big occasions. Here’s his latest one to commemorate the start of the PL season.

Bigger Than Everyone: Messi, Ronaldo, Lebron James, Stephen Curry? No, this player in MLS has the highest-selling jersey in the world right now.

CULTURE
The Final Frontier

It finally happened.

After a long, long wait, the Marshall Islands—the last country in the world without a soccer team—finally got to play their first-ever international match… in Springdale, Arkansas.

You’re probably wondering, why Arkansas, of all places? And the answer may surprise you.

(Shoutout to the Soccer Zombie for incredible storytelling as always on this one!)

RECORDS
Josef Martinez > Messi

With his game-winning goal against the Galaxy over the weekend, Messi became the second-fastest player in MLS history to reach 40 career goals, doing so in just 44 matches.

The fastest in history, though? Josef Martinez in 42 matches. Unreal.

2018 Josef was a problem.

CLUBELEVEN
Your Takes 🗯️ 

Last week, we asked you: What is the best World Cup ball of all time? Here are some of your answers:

• “Have to be either the Azteca or the Etrusco for me.” - M. Lowyns

• “Azteca.” - T. Meyer

• “Brazuca. My kids’ first World Cup. Special time in their childhood and soccer experience. I wish we still had those balls.” - Manny

In the poll, “Jabulani” and “Brazuca” finished first with about 37% of the vote each, while “Other” came in second with just over 18% of the vote.

UP NEXT
Short Break

With our stop in DC over the weekend, we closed out the summer leg of the bus tour. 11 stops in all. Now, we’ll take a little bit of a break from the road for the next few weeks until we return for the Open Cup semifinals.

It’ll be good to rest, but we can’t wait to get back out there!

Enjoying This?

Make sure to forward this email to a friend and help us spread the soccer gospel far and wide! We’ll see you next week with even more untold stories of soccer.

Have a great Tuesday!

Pablo