Unearthing a Lost Soccer Vlog From 1921

Yesterday, historians found the earliest known surviving footage of soccer being played in the US, filmed by a young man who'd go on to win three Academy Awards. In this edition, we dive into this lost short film from 1921, shot by the director of It’s a Wonderful Life and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Plus, we unveil our mini doc with a legend of the NASL and the global game, examine Ronaldo’s surprise for Trump, and much more.

This week’s stories:

• 🇺🇸 Teófilo Cubillas in America Mini Doc

• 🪚 The Cabinet Mogul Who Saved a Soccer Team

• 📽️ Unearthing a Lost Soccer Vlog From 1921

• 🎁 Ronaldo Surprises Trump

• 🗳️ Poll + Last Week’s Answers

• ➡️ And More

CLUBELEVEN
Teófilo Cubillas in America Mini Doc

He’s the midfielder with the most goals in World Cup history, ahead of Maradona and Zidane. Pelé even called him his successor. He led Peru to an improbable Copa America title in 1975, and he became a club legend for some of Europe and South America’s most historic teams. His accolades around the globe are incredible, yet not many people know his significance in US soccer history.

From becoming the Fort Lauderdale Strikers’ all-time leading goalscorer in the NASL, to helping the sport grab a foothold in South Florida during his playing days and beyond, Teófilo Cubillas may just be one of the greatest unsung soccer heroes this country has ever seen.

As a Peruvian-American who fell in love with the game thanks to Cubillas (and the countless grainy YouTube highlights I watched of him during my childhood), this story holds great personal meaning.

Incredibly proud to finally get to share our Cubillas mini doc, centered around his oft-overlooked time in the NASL. Watch it HERE.

OUR HISTORY
The Cabinet Mogul Who Saved a Soccer Team

On a day like today in 1978, the Sacramento Gold made their “debut” in the ASL, the second division in America at the time. During that period, they were a staple in the community since this club was the only professional sports team in town.

And you’re probably wondering, how does a team make their official debut in the middle of the summer? Well, the club had started the 1978 campaign as the Sacramento Spirits, but they ran out of money by June and were on the verge of disappearing mid-season.

Thankfully, California cabinet manufacturer John Andreotti rescued the club and re-launched it immediately under the “Gold” name. Quite an inspiring example of a local business owner stepping in to save the beautiful game in his community.

The Sacramento Gold would end up finishing dead last in 1978, but the following season, they clinched the ASL title, sealing a fairytale chapter in their early (and brief) history.

COVER STORY
Unearthing a Lost Soccer Vlog From 1921

It might just be the discovery of the century. Yesterday, renowned historian Ed Farnsworth from the Society for American Soccer History revealed that they had identified what is currently the oldest surviving moving picture footage of soccer being played in the United States… dating all the way back to November 13, 1921!

The footage is about two minutes in length, and it features a match at Golden Gate Park Stadium between San Francisco’s Italia Virtus club and a squad from the crew of the visiting Italian Navy cruiser RM Libia.

The clips from the match come from a 31-minute-long film called “La visita dell‘Incrociatore Italiano Libia a San Francisco” (The visit of the Italian cruiser Libia to San Francisco), commissioned by the Italia Virtus club to document the Libia’s stop in San Francisco during the ship’s tour around the globe following the end of WWI.

What makes this discovery even more incredible is that the film was shot by legendary Italian-American director Frank Capra, who would go on to shape the golden age of Hollywood, earn three Academy Awards, and release iconic films such as It’s a Wonderful Life and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. 

Notably, this film featuring soccer being played in San Francisco, was the first picture Capra directed that received a public exhibition, and it helped launch his career.

That’s not all, though. The American team featured in the footage, the Italia Virtus club, continues to play to this day as the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club, and they won the U.S. Open Cup in 1976.

Absolute cinema.

CULTURE
Ronaldo Surprises Trump

An unexpected crossover.

António Costa, president of the European Council, presented Trump with a signed Cristiano Ronaldo jersey at the G7 Summit on Monday in Canada.

The gift read: "To President Donald J. Trump. Playing for Peace."

CLUBELEVEN
The Supporters Section

After months of anticipation and a fair bit of criticism, the Club World Cup kicked off this past weekend. What are your thoughts so far? Has your opinion changed or stayed the same? We’ll highlight your best answers next week!

CLUBELEVEN
Aggregates

Aston Villa in Kentucky: Another piece of news that wasn’t on my bingo card. Aston Villa and Eintracht Frankfurt will face off in Louisville this summer. Amazing to see!

Rollercoaster: The South American fans are doing this right. First, Palmeiras taking over Times Square, and now Boca fans chanting on rollercoasters. Beautiful.

Final by the Bay: We have our official location for the 2025 NWSL Final. Check it out.

Hailstorm: They’re baaaaack. The return of pro soccer to Northern Colorado is imminent.

Boston Party: If you live in the area, you can’t miss this event tonight. Inter Milan fans in Boston are hosting a watch party for their Club World Cup debut… count us in!

EXPANSION
Here Comes the Sun

And with that, the inaugural USL Super League season comes to an end. The Tampa Bay Sun can now proudly call themselves the first-ever champions of this blossoming Division I women’s soccer league.

We were there to cover the game on official capacity for the USL, but it was a game that also had a big emotional significance for us.

Christina Unkel, Tampa Bay Sun President & GM, is one of the stories in our first print issue, and in our interview, she opened up about everything that had led her to this role at the Sun and all the goals she had for the club. It felt incredible to get to witness her and the team achieve such a huge accomplishment.

At the end of the night, once the celebrations had calmed down, she insisted we get a picture of her with The Soccer Odyssey, which felt surreal. One of the most dedicated, hardworking, and nicest people in the biz. Congratulations to Christina and the Tampa Bay Sun!

CLUBELEVEN
On the Ground at the Club World Cup

With the Club World Cup now in full swing, it’s been a busy few days for the crew.

Rodolfho was at the opener in Miami to catch Messi and Co. take on Al Ahly.

Kyros was over in New York covering Palmeiras and their fans take over MetLife in their clash against FC Porto.

And we’ve got more matches rolling in from yesterday’s fixtures. If you’d like to follow along on our coverage from the tournament, head over here. We’ve got some fun stuff in the works.

Also, we’d like to give a special thank you to Canon USA for their support during this month-long competition!

CLUBELEVEN
Your Takes 🗯️ 

Last week, we asked you: Which MLS team will do better at the Club World Cup? Here are some of your answers:

• “Inter Miami. For viewership purposes, they need Messi to advance.” - B.D.

• “LAFC. They’ll have a good morale boost from their playoff win to get in.” - Ben

In the poll, “LAFC” finished first with about 60% of the vote, while “Inter Miami” earned close to 40% of the vote.

On a separate note unrelated to this poll, I wanted to share a brief message I received last week from a longtime member of our community, whom I happened to meet by chance at TST:

Hey Pablo, in the small, small world department: reading your recent Sonny Carter story – I won a Memorial Scholarship in his name, presented by the then-National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA, now called United Soccer Coaches), presented by Umbro, Pelé and NASA, awarded for a combo of athletics, academics and community service...way back in 1993 (!) - Andy Nystrom

Andy and I met a couple of days before I published the Sonny Carter story (hiding under a tent at TST during a rain delay), so this coincidence blew my mind even more. It really is a small, small world.

UP NEXT
New York, New York

The Soccer Bus entering the Big Apple. Five days of driving last week (massive, massive shout-out to Justin), and we finally made it to New York. Up first, we had the Unity Cup in Brooklyn, and it was amazing to get to share the bus with all the youth teams and show them all the American soccer trinkets we had inside.

Now, we’re in prep mode for the Chopped Cheese Classic on July 12th, hosted in collaboration with Pablo’s Mate and NYC Footy. It’s a tournament and open block party in the middle of Brooklyn that you won’t want to miss… and it’ll be our biggest event yet with the bus. Mark your calendars!

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Have a great Tuesday!

Pablo