When Muhammad Ali Sparred With A British Soccer Legend

Back in the '70s, the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time called out one of the most outspoken soccer managers in England. And things got “heated.” This week, we dive into the curious clash between Muhammad Ali and the great Brian Clough. Plus, we remember the Alamo (Stadium), visit a soccer class at a historic university, examine a huge win for the NWSL, and more.

This week’s stories:

• 📚 Our First College Talk About American Soccer!

• 🏜️ Remember the Alamo (Stadium)

• 🥊 When Muhammad Ali Sparred With A British Soccer Legend

• 🎙️ The Untold Story of the Appalachian Soccer Roadtrip

• 🗳️ Poll + Last Week’s Answers

• ➡️ And More

CLUBELEVEN
Our First College Talk About American Soccer!

Somehow, we ended up at the University of Virginia on Monday speaking to a college class about American soccer culture, CLUBELEVEN, and our ongoing bus road trip across the country.

It was a huge honor to get the invite from renowned historian, author, and professor Laurent DuBois to come chat in his Soccer Politics Class and meet an amazing group of students working on various projects involved with soccer.

We’ll share more from our visit soon! In the meantime, we’d like to extend a really special thanks to Evan Richardson, Cleo, Professor DuBois and the rest of the history department at UVA for such a warm welcome!

OUR HISTORY
Remember the Alamo (Stadium)

On a day like today in 1836, in San Antonio, TX, Colonel William Travis issued a call for help on behalf of the Texan troops defending the Alamo, an old Spanish mission and fortress under siege by the Mexican army.

Naturally, that got me thinking about the San Antonio Thunder of the NASL, who used to play their home games at Alamo Stadium in 1976 (no relation to the fort).

That year, the team sent out a call to the Cosmos to see if they could organize a friendly and bring Pelé to San Antonio… and it worked!

The game went ahead, drew a crowd of nearly 15k fans, and resulted in the unusual circumstance where a pre-season exhibition match ended up setting the Thunder’s all-time attendance mark.

COVER STORY
When Muhammad Ali Sparred With A British Soccer Legend

This week back in 1964, Muhammad Ali knocked out Sonny Liston to win his first world title.

So in honor of that anniversary, I thought it’d be fitting to look back at Ali’s unexpected “feud” with legendary Derby County and Nottingham Forest manager Brian Clough.

Among the many trophies and accolades on his resumé—including two Champions Leagues with Forest—Clough was also known for being loud, outspoken, and deeply charismatic. Mourinho has often voiced his profound admiration for this pioneer of ultra-confident managers.

But not everyone was a fan.

In an appearance on “The Big Match” (a British soccer television program) back in the early ‘70s, Ali left a message for Clough, who was a guest on the show:

“I’m Muhammad Ali, the world knows who I am. They know I’m confident, and they know I talk. But there is some fella in London, England, named some Brian…Brian Clough. Some soccer player or something.

“Anyway, I heard all the way in America, heard all the way in Indonesia, that this fella talks too much. They say he’s another Muhammad Ali, there’s just one Muhammad Ali. And I want you to [know], whoever you are, you’re not a fighter, and you don’t take my job. I’m the talker. Now, Clough, I’ve had enough, stop it.”

Peak verbal jabs from the boxing GOAT.

In classic Clough fashion, though, the Forest and Derby County icon jokingly responded that he wanted to fight the heavyweight champ.

Of course, this was all in good jest between two maestros on the mic, and they did get to meet a year after their short exchange on TV.

Clough remembers that Ali told him, “You’re far too young to be a manager. You should be boxing!”

Funny enough, Clough must’ve taken that to heart because a handful of years later, he punched Roy Keane (in the chest) after a mistake during an FA Cup game.

So there you go, Muhammad Ali influencing British football lore…kinda 😅

CLUBELEVEN
The Supporters Section

Let us know your picks and your reasoning! We’ll highlight your best answers next week.

RADIO
The Untold Story of the Appalachian Soccer Roadtrip

The first trip with the Soccer Bus was a fever dream…

Episode 2 of the Soccer Odyssey podcast is out now, available wherever you get your podcasts!

In this one, we dive into our maiden voyage with the Soccer Bus. After an abbreviated planning and renovation period, we quickly set sail, charting a path from Orlando, FL, up through the end of the Appalachian Mountains to North Carolina.

By the end of the week, the bus had logged almost 1,500 miles, hosted a mythical visitor, and somehow, ended up on a TV broadcast…

CLUBELEVEN
Aggregates

The Legacy of the Black Cowboy: Austin FC had one of the most visually stunning tifos on opening weekend, but there was way more to it than meets the eye!

Pardon My Take: Orlando City seem to have a new group of devoted fans. This was super unexpected…

Things Got Messi: There was an incident inside the tunnel after Inter Miami’s tough season opener against LAFC. Here is the result of the investigation into it all.

Record Loading: Denver Summit have already sold more than 45,000 tickets for their home opener—putting them on pace to break the NWSL attendance record. Oh, and they just launched their awesome inaugural kit!

Guinness POTM: I’ll never get tired of shouting out our good friend Weiler (who saved us when we were in Nashville and helped us get the bus to the Open Cup Semi). Check him out getting one of the best awards ever.

CULTURE
Modern Day Gladiators

Messi and Sonny at the Coliseum?

If you’d ever told us we’d get to witness such a spectacular crossover, we probably would’ve laughed. But it happened.

75,673 souls packed this historic venue to see LAFC take on Inter Miami on Saturday, breaking the attendance record on an MLS opening weekend.

Here’s how everything looked at the LA Memorial Coliseum through the lens of the amazing Jordy Marsono! It was breathtaking.

TV
Women’s Sports Sundays

There is a big shift coming to ESPN!

Last week, the network announced that it will replace Sunday Night Baseball with Women's Sports Sundays starting this summer, spotlighting 12 top NWSL and WNBA matchups over a nine-week span.

I guess the studies that said soccer had surpassed baseball as the third-most popular sport in America weren’t wrong. Huge win for WoSo and American soccer as a whole!!

CLUBELEVEN
Your Takes 🗯️ 

Last week, we asked you: Are you going to any games on MLS opening weekend? Here are some of your answers:

• “Yes. Timbers!” - S. Whit

• "No. I’m working this weekend but will hopefully get to go later in the season.” - M.D.

In the poll, “No” won with 57% of the vote, while “Yes” received 43%.

I saw DC United win a game in person after a long time, so I’m incredibly happy I got to attend the season opener at Audi Field!

UP NEXT
Heading Home (Briefly)

We had a blast catching the DCU home opener over the weekend and speaking at UVA on Monday! (Thank you, Evan and Professor Laurent DuBois, for the invite, the wonderful tour, and all the great chats about the beautiful game).

Now, we’re headed back home to spend a few days gearing up for a busy month ahead…

Onwards!!

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Have a great Tuesday!

Pablo