| Founded | 1895 |
|---|---|
| First season | 1895 |
| Folded | 1921; 104 years ago (1921) |
| Country | United States |
| Number of clubs | 36 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Most championships | West Hudson A.A. (6) |
TheNational Association Football League (also spelledNational Association Foot Ball League) (NAFBL) was a semi-professional U.S.soccer league which operated between 1895 and 1898.[1] The league was reconstituted in 1906 and continued to operate until 1921.[2]
The NAFBL was formed in January 1885[3] and in March 1895, the NAFBL began operation[4] as the third significant U.S. soccer league. It drew its teams primarily from northernNew Jersey andNew York City.[2] Few records exist for the league, but the teams and standings for four of the five seasons do exist.[5] After its first spring-summer season in 1895, the NAFBL moved to a winter schedule in the fall of 1895.[6]
On December 16, 1895, the NAFBL opened its second season with a game pitting theKearny Scottish-Americans and the International Athletic Club.[7] In 1899, a deep recession, accompanied by theSpanish–American War led to the collapse of several athletic leagues and teams, among them the NAFBL.[8] On August 14, 1906, the league was revived and continued in operation until 1921.[9] That year, several of the top NAFBL teams, frustrated by the amateur/semi-professional nature of the league, joined with other top North Atlantic U.S. teams to form the first fully professional U.S. soccer league, theAmerican Soccer League.[10]
Source:[11]
| Ed. | Year | Winner | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1895 | Centreville A.C.(1) | Kearny Scots |
2 | 1895–96 | (no records about this season) | |
3 | 1896–97 | Scottish Americans(1) | Brooklyn Wanderers |
4 | 1897–98 | Paterson True Blues(1) | Kearny Scots |
5 | 1898–99 | Paterson True Blues(2) | Kearny Arlington |
– | (no championships held 1899–1906) | ||
6 | 1906–07 | West Hudson A.A.(1) | Kearny Scots |
7 | 1907–08 | Newark F.C.(1) | Paterson Rangers |
8 | 1908–09 | East Newark Clark A.A.(1)[n 1] | Paterson True Blues |
| West Hudson A.A.(2)[n 1] | |||
9 | 1909–10 | West Hudson A.A.(3) | Jersey A.C. |
10 | 1910–11 | Jersey A.C.(1) | Paterson Wilberforce |
11 | 1911–12 | West Hudson A.A.(4) | Paterson Wilberforce |
12 | 1912–13 | West Hudson A.A.(5) | Paterson True Blues |
13 | 1913–14 | Brooklyn F.C.(1) | West Hudson A.A. |
14 | 1914–15 | West Hudson A.A.(6) | Jersey A.C. |
15 | 1915–16 | Harrison Alley Boys(1) | Kearny Scots |
16 | 1916–17 | Jersey A.C.(2) | Kearny Scots |
17 | 1917–18 | Paterson F.C.(1) | Bethlehem Steel F.C. |
18 | 1918–19 | Bethlehem Steel F.C.(1) | Philadelphia Merchant Ship |
19 | 1919–20 | Bethlehem Steel F.C.(2) | Erie A.A. |
20 | 1920–21 | Bethlehem Steel F.C.(3) | New York F.C. |
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