Colorado Caribous

The Colorado Caribous (or The "Caribous of Colorado," as they were officially known) was a professional soccer team based in Denver, Colorado, that played in the North American Soccer League. Their primary owners were future Washington state governor Booth Gardner and Jim Guercio, owner of the Caribou Ranch.

Caribous of Colorado
Full nameCaribous of Colorado
Nickname(s)The Caribous
Founded1978
Dissolved1978
GroundMile High Stadium
Capacity76,000
ChairmanBooth Gardner
CoachDave Clements
Dan Wood
LeagueNorth American Soccer League

History

They played one season in 1978 under head coaches Dave Clements, who was also a player on the team, and Dan Wood. Their home field was Mile High Stadium. The arrival of the Caribous marked the return of professional first division soccer to Denver after a two-year absence caused by the departure of the Denver Dynamos to Minneapolis in 1976. During their only season in the Mile High City, the new team compiled the worst record in the league (8-22) and finished in last place in the Central Division of the National Conference. After the season, the club moved to Atlanta to become the Atlanta Chiefs.

Uniforms

The lasting legacy of the Caribous is one of the most unusual, infamous uniforms in soccer history. Going with a western-style motif, the players wore brown and tan jerseys that included a strip of leather fringe across the chest. In 2009, the uniforms were voted the "worst soccer uniform in history" by the readers of the Uni Watch sports design site.[1]

On April 1, 2014, the Colorado Rapids of MLS announced the club would wear Caribou "throwback" jerseys for an upcoming home game.[2] It was quickly revealed as an April Fools joke, but not before the team was swamped with calls and e-mails from fans wondering where they could buy replicas.[3]

Year-by-year
Year League W L Pts Regular Season Playoffs Avg. Attendance
1978 NASL 8 22 81 4th, National Conference, Central Division Did not qualify 7,418

1978 Roster

Players included Superstars champion Brian Budd and future NFL placekicker Matt Bahr.[4]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  USA Arnie Mausser
2 DF  GHA George Lamptey
2 DF  ENG Bernie Fagan
3 DF  USA Matt Bahr
4 DF  USA Greg Makowski
5 MF  YUG Branko Radović
6 MF  NIR Dave Clements
7 FW  ENG Brian Tinnion
8 FW  RSA Jomo Sono
9 FW  YUG Sead Sušić
10 FW  USA Louis Nanchoff
No. Pos. Nation Player
11 FW  USA Fred Pereira
12 FW  USA Bob Rohrbach
14 DF  USA Tommy Lang
15 MF  SCO Pat McMahon
16 MF  USA Steve Ralbovsky
17 MF  USA Scott Strasburg
18 DF  RSA Phillip Jones
19 FW  CAN Brian Budd
20 MF  USA Carl Strong
22 GK  USA Tad DeLorm
23 MF  NIR Ronnie Blair

Coaches
  • Colorado Caribous roster at NASLJerseys.com

References
  1. Boehm, Charles (July 30, 2015). "The strange but true story of the Caribous of Colorado and their unforgettable fringe uniforms". MLSsoccer.com. Major League Soccer. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  2. "Rapids to wear world-famous Caribous of Colorado uniforms". coloradorapids.com. Colorado Rapids. April 1, 2014. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  3. Wright, Chris (April 2, 2014). "Colorado Rapids win April Fool's Day with Caribous kit ruse". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  4. "Colorado Caribous Roster". NASL Jerseys. Retrieved January 12, 2015.


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