NASL Fan Shop

The NASL Collection — Royal Retros North American Soccer League Fan Shop

Heritage NASL Throwbacks. Custom Names & Numbers. Sizes S–5XL.

Royal Retros is the home of North American Soccer League throwback gear — heritage-inspired jerseys, hats, T-shirts, hoodies, and apparel honoring the league that gave America the Cosmos, Pelé, and its first great soccer boom. These are tribute designs that bring back the wide-open, sun-soaked, superstar-stuffed era of the original NASL (1968–1984): the Chicago Sting and the Dallas Tornado, the L.A. Aztecs and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers, the New England Tea Men and the Washington Diplomats. If you remember packed stadiums in the late '70s — or you're discovering this golden age for the first time — your team is here. Most jerseys ship with free custom name and number. Sizes Small through 5XL. Fast shipping, real support, and a catalog that goes deeper on the NASL than anyone else.

What You Can Shop in the NASL Collection

NASL Throwback Jerseys — The heart of the collection. Heritage jerseys cut and detailed in the spirit of the originals: the bold 1970s and early-'80s color schemes, period-correct crests and fonts, and the unmistakable look of the era that put American soccer on the map. Add a free custom name and number on most styles, or rep an NASL legend. Sizes S–5XL.

NASL Hats & Caps — Snapbacks, fitted caps, flex-fit, and unstructured dad hats featuring team marks from across the league. The easiest everyday way to fly your colors.

NASL T-Shirts — Soft, true-to-size cotton and cotton-blend tees with team logos, wordmarks, and vintage NASL graphics. Our most popular entry point — comfortable, affordable, built for daily wear. Sizes S–5XL.

NASL Hoodies & Sweatshirts — Pullover hoodies and crewneck sweatshirts for match days, chilly evenings, and throwback weekends. Heavyweight, warm, and printed with the same care as our tees.

Free Customization — Most jerseys can be personalized with the name and number of your choice at no extra cost. Put your own name on a Chicago Sting jersey, or honor a roster legend — your call. Custom items are final sale.

Sizes S–5XL — We build for every fan. Nearly every style runs Small through 5XL, so the fit is right whether you're shopping for yourself, a gift, or the whole supporters' group.

Shop the Marquee NASL Teams

Chicago Sting — One of the NASL's true success stories. The Sting won the league championship in 1981 — beating the mighty New York Cosmos in a dramatic shootout — and again in 1984, the league's final season. Shop Chicago Sting throwback jerseys and tees and rep one of the NASL's last and greatest champions.

Dallas Tornado — A founding-era cornerstone. The Tornado captured the NASL title in 1971 and spent fourteen seasons as one of the league's most stable franchises. Shop Dallas Tornado throwback gear and bring back a charter member of American pro soccer.

L.A. Aztecs — Hollywood's team. The Aztecs won the championship in 1974 and later brought global superstars to Los Angeles, becoming one of the most glamorous clubs of the era. Shop L.A. Aztecs jerseys and tees for a piece of NASL star power.

Fort Lauderdale Strikers — One of the most beloved brands of the late NASL. The Strikers drew passionate South Florida crowds and fielded star-studded sides through their run. Shop Fort Lauderdale Strikers throwbacks and revive a fan-favorite franchise.

Atlanta Chiefs & Washington Diplomats — Charter-era history meets capital-city flair. The Chiefs were the NASL's very first champions in 1968; the Diplomats gave Washington a star-driven side that, for a time, lured world-class talent to D.C. Shop both, plus the Atlanta Apollos, Rochester Lancers, California Surf, and New England Tea Men — deep cuts you won't find just anywhere.

Why Royal Retros Is the Home of NASL Throwback Gear

• Full-era NASL coverage — from the 1968 founding through the Cosmos boom to the final 1984 season, we carry teams and eras most shops never touch.
• Heritage-inspired, period-correct designs — our throwbacks are tribute pieces built to honor the look and feel of the originals: the colors, the crests, the unmistakable '70s styling.
• Free customization on most jerseys — your name and number, or a roster legend, at no extra cost.
• Sizes S–5XL — inclusive sizing on nearly every style.
• Rare-team depth — Atlanta Apollos, Rochester Lancers, California Surf, New England Tea Men and more. If you can't find your club anywhere else, start here.
• Real support & fast shipping — a team that actually knows the NASL and ships quickly.

Quick Buying Questions

What sizes do you carry?

Small through 5XL on nearly every style. Our jerseys, tees, and hoodies are built to fit every fan.

Can I customize my jersey?

Yes — most jersey styles offer free custom name and number. Add your own name, a roster legend, or any combination you like. Custom items are final sale.

Are these official league products?

Our NASL pieces are heritage-inspired throwbacks — tribute designs that honor the teams, colors, and eras of the league. "Authentic" on our pages refers to the period-correct look and construction of the apparel, not a licensing claim.

What materials are used?

Jerseys are built from durable performance and replica-style fabrics suited to the bold vintage designs. Tees are soft cotton and cotton blends; hoodies and crewnecks are heavyweight and warm.

How fast do you ship?

In-stock items ship quickly. Custom name-and-number pieces require a short production window before they go out — well worth the wait for a one-of-a-kind throwback.

What Was the NASL?

The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the league that introduced the United States and Canada to top-flight professional soccer — and, for one electrifying stretch in the late 1970s, made the sport a genuine mainstream phenomenon. The NASL was formed in December 1967 from the merger of two rival circuits, the FIFA-sanctioned United Soccer Association and the upstart National Professional Soccer League, which had each played a single season in 1967. The combined league began play in 1968 with 17 teams and ran through 1984 before suspending operations in March 1985.

For much of its early life the NASL was a scrappy, financially fragile experiment — but everything changed in 1975, when the New York Cosmos signed Pelé, the most famous athlete on earth. His debut that June drew a reported ten million CBS television viewers, a record American audience for a soccer match, and kicked off a star-importing arms race. The Cosmos added Franz Beckenbauer, Carlos Alberto, and Giorgio Chinaglia and began averaging more than 28,000 fans a game from 1977 to 1982 — topping 40,000 a game in three of those seasons. Suddenly soccer was front-page news in America, and the NASL was the league that made it happen.

The league played its championship game, the Soccer Bowl, as the climax of each season, and at its peak it drew more than 13,000 fans per game league-wide every year from 1977 to 1983 with matches on network television. Over its seventeen seasons, dozens of franchises came and went across markets large and small — and that sprawling, colorful, boom-and-bust history is exactly what makes the NASL such a rewarding collection to explore, and exactly what Royal Retros set out to bring back.

A Brief History of the North American Soccer League

The founding (1967–1968). The NASL was born from a merger. In 1967, two competing leagues — the sanctioned United Soccer Association and the renegade National Professional Soccer League — fought for the same markets and the same fans. Rather than bleed each other dry, they combined in December 1967 to form the North American Soccer League, which kicked off in 1968 with 17 teams. The Atlanta Chiefs claimed that first championship, and franchises like the Dallas Tornado put down roots that would last more than a decade.

The lean years (early 1970s). Survival, not stardom, defined the early NASL. The league contracted sharply in the early 1970s, at one point shrinking to a handful of teams. But a core of committed clubs — the Tornado, the Rochester Lancers, the Atlanta Chiefs — kept the league alive, and slowly it began to grow again. The Dallas Tornado won the 1971 title; the Los Angeles Aztecs took the 1974 crown. The pieces were in place for the explosion to come.

The Pelé boom (1975–1980). The signing of Pelé by the New York Cosmos in 1975 transformed everything. Television cameras, celebrities, and record crowds followed the King to America, and rival owners rushed to import their own global stars. The Tampa Bay Rowdies lifted the very first Soccer Bowl trophy in 1975, beating the Portland Timbers; the Minnesota Kicks drew enormous crowds and reached the 1976 final. By the late '70s the NASL had ballooned to 24 teams, and a Cosmos home playoff game in 1977 famously drew more than 77,000 fans. For a few golden summers, the NASL was one of the hottest properties in American sports.

Overexpansion and decline (1980–1983). The boom carried the seeds of the bust. The NASL had expanded too far, too fast, paying enormous salaries to aging international stars while many markets couldn't sustain the costs. As Pelé retired and the novelty cooled, franchises began to fold and attendance slid. The league fought back with rule tweaks and an indoor season, but the financial damage compounded year after year through the early 1980s.

The final whistle (1984–1985). The Chicago Sting provided one of the league's last great moments, sweeping the Toronto Blizzard to win the 1984 championship — the NASL's final title. By then the league was down to a handful of clubs, and on March 28, 1985, the NASL suspended operations for good. It would be more than a decade before Major League Soccer revived top-flight American soccer in 1996 — but MLS was built squarely on the foundation, the lessons, and the dreams of the league that came first.

The Greatest NASL Teams

New York Cosmos — The franchise that defined an era. Home to Pelé, Beckenbauer, Carlos Alberto, and Chinaglia, the Cosmos were the most glamorous and dominant club of the NASL's golden age, drawing crowds and headlines no American soccer team had ever seen. They are the team most synonymous with the league itself.

Chicago Sting — Two-time champions and one of the NASL's last great stories. Their 1981 shootout win over the Cosmos and their 1984 title — the final championship in league history — cement the Sting among the NASL's most decorated clubs.

Tampa Bay Rowdies — Winners of the inaugural 1975 Soccer Bowl and one of the league's most popular and stylish brands. The Rowdies' "Fan-Tas-Tic" identity made them a Gulf Coast institution.

Dallas Tornado — A charter-era cornerstone and 1971 champion, the Tornado were among the NASL's most enduring franchises across fourteen seasons.

Fort Lauderdale Strikers & Minnesota Kicks — Two of the boom era's box-office darlings. The Strikers packed South Florida stands with star-studded sides, while the Kicks turned Minnesota into one of the league's loudest and best-attended markets.

NASL Legends: The Players Who Made the League

Pelé. The greatest player in the history of the sport, and the single most important figure in the NASL's story. The Brazilian icon's three seasons with the New York Cosmos (1975–1977) put American soccer on the global map, drew record crowds and TV audiences, and inspired a generation of young U.S. players. His debut alone — ten million CBS viewers — remains a watershed moment for the sport in America.

Franz Beckenbauer. "Der Kaiser," widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders ever, brought World Cup-winning pedigree and European elegance to the Cosmos, anchoring their most dominant teams.

Giorgio Chinaglia. The fiery Italian striker became the NASL's all-time leading scorer and the on-field heartbeat of the Cosmos dynasty — a larger-than-life personality who thrived in the New York spotlight.

Carlos Alberto, George Best & the global cast. The NASL became a magnet for international royalty. Carlos Alberto, captain of Brazil's 1970 World Cup champions, joined the Cosmos; the mercurial George Best dazzled for the Los Angeles Aztecs and Fort Lauderdale Strikers; and dozens of World Cup veterans from England, Germany, Italy, and beyond brought a level of star power American soccer had never known. Alongside them, a generation of homegrown North American players got their first taste of the professional game — many of whom would go on to coach and build the sport into the MLS era.

The NASL's Legacy

No league did more to plant the seeds of American soccer than the NASL. It proved that the sport could draw big crowds and big television audiences in the United States and Canada; it introduced millions of kids to the game during the youth-soccer explosion of the 1970s; and it left behind a template — and a cautionary tale about overexpansion — that the architects of Major League Soccer studied closely when they launched in 1996. Several NASL markets and identities live on directly in today's game: names like the Seattle Sounders, Portland Timbers, Vancouver Whitecaps, and San Jose Earthquakes all trace their roots to NASL franchises, and the Tampa Bay Rowdies and Fort Lauderdale Strikers brands were later revived by new ownership groups.

More than that, the NASL gave American soccer its first folk heroes and its first great memories — Pelé in Cosmos green, the Rowdies' Soccer Bowl run, the Sting shocking the Cosmos, packed summer nights from Minnesota to Florida. Those memories are exactly what these throwbacks are here to honor. The teams may be gone, but the colors, the crests, and the culture endure — and Royal Retros exists to keep them alive.

Frequently Asked Questions About the NASL

When did the NASL operate?

The original North American Soccer League ran from 1968 to 1984, forming in December 1967 from the merger of the United Soccer Association and the National Professional Soccer League, and suspending operations in March 1985. (A separate, unrelated modern league also used the NASL name from 2011 to 2017.)

What teams played in the NASL?

Dozens of franchises competed over the league's seventeen seasons. Among the best-known: the New York Cosmos, Chicago Sting, Tampa Bay Rowdies, Dallas Tornado, L.A. Aztecs, Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Minnesota Kicks, Washington Diplomats, Atlanta Chiefs, Rochester Lancers, New England Tea Men, California Surf, and the Atlanta Apollos — many of which you can shop right here.

Who was the greatest NASL player?

Pelé is the league's most famous and important figure, but the NASL was packed with legends, including Franz Beckenbauer, Giorgio Chinaglia, Carlos Alberto, and George Best.

Which team won the most NASL championships?

The New York Cosmos were the dominant power of the golden era. The Chicago Sting won the league's final championship in 1984, capping a two-title run.

Why did the NASL fold?

Rapid overexpansion, unsustainable salaries for international stars, and declining attendance after the Pelé-era boom caught up with the league. It suspended operations after the 1984 season — but its influence runs straight through to today's MLS.

Shop NASL Throwbacks by Team

Browse our growing NASL catalog by club. New teams and styles are added regularly — if you don't see yours yet, check back soon:

• Atlanta Apollos
• Atlanta Chiefs
• California Surf
• Chicago Sting
• Dallas Tornado
• Fort Lauderdale Strikers
• L.A. Aztecs
• New England Tea Men
• Rochester Lancers
• Washington Diplomats

NASL at Royal Retros — Heritage Throwbacks. Custom Names & Numbers. Sizes S–5XL.