APSL 1993 season

March 9, 2022 |  Categories:  APSL  

The 1993 American Professional Soccer League was the second for the organization as a member of the USSF's Professional Division. The league lost two franchises following the 1992 season. The Miami Freedom's franchise was involuntarily terminated in January of 1993 after failing to find a new owner to take it over.

Dan Van Voorhis pulled the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks out of the league because he thought the organization was not doing enough to form a Division I professional league for 1995. The Blackhaws had lost $2.5 million in 1992 and $6 million since its formation. Van Voorhis planned on asking the USSF for admission of the team to Division I of the Professional Division and, if approved, would play as an independent until a full Division I league was ready to play. That affiliation never happened and Van Voorhis placed his team in the USISL for the 1993 season under the San Jose Hawks name.

But, the APSL grew from five to seven teams for the 1993 season with the addition of four franchises. The Los Angeles Salsa, which played at Titan Stadium in Fullerton, Cali. joined as an expansion franchise. The Vancouver 86ers and Toronto Blizzard joined the APSL from the Canadian Soccer League. The Montreal FC Supra team from the CSL also applied to join the APSL. But after that team could not meet the APSL's requirements a new franchise, the Montreal Impact, was admitted to the league.

Vancouver ended the regular season in first place not far ahead of second-place Colorado Foxes. But, in the semifinals the Los Angeles Salsa pulled an upset knocking Vancouver out of the title race via a shootout. The Foxes beat Tampa Bay in the other semifinal and, before 10,743 at Titan Stadium, beat Los Angeles 3-1 in the championship game to retain their APSL title.