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What happened the last time an English monarch was crowned?
Posted on Sept. 4, 2025, 9:16 a.m. | Categories: US Open Cup[This blog post was originally published on May 6, 2023.]
The coronation of Charles III as king of the United Kingdom took place earlier today. Charles is Britain’s first new monarch in 70 years. Just a quick little post this time looking back at the year 1953 in U.S. soccer when Elizabeth II was crowned queen of the UK.
The national team
The coronation of Elizabeth II took place on June 2, 1953. Six days later the England national football team played the U.S. national team in New York. The friendly took place at Yankee Stadium where a crowd of 7271 saw the England squad beat the Americans 6-3. The U.S. goalscorers were Otto Decker who scored a brace as a second half substitute and George Atheneos who scored a second-half penalty kick. It was the only cap for both players.
The national cups
Falcons F.C. of Chicago’s National Soccer League beat Harmarville if Pennsylvania’s Keystone League 3-0 on aggregate goal to win the 1953 National Challenge Cup. Ponta Delgada S.C. of Fall River beat the Slovaks of Chicago 2-0 in the 1953 National Amateur Cup final.
The pro leagues
The Philadelphia Nationals won the American Soccer League by five points over Newark Portuguese. Lusitanto S.C. of Ludlow, Mass. took the American Soccer League New England Division by two points over Ponta Delgada S.C.
Elizabeth S.C. edged Swiss F.C. by one point to win New York’s German-American Soccer League. The Lions took Chicago’s National Soccer League by two points over Falcons F.C.
Kutis (formerly called the St. Louis Raiders) won both halves of the St. Louis Major Soccer League. But Simpkins managed to beat Kutis twice in a row in the playoffs to take home the league title.
The amateur leagues
Pompei won both halves of Baltimore’s National Soccer League to win the league championship. The Serbian Sport Club won the Wisconsin State Soccer League by seven points over the Richard Rich Tigers. The Temple University Owls won the Intercollegiate Soccer Football Association.
Last modified on Sept. 4, 2025, 9:21 a.m.