The Cosmos will travel to South Florida to face NASL freshmen Miami FC for the first time this Saturday.  But it won’t be the first time the Cosmos have faced a team representing Miami in the NASL.  In an era when clubs would relocate with disturbing frequency, the Washington Darts (who joined the NASL from the ASL in 1970) relocated and rebranded as the Miami Gatos in 1972. 

Beginning the '72 season with two draws, the Cosmos’ first win in what would be a championship season was at the expense of Miami, a 6-1 thrashing at Hofstra on May 20.  The New York Nets season ended earlier that day with a 108-105 loss to the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the ABA Finals across the Hempstead Turnpike at Nassau Coliseum. But Cosmos fans in Hempstead that Saturday night were treated to a powerful display of attacking soccer. 

With Everald Cummings and Randy Horton both scoring twice, and Josef Jelinek and Jorge Siega adding a goal each, the win made a statement.  Cosmos general manager Clive Toye and head coach Gordon Bradley had built a squad intent on winning through thrilling, attacking soccer, a philosophy of play that continues to shape the club to this day.  New York would not score as many goals in a match or win by as wide a margin until Pelé arrived in 1975. 

The Cosmos were seeking their first road win of the 1972 season when they made their first trip to South Florida, facing the Gatos on the north campus of Miami Dade College on July 8.  Things had not gone well for the Gatos since their embarrassing May defeat in New York.  In mid-June, a player mutiny forced the resignation of head coach Sal De Rosa, leaving Billy Fraser and Willie Fleming as player-coaches. 

Willie Mfum scored in the 40^th minute with assists from Randy Horton and Werner Roth.  Horton scored in the second half with assists from John Kerr and Josef Jelinek.  Cosmos goalkeeper Richard Blackmore had 11 saves to preserve the shutout, but the highlight (or lowlight) of the match occurred when a fight broke out between the teams with four minutes left.   

The Gatos would finish 1972 with the league’s worst record, while the Cosmos would earn the club’s first NASL championship.  In 1973, Miami would adopt a more bullish approach, rebranding as the Toros.  Cosmos assistant coach and former midfielder John Young left New York in the offseason to take over the Toros as head coach and general manager. He built his squad aggressively, importing seven new players in the offseason including Willie Henderson from the Glasgow Rangers and David Sadler from Manchester United. 

Traveling to New York for the third match of the season on May 16, the 1972 NASL MVP, Randy Horton, scored in the 51^st minute for the Cosmos. But Warren Archibald equalized in the 65^th minute to earn a 1-1 draw for Miami.  Horton and Archibald (who claimed the 1973 NASL MVP) would both score in the rematch at the Orange Bowl on June 30. But a goal from Ace Ntsoelengoe, who had joined the Toros from South Africa’s fabled Kaizer Chiefs, was enough to give Miami its first win over New York, 2-1. 

An announced crowd of 1,428 fans were on hand to see Shep Messing make his NASL debut when the Cosmos played their second game at Downing Stadium on Randall’s Island on May 12, 1974.  Miami dominated play, but Messing was brilliant, allowing just one goal from point-blank range by Steve David in the 26^th minute.  Local product Joey Fink came on as a second-half substitute, scoring the equalizer with just four minutes left in regulation.  But beginning with the 1974 regular season, the NASL decided that there would be no more draws, so the result would be determined by penalty kicks.  The Cosmos missed their first two attempts from the spot and Messing couldn’t stop Miami’s first three attempts, so the 1-1 draw went into the record books as a 2-1 loss.  Miami won a 5-3 goalfest in the next meeting on June 14.

The two NASL sides played in front of 11,000 at Port-au-Prince, Haiti on April 1, 1975 for the first game of the preseason fixture known as the Eastern Airlines tournament.  A Mark Liveric goal was the only tally in a 1-0 Cosmos win over Miami at Sylvio Cator National Stadium. Two days later, the Cosmos would defeat local side Victory by the same score to win the Eastern Airlines tournament.  But when they faced Miami at Downing Stadium for the season opener on April 20, the Cosmos lost 3-2 in what would be their only meeting of the NASL season.

The Cosmos opened the 1976 season at Miami’s Tamiani Park.  Ulsterman Dave Clements, newly signed from Everton, scored the only goal of the game to start the Cosmos season with a 1-0 road win.

The very last time the Cosmos faced Miami is widely considered the most memorable one.  An 8-2 triumph at Yankee Stadium on Aug. 10, 1976, Giorgio Chinaglia scored five goals and Pelé added a brace, including a stunning bicycle kick that remains among the most iconic images in sports history. 

All told, the Cosmos faced Miami ten times, including nine NASL league matches, winning five times (including the preseason match in Haiti) and losing four times (including a penalty shootout) before the Toros would rebrand again with a relocation to Fort Lauderdale, becoming the Strikers after the 1976 season.  So while this Saturday will be the Cosmos’ first match against Miami FC, they have plenty of history with Miami.