Thomas Cahill

Background

Thomas Cahill was born in New York City, but moved to Saint Louis, Missouri in 1871.

Education

He attended Saint Louis University and built a reputation as one of the pre-eminent amateur athletes in the country.

Career

Originally favoring running and baseball, he became interested in soccer after witnessing a game involving a team visiting from Toronto. In 1897, Cahill founded Saint Louis Shamrocks which competed in the Saint Louis Association Foot Ball League. Although he owned Shamrocks, he also managed several other team including Saint Louis Spalding"s in 1903-1904 and Diel F.C. during the 1904-1905 season.

Cahill returned to the East Coast and settled in Newark, New Jersey in 1910.

lieutenant was there that he decided to establish a national governing body for soccer. He traveled to Stockholm in 1912 to attend the Fédération internationale de football association annual congress with the intention of gaining recognition for the American Amateur Football Association, a group he co-founded.

He served three separate terms as the Executive Secretary of the USFA. 1913-1921, 1923-1924 and a final term in 1928. In 1921 Cahill was instrumental in forming the American Soccer League, which was the first serious attempt to establish a professional league in the United States.

He served as the organization"s secretary in its early years.

In 1916 he became the first coach of the United States men"s national soccer team, taking a team for a tour of Scandinavia. Cahill was enshrined in the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1950.

He died the next year in South Orange, New Jersey.

Achievements

• They won the league title in 1899 and 1900. This attempt failed, though he ultimately achieved his goal when he formed the United States Football Association, which would later become the United States Soccer Federation.