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the 1991 Holland cup u16 championship: 30 years ago!

5/19/2021

 
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KNVB headquarters, Netherlands, 1991. Team photo after Holland Cup U16 championship.
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KNVB headquarters, Netherlands, 1991. Holding Holland Cup U16 championship trophy. (Hit the gym kid!)
I was reminded that this summer—2021—is the 30-year anniversary for a team I was on that won the Holland Cup U16 championship in 1991. The tour was successfully organized by Lyle Ward. Our coach was St. Louis native Ed Gettemeier, SIUE national champion in 1979, NASL and MISL goalie, who led us to victory. In summary, our one-off Metro East team from St. Louis had only two practices before departing. We were supposed to ‘have fun and get a taste of Europe.’ This was code for ‘maybe win a game and lose the rest.’ We went undefeated and became the first North American team to win the Holland Cup. In doing so, we defeated talented clubs from Netherlands, Denmark, Austria and Italy. How? It’s a testament to St. Louis soccer! (Much more to come!) To the best of my memory, after our conquest one of the local Dutch organizers suggested to Ward a top-notch team near our living arrangement at the KNVB headquarters.* This team was the equivalent of Scott Gallagher** or something of that sort. Shortly before we left, we played a friendly with them at KNVB and won 2-1. 
 
Now 30 years later I’ve written a book The Euro 2020-21 Book. It seems I’m back in Europe! 
 
Details of the Holland Cup are in Why American Soccer Isn’t There Yet. 
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​EURO Cup 2020-21

​All games take place: June 11-July 11 2021 !
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The Book & Tournament that Almost Didn't Make it! 
COVID-19 Will Be Defeated
Enjoy the Tournament Safely!

* Also staying at the KNVB headquarters, in dorms next to ours, included a youth farm team of Ajax, and Sampdoria with none other than Gianluca Vialli, the Italian national team star forward at the time; we saw him on the way to breakfast, groggy, asking an assistant for water. 

​** For any new-comers to American club soccer, St. Louis-based Scott Gallagher has traditionally been one of the best in North America since the 1970s.

book excerpt: the euro 2020-21 book

5/1/2021

 
The following is a book excerpt from The Euro 2020-21 Book: 

The UEFA European Championship 2020. 

First of all, for those of you wondering about the name: Yes, it has changed over the years. It was initially known as the European Nations’ Cup (during 1960 and 1964), but from then on it became the UEFA European Football Championship, UEFA European Championship, or simply the UEFA Euro.

However, as many of you know, it is most commonly referred to as the Euro Cup, or simply the Euro, as in “Euro 2020.” So don’t be surprised to see a few different references regarding the Euro.

​The premise is simple: Europe’s best soccer-playing nations battle it out for the title. It is essentially like the World Cup of Europe and is in fact thought to be the tournament in Europe. Although it might initially sound like a paradox, many people think that the Euro is more competitive than the actual World Cup, and while this may be true, there must be a reason for people to think such a thing. 

All games take place: June 11-July 11 2021 !

Picture
The Book & Tournament that Almost Didn't Make it! 
COVID-19 Will Be Defeated
Enjoy the Tournament Safely!

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    KEY
    (NS) refers to "Non-Soccer" related blog entries, stories and essays.

    Author

    Shane Stay, author of The Euro 2020, The World Cup 2018 Book, Why American Soccer Isn't There Yet.

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