That breakthrough win in 1950 didn't do much to popularize the game here. It wasn't until the 1970s that the North American Soccer League—with the help of Pelé—finally brought soccer to the American masses. In 1976, the United States hosted the Bicentennial Cup, an international tournament that included Brazil, Italy, and England. The American team, which featured both native-born players and foreign NASL stars, hit the field wearing all-red shirts and socks. The look didn't catch on—despite Kissinger's détente, it may have reeked too strongly of communism.

In 1983, the U.S. Soccer Federation decided to have the National Team play as a franchise within the NASL. They were known as "Team America," and their uniform (seen here) was bold, original, and thoroughly appropriate: a red-and-white-horizontal-striped jersey with a blue number on the front of the shirt. The shorts were either blue, with a few small, tasteful stars down the side, or red with white strips. (Note to Adidas Originals: Bring it back!)

The NASL, considered an economic and marketing failure, folded the following year. Sadly, all vestiges of the league, sartorial and otherwise, have been expunged from American soccer's institutional memory.