Pullman and the Global Game

Event Description: Exploring the Legacy of Soccer in Pullman

Step back in time to 1883, when one of the earliest documented Association Football (or "soccer," as we call it in the USA) matches in Chicago was played between the city’s Wanderers and a team from Pullman. Soccer flourished in the Pullman community, with its men’s team dominating the Illinois state championships, winning 9 of 15 titles between 1912 and 1926. They also made national waves, competing in the US Open Cup and reaching the championship match in 1912-13, just before the tournament’s official sanctioning.

But the story of soccer in Pullman goes far beyond the men’s team. From the girls’ soccer team—immortalized in photographs from the Chicago History Museum—to the broader community that embraced the sport, Pullman was a hub of athletic and cultural activity.

This discussion will dive into Pullman’s rich soccer history and explore intriguing questions:

• Who participated in sports in Pullman, and what did their involvement say about the community?
• How did soccer players—both men and women—shape and reflect the identity of Pullman?
• What became of soccer in Pullman after the men’s team’s loss in the 1927 Illinois state championship to Coal City?

Join us for an engaging exploration of how Pullman’s vibrant soccer scene shaped its legacy and contributed to the broader story of the sport in America.

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Chuck Carlson graduated from St. Olaf College with a Social Studies Secondary Education (History emphasis, Psychology minor) degree in 1988. He has taught history, physical education, and English in the United States, South Africa, South Korea, the Philippines, and Thailand. His experience as a volunteer teacher in South Africa during apartheid reinforced the power of sport, particularly soccer, in working toward positive social change. He worked as an archivist at the National Archives in Washington, DC, and has completed archives projects at organizations such as Chicago’s Lyric Opera. Since 2021, Chuck has been Club Historian for Chicago House AC soccer team and he has been researching the history of soccer, race, gender, and labor in Illinois coal mining communities in addition to Chicago. Chuck was elected as a Director on the Executive Board of the Society for American Soccer History in December 2024.