Jacksonville Tea Men

Jackson Tea Men was a professional football club in Jacksonville, Florida, who practiced both outdoor and indoor soccer. It was established in 1980 as a successor of the club in Foxborough, Massachusetts, established in 1978, New England Tea Men.

History

Participation in the NASL (1981-1982)

After the Lipton Tea Company had heard the positive expectations of the authorities in Jacksonville due to the audience fall in Massachusetts of her playing in the NASL club, who were convinced supposed to be able to sell around 14,000 season tickets, the move to Florida was completed. The reality was, however, different and the club scored in his first season in 1981 at the new location an average of less than 4,500.

After the 1981 outdoor season Lipton reported a loss of seven million dollars that the club had caused since its inception in early 1978. However, Lipton invested again $ 150,000, to enable participation in the indoor winter season 1981/82. There, the team could celebrate a cut of 6,375 spectators who flocked to the Jacksonville Coliseum per Match.

After the subsequent outdoor season in 1982 again became a fiasco ( the team ended up in last place and accordingly fell spectator interest from ), Lipton had finally lost interest in the club, which was not even five years after its inception before the corner.

The last two years (1983-1984)

In early 1983, took over the resident of Jacksonville businessman Ingo war the club and reported it in the " second-rate " ASL. The club name was retained, although it was lost by the withdrawal of any reference to the Lipton tea trade.

At the end of the 1983 season, the Jacksonville Tea Men won the championship of the ASL and were allowed in 1984 at the CONCACAF Champions ' Cup participate. There, the team would be allowed to play against the top club Chivas Guadalajara Mexican, if the club had not previously withdrawn from the tournament where he completed a single game.

At the national level, there was no better. After war had withdrawn his team in late 1983 from the ASL and was instrumental in the founding of the USL, the team experienced a further sporty letdown and not even qualified for the play-offs. After the disappointing 1984 season also war had lost his interest in the club and broke it up.