The future of the Tampa Bay Rowdies was in doubt in 1985. A decade after the Rowdies first took the field, the North American Soccer League announced a one-year hiatus that would end up becoming permanent. With no league to call home, the Rowdies needed to find a way to keep the fans engaged. Taking an entire year off with no games played in front of fans would jeopardize any hopes the club had of keeping the Rowdies name alive in the community.
The solution? A Fourth of July exhibition against the U.S. Men’s National Team played and Postmatch Fireworks at Tampa Stadium.
To put on the game, the Rowdies assembled a squad made up of past players and a few all-stars from England. Tottenham legends Ossie Ardiles and Glenn Hoddle were among the recruits from overseas, as well as former England National Team and World Cup winner Bobby Moore. They joined the likes of Rowdies icons Winston DuBose, Wes McLeod, Rodney Marsh, Steve Wegerle and others for the exhibition.
In honor of the matchup with the national team, the Rowdies swapped the usual green and gold on their sleeves for a patriotic red-and-blue version of the classic hoops. The look of that 1985 jersey served as the inspiration for the Rowdies 2026 alternate jersey from CHARLY, the Stars and Hoops Kit. Along with the red and blue hoops on the sleeves, this year’s kit is adorned with white stars on the shoulders and a flush blue collar with thin white trim.
For some Rowdies greats, such as legendary defender Mike Connell, the red-and-blue jersey was the last one they would ever wear for the club in a match. Connell left the club at the start of 1985 to play in Tulsa but returned to Tampa Bay for the one-off exhibition and a chance to help keep the Rowdies traidition going.
“From the standpoint of bringing all the old players and the fans together, it was very satisfying,” Connell said to local media at the time. “But everyone is wondering where the Rowdies go from here. Is this really a beginning?”
Longtime Rowdies Midfielder Perry Van der Beck suited up for the U.S. in the match. The St. Louis native was part of the national team squad looking to secure a spot in the World Cup the following summer.
“I was very fortunate and very honored at that time back in the 80s to play for and represent my country,” Van der Beck recalls today. “There were quite a quite a few superstars playing at that Fourth of July match in 1985. We had guest players Glen Hoddle and Ossie Ardiles. The Rowdies were such a big name in the community and in the soccer world. To have the opportunity to play with guys like that is something that you never forget.”
Tampa Bay Soccer Hall of Fame Member Jay Miller, who led the University of Tampa to their first national championship in 1981, was at the helm as interim head coach for the U.S National Team for the exhibition. The average age of the U.S. squad for the Independence Day matchup was 22, compared to an average of 32 for the team that took the pitch for the Rowdies that night. After a scoreless first half, the national team pulled ahead with goals from Amr Aly and Steve Sharp before McLeod provided an assist to Hoddle for a Rowdies goal in the dying moments of the match to finish 2-1.
The final result was not the primary concern for the Rowdies that night, though. Reuniting with old teammates and seeing the crowd of 30,000 fans show up in the stands to cheer on the Rowdies despite their precarious prospects for the future was its own special victory.
“It’s a game none of us wanted to have end,” Rowdies veteran Neill Roberts noted at the time. “Being back out on that field again brought back a lot of memories.”
For one night in 1985, the community got to show they were still behind the Rowdies and eager to see the club carry on past the NASL. That enduring passion for the Rowdies among the fans, players, and coaches that have represented the club has been a defining factor in the club’s persistance and survival over the decades.
