21 Facts About Phil Woosnam

Phillip Abraham Woosnam was a Welsh association football inside-right and manager.

Phil Woosnam was described as a "gifted inside-forward with a pronounced football intelligence".

Phil Woosnam was commissioner of the North American Soccer League from 1969 to 1982, overseeing the league's expansion and boom years.

Phil Woosnam was inducted into the US National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1997.

Phil Woosnam played football with Montgomeryshire Schoolboys and gained youth international honours with Wales, and gained eight amateur caps, the first against England in 1951.

Phil Woosnam featured for the Army XI alongside Eddie Colman and Duncan Edwards of Manchester United.

Phil Woosnam played club football at Wrexham, Manchester City, Caersws, Aberystwyth Town, and with amateur club Sutton United before he joined Leyton Orient.

Phil Woosnam made his senior international debut for Wales against Scotland in October 1958, having turned professional in January 1957.

Phil Woosnam represented the London XI against Lausanne Sports while at Brisbane Road.

Phil Woosnam was named amateur footballer of the year in 1955.

Phil Woosnam made his debut against Arsenal that month and went on to make 138 league appearances for the club, scoring 26 goals.

Phil Woosnam represented the Football League and the Wales Amateurs.

Phil Woosnam went on to score 24 goals in 106 League games, and gained a further two international caps.

Phil Woosnam became coach of the Atlanta Chiefs in 1968, and was named 'Coach of the Year' in 1968.

Phil Woosnam became head coach of the United States national team in 1968.

Phil Woosnam was commissioner of the NASL from 1969 to 1982.

Phil Woosnam is credited as an important factor in the development of the NASL, and was a major figure in promoting the league and had secured TV contracts from CBS and ABC.

Phil Woosnam oversaw the westward expansion of NASL in the early 1970s, establishing teams in Los Angeles, the Bay Area, Seattle, and Vancouver.

Phil Woosnam later became managing director of the marketing arm of US Soccer, and helped bring the 1994 World Cup to the US.

Phil Woosnam was inducted into the US National Soccer Hall of Fame and the Georgia Soccer Hall of Fame in 1997.

Phil Woosnam died on 19 July 2013 in Dunwoody, Georgia from complications related to prostate cancer and Alzheimer's disease, at the age of 80.