Philadelphia Union’s run at an MLS title is the latest round of soccer success in the city

People have been playing soccer in Philadelphia for 150 years, but this city has not always been so good to people who want to play for money. One hundred years ago, a team known as the Philadelphia Field Club won the American Soccer League championship after moving from Bethlehem, Pa. — then hightailed it back to Bethlehem because of poor support.

Six years after the Philadelphia Spartans disappeared after one season (along with the league they were in), Philadelphia landed a new franchise in 1973 in the North American Soccer League, which had big plans. The Philadelphia Atoms first played at the 65,000-seat Veterans Stadium, which was way bigger than a stadium for soccer here really needed to be.

The first home game was played before 21,700 fans, 5,000 of whom got in for free, and the 0-0 draw with the Dallas Tornado was so dull the fans booed at the end of the match. The Atoms would win the NASL championship in their first season, but they folded in 1976. The Fury, backed by none other than Mick Jagger and three other rockers, lasted just three seasons.

The Philadelphia Union joined Major League Soccer in 2010, a full 14 years after the league started. They have had a few decent seasons, but they had not made the league’s championship game — until now. Late Saturday afternoon, they will face Los Angeles F.C. for the MLS Cup. The Union will get this Phillies-and-Eagles-crazed city to themselves for a few hours.

» READ MORE: Union meet LAFC in the battle to be first-time champions: MLS Cup predictions from the soccer staff

The Union have earned every bit of the attention they get. Understand that pro soccer in the U.S. is of lower caliber than in, say, the U.K. The Union are ranked 116th among 643 teams in the fivethirtyeight.com global soccer rankings. That is the best among MLS teams, but better than only two clubs, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest, in the English Premier League.

The U.S.’s best player, Christian Pulisic, of Hershey, Pa., plays for Chelsea in England. The MLS is often a place for top European players to earn a nice paycheck as the sun sets on their careers. LAFC has 33-year-old striker Gareth Bale, who played for Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid (and will play for Wales in the World Cup against the U.S. on Nov. 21).

But the Union have an 18,500-seat stadium in Chester that is just the perfect size, and they play hard for a coach who is a local guy with a nice backstory. Jim Curtin played at Bishop McDevitt High School and Villanova University before forging a nine-year MLS career as a defender. (Defenders don’t tend to score: He had all of five goals in 175 MLS games.)

Curtin intended to join the Union as a player in the club’s first season but retired after deciding it was time to spend more time with his growing family. He started coaching the 5-year-olds at the club, then worked his way to the top. He has been the Union’s coach for eight years, longer than the four men who coach Philadelphia’s bigger sports teams — combined.

» READ MORE: The night a terrific Union season became a special one | Mike Jensen

The Union are very good at home, and they are difficult to play against — very Philadelphian. They have a loyal following, with a passionate supporters group called Sons of Ben. Phillies and Eagles fans, in particular, outnumber them by a lot, and probably always will. But that makes no difference. The Union have found their spot, and they are not going away. And they sing!

Soccer (or football, as it is called almost everywhere else in the world) is a simple sport to understand. Goals don’t occur as often as touchdowns in football or runs in baseball (or even goals in hockey), but the buildup is nerve-racking. Only the goalkeeper can use his hands, so the ball is hard to control — and a goal is the result of extraordinary teamwork. Then, jubilation.

The four bigger teams predate the Union by decades, so they are more established. Those who think they don’t like soccer (me, for example, until about 10 years ago, when I started following Tottenham Hotspur) have not given the sport a chance. It is time. The World Cup is coming to Philadelphia in 2026, and following the Union now is a nice way to catch on.

Unlike the city’s Big Four at various points in their lifetimes, the Union are not the best team in the world. But they still have the word “Philadelphia” on the front of their shirts, and they have been doing a great job lately of representing a city that loves athletes who play hard. One thing is for sure: Someone will have to score at least once to win the title Saturday.

Dave Caldwell grew up in Lancaster County, graduated from Temple University, and lives in Manayunk. He was a sports reporter for The Inquirer from 1986 to 1995. bydavecaldwell@gmail.com @bydavecaldwell