An Inquirer countdown of Philly’s Top 10 ‘Do You Remember When’ soccer moments

This week’s Top 10 is for the soccer fans scattered across the Greater Philadelphia Region. It’s an Inquirer roundup of “Do you remember when…” moments that happened here in Philadelphia.

Some should be easy to remember as they happened not too long ago, while some go back decades but are immortalized by the impact of the moment and the reverb long after the final whistle. Some are plays, some are players, but all are tied to a moment of when the Beautiful Game had its Philly moment.

Sure this happened just a few short months ago, but it’s unlikely that anyone close to the game in this town will forget the mass hysteria and unjustified price gouging that took place just for a glimpse to see arguably the world’s greatest player in Lionel Messi. It was the first time Messi with Inter Miami played against the Union in a Major League Soccer match.

» READ MORE: Fans relish the opportunity to see the GOAT, Lionel Messi, in Philly

It’s the home of the Birds without a doubt, but Lincoln Financial Field displayed the original brand of football when it opened its gates to the public for the first time ever in 2003 when these two world titans duked it out in South Philly. The Linc held court to some of the best players in the world at the time (never forget that Ronaldinho was here) and of note, U.S. men’s national team goalkeeper Tim Howard was in goal for Manchester United.

It was awesome for many reasons, but perhaps the biggest was that former Los Angeles Galaxy star David Beckham played 70 minutes in the first MLS All-Star Game in Philadelphia, er ... Chester. Here’s something to remember: Beckham came off and entered former Union midfielder Michael Farfan. Speaking of Farfan, he’s got quite the memory of his own …

» READ MORE: Inquirer archive photos of the 2012 MLS All-Star Game

What makes this one even cooler is that this Real Madrid team was perhaps one of the better rosters it’s had since 2010. World Stars like Brazil’s Kaka and Marcelo played in addition to a prime Cristiano Ronaldo. After being down 2-0, Farfan had fans at the Linc going crazy after he lofted a ball over the head of Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Iker Casillas and scored. Real Madrid still took the win in the exhibition, 2-1, but it was Farfan’s goal that was the talker.

Before she became one of the greatest players to grace a U.S. Women’s National Team uniform, a 20-something, fresh-faced Megan Rapinoe wore the gray, blue and yellow of the Philadelphia Independence in 2011 during the era of the now-defunct league, Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS).

» READ MORE: Megan Rapinoe calling her legendary soccer career quits in 2023

There’s not an American fan out there who won’t give props for the contributions of Clint Dempsey on the soccer pitch for the U.S. men’s national team. He received his due in Philly to the tune of over 68,000 screaming fans at the Linc in 2010. Dempsey scored the game-winner against Turkey in the final game of U.S. Soccer’s Send-Off Series, a collection of exhibition matches ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

The Independence’s run in Philly was brief but it was also dynamic as the squad was spearheaded by the efforts of Amy Rodriguez. How good was “A-Rod” during her two-year stint with the Independence? How about 12 goals in a season — good for third-best in the league at the time in her first season with the club? Or leading the Independence to the WPS championship in the franchise’s second season? It’s safe to say that A-Rod might be one of the best women’s players to represent Philly most people have probably never heard of.

It’s still the Union’s most dominant regular season run to date, as the team captured MLS’s regular season crown behind just a four-loss season (14-5-4, 47 points) that was shortened due to COVID. Not only was it good for a top finish in the League, it would cement the club as a legit problem for opponents. The moment would provide the first exclamation on a run of good fortune for the club, making it as far as the Eastern Conference championship in 2021 and a run to the MLS Cup final last season. The party continues as the Union have clinched a spot in the MLS playoffs for the fifth straight season.

That the [literal] cover boy of this iconic match still resides in Delco is about as Philly as it gets. The Atoms, led by goalkeeper and Ridley native Bob Rigby, won its first title and put soccer at the forefront for a time when it had been an afterthought. It garnered so much attention that Rigby would grace the cover of Sports Illustrated, on arguably one of its more iconic covers to date. The best part about the moment? Philly beat a team from Dallas, 2-0.

» READ MORE: Nearly 50 years later, playing with Pelé is still a ‘dream come true’ for Delco’s Bob Rigby

Former Union CEO and managing partner Nick Sakiewicz said it best recently to The Inquirer: “We just lost our first game [in the club’s inaugural match against Seattle] and we’re headed home and no one really knows how this season was going to go and how good we were going to be. And then Sebastien [Le Toux] goes out and does that. I mean, it was just incredible — that’s when we knew we had something here.”