The Soccer Tournament
| Sport | Association football (7-on-7) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2023 |
| Founder | Jon Mugar Dan Friel |
| Owner(s) | TBT Enterprises, LLC |
| CEO | Jon Mugar |
| Motto | $1 million prize, winner-take-all. |
| No. of teams | 48+8 |
| Countries | United States |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Most recent champion(s) | La Bombonera (2024) |
| Most titles | Newtown Pride FC, La Bombonera, US Women (1 title) |
| TV partner(s) | NBC Sports (2023) ESPN (2024-present) |
| Streaming partner(s) | Peacock, YouTube, Facebook Watch |
| Tournament format | Multi-stage tournament |
| Official website | thetournament |
The Soccer Tournament (TST) is a seven-a-side association football tournament played in the United States, established by TBT Enterprises, creator of The Basketball Tournament (TBT). TST was announced on October 11, 2022 to feature 32 teams with a $1 million winner-take-all prize.[1][2][3] TST is partly owned by Golden State Warriors point guard Chris Paul.[4]
Format[edit]
Matches are played on a reduced-size field with slightly smaller goals than normal and consist of 20-minute halves. The Elam Ending, arguably TBT's most iconic feature, has been adapted to a soccer setting; after the end of the second half, the remainder of the match consists of "Target Score Time", with the target score being set by adding one goal to the leading (or tied) team's score, i.e. if a game is standing at 3–1 after full-time, the target score will be set to 4. The game ends once the target score is reached by either team. If the target is not reached after 5 minutes, one outfield player from each team exits the field until only one is left on each team, with the process repeating every 5 minutes until the winning goal is scored.[5][6]
Additional rule changes compared to regulation football include the prohibition of sliding tackles, the prohibition of punting or drop-kicks by goalkeepers, throw-ins being replaced by indirect free kicks, and the absence of offside.[7]
Teams[edit]
Teams to the tournament usually feature a mix of retired, active, and junior players, as well as a number of sportspeople from other sports: Retired people taking part include Ali Krieger[8] and Sergio Agüero[9], while people from other sports include former American football players J. J. Watt[10], Pat McAfee[10] and Chad Ochocinco Johnson,[11] and former basketball player Steve Nash.[12]
While teams often bear the brand of an existing football team, there is no restriction whether players taking part to ever having had any relationship with the team in question: For example, the team delegated by Wrexham A.F.C. included both current goalkeeper Mark Howard, former player Lee Trundle, and Scottish international George Boyd who had no former relationship with the team.[13] Other teams may be fully amateur, and may bear a fictional or new branding.
The inaugural tournament in 2023 featured both women's and men's, as well as some mixed-gender teams. Starting from 2024, women's teams were featured in a separate tournament.
Tournaments[edit]
| Year | Date | Men's final | Women's final | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winners | Score | Runners-up | No. | Winners | Score | Runners-up | No. | ||
| 2023 | June 1–4 | Newtown Pride FC | 2–0 | SLC FC | 32 | Combined tournament | |||
| 2024 | June 5–10 | La Bombonera | 4–0 | Nani FC | 48 | US Women | 6–3 | North Carolina Courage | 8 |
| 2025 | May 31–June 9 | to be decided | to be decided | ||||||
References[edit]
- ^ "The $1m TST will be full of soccer legends and Hollywood headliners". ESPN.com. May 4, 2023.
- ^ Casey, Tim. "Winner-Takes-All Soccer Tournament For $1 Million Prize Coming To North Carolina In June 2023". Forbes.
- ^ Greenberg, Doug (October 11, 2022). "TBT Enterprises Launches $1M Soccer Tournament". Front Office Sports.
- ^ "Is TST the Future of Soccer?". Connect Meetings. October 18, 2022.
- ^ Bonagura, Kyle (October 11, 2022). "The Basketball Tournament organizers announce $1m winner-take-all soccer event". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
- ^ Bonagura, Kyle (June 4, 2023). "Wrexham and World Cup legends bring star-studded teams to new winner-take-all soccer tournament". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
- ^ "Tournament Rules". TBT and TST. Archived from the original on 2023-06-10.
- ^ Hruby, Emma (April 5, 2024). "Ali Krieger to pause retirement, play in The Soccer Tournament". Just Women's Sports.
- ^ "Agüero to play in million-dollar TST this summer". ESPN.com. April 5, 2024.
- ^ a b Neikirk, Todd (June 5, 2024). "J.J. Watt, Pat McAfee, and More Participate in 7v7 Soccer Tournament". GiveMeSport.
- ^ Thomas, Hannah (June 1, 2023). "'It's been a blast having him here': Nati S.C. players talk having former Bengal great Ochocinco on squad". WLWT.
- ^ Maggi, Alessandro (May 30, 2023). "Steve Nash to Play for Italian Club Como 1907 in The Soccer Tournament (TST)". Sportando.
- ^ "Wrexham legends reunite ahead of The Soccer Tournament in America". The Leader. May 31, 2023.