Houston Stars

The Houston Stars, based in Houston, Texas, played two seasons at the Astrodome, 1967 and 1968. The owner was Roy Hofheinz, a former Houston mayor who also owned the city's baseball club and drove the building of the dome. The 1967 Stars were not a local team. They were a Brazilian club from Rio de Janeiro, the reigning state champions, brought over for the summer by the United Soccer Association, which had not signed any players of its own.

The Stars opened on May 27, 1967, with a 1-1 draw against a Los Angeles side, in front of 34,965 people. They finished 4-4-4, fourth in the Western Division, and missed the final. Paulo Borges led the team with 6 goals, and Martim Francisco coached. The Stars averaged more than 19,000 a game over six home dates, the best in the league. A Brazilian account says the players flew home to Rio in cowboy hats, with complaints about the food and the artificial turf.

The United Soccer Association then merged with the National Professional Soccer League to form North America's top pro soccer league, and for 1968 the Stars needed a new team. Hungarian coach Geza Henni assembled one from Yugoslavia, Denmark, Greece, Hungary, Mexico and Bermuda. Jerry Mueller was the only American-born player on the opening day roster. The Stars went 14-12-6 and finished second in the Gulf Division, which was not enough for the playoffs. Attendance fell to about 3,246 a game. The last game was a 2-2 draw with Vancouver on September 7, 1968, and the club folded after the season. The sources do not say why.