Photo: Paul Rudderow

On August 25, 1973, the Philadelphia Atoms defeated the Dallas Tornado to win the NASL championship. In doing so, they became the first expansion team in the history of American professional sports to win a national championship in their inaugural year.

PSP is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Atoms’ historic win with a seven-part series of articles looking at the Philly sports scene in 1973, how the Atoms came to be in Philadelphia, the connections the team made with their fans, and the team’s impact on the American soccer scene, as well as articles on their semifinal and championship final victories.

Here is the series in one spot:

• Remembering 1973 and Philadelphia’s summer miracle
• Something better beginning
• The Philadelphia Experiment takes off
• Atoms defeat the Toronto Metros 3-0 in 1973 NASL championship semifinal
• Midnight for Cinderella? The “Atom Bomb” before the 1973 final
• Champions! Atoms defeat Dallas Tornado 2-0 in NASL final
• So what happened next? A Philadelphia Atoms denouement

For more on the Atoms, check out these earlier PSP articles:

• Great Philly soccer teams: Philadelphia Atoms, part 1
• Great Philly soccer teams: Philadelphia Atoms, part 2
• Flashback: Philly and the 1973 NASL playoffs
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