Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos

Sep 3, 2006

1h 37m

★ 7.1

The untold story of the team that had America at its feet.

Overview

In the 1970s the North American Soccer League marked the first attempt to introduce soccer to American sports fans. While most teams had only limited success at best, one managed to break through to genuine mainstream popularity - the New York Cosmos. The brainchild of Steve Ross (Major executive at Warner Communications) and the Ertegun brothers (Founders of Atlantic Records), the Cosmos got off to a rocky start in 1971, but things changed in 1975 when the world's most celebrated soccer star, the Brazilian champion Pele, signed with the Cosmos for a five-million-dollar payday. With the arrival of Pele, the Cosmos became a hit and the players became the toast of the town, earning their own private table at Studio 54. A number of other international soccer stars were soon lured to the Cosmos, including Franz Beckenbauer, Rodney Marsh, and Carlos Alberto, but with the turn of the decade, the team began losing favor with fans and folded in 1985.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Passion Pictures

Cactus Three

ESPN Original Entertainment

GreeneStreet Films

BBC

Diamond Docs

Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos Trailers

Cast

Self (archive footage)

Pelé

Self

Franz Beckenbauer

Self

Raphael de la Sierra

Self

Phil Woosnam

Self

Jay Emmett

Self

Werner Roth

Self

Peppe Pinton

Self

Giorgio Chinaglia

Self

Shep Messing

Self

Clive Toye

Self (archive footage)

Nesuhi Ertegün

Self

Ahmet Ertegün

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Cast

Self (archive footage)