The Kicks quickly became one of the league's more popular teams, with an average attendance of 23,120 fans per game in 1976.

In 1979, the Kicks signed a major international star in defender Björn Nordqvist, Sweden's all-time caps leader.

Ron Futcher, who along with Willey played all six Kicks seasons, went on to become the league's fourth all-time leading scorer.

[citation needed] The team reached the playoffs each of its six seasons, but usually lost in the early rounds.

The Minnesota Kicks are remembered for the tailgating in the Metropolitan Stadium parking lot.

It became a cultural phenomenon in the late 1970s, with thousands of fans arriving early to socialize and consume beverages.

The team's last regular-season game was August 19, 1981, a 2–1 home win at Met Stadium over the Dallas Tornado.

The team's last game at the Met was August 26, 1981, a 1–0 shootout playoff victory against the Tulsa Roughnecks.

The team's last game was played on September 6, 1981, a 3–0 home playoff loss to the Fort Lauderdale Strikers played at the University of Minnesota's Memorial Stadium due to a schedule conflict with the Minnesota Twins in front of only 10,722 fans.

[6] By the end of the 1981 season, the Kicks were up for sale, the team missed a payment for its players and office staff, NASL Commissioner Phil Woosnam was trying to find a buyer for the club, and the NASL announced it would play the 1981–82 indoor season without Minnesota.

The NASL conducted a dispersal draft on December 7, 1981, in which five Kicks players were selected: Ace Ntsoelengoe by Toronto, Ron Futcher by Portland, Tino Lettieri by Vancouver, David Stride by Fort Lauderdale, Randy Phillips by Tulsa, and Tim Twellman by Tulsa.

[2] 1976 Alan Willey, Ace Ntsoelengoe, Peter Brine, Alan Merrick (Captain), Ron Webster, Mike Flater, Chaka Ngcobo, Geoff Barnett, Sam Bick, Ron Futcher, Alan West, Doug Brooks, Smith Eggleston, Nick Owcharuk, Ade Coker, Tom Howe, Jeff Solem, Steve Litt, Frank Spraggon, Peter Short.

1979 Willie Morgan, Gary Vogel, Tony Want, Alan Merrick, Ace Ntsoelengoe, Alan West, Chico Hamilton, Volkmar Gross, Mark Moran, Geoff Barnett, Bjorn Nordqvist (Captain), Alan Willey, Tino Lettieri, Ricardo Alonso, Steve Litt, Greg Villa, Brian Zins, Ron Futcher, Mike McLenaghan, Tim Twellman.

Frank Buetel was the original play-by-play announcer (1976–79), followed by Al Shaver in 1980 and Doug McLeod in 1981.