Seattle, San Jose Earthquakes and Victoria Riptides—created the Western Alliance Challenge Series in the summer of 1985.
[1] They did so in order to fill the outdoor soccer void created by the failure of the NASL and USL.
Despite the low key nature of the teams and the loose "alliance" versus "league", the WSA would go on to attract some of the top American players of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
One of the more distinctive features of this series was the inclusion of games against outside teams, which counted in the final rankings.
While only 2,906 fans attended this first game, the series gained significant positive attention in the U.S. soccer press.
First they maintained a loose organization, using the name alliance in order to stress the semi-pro nature of the WSA.
Despite the good early intentions, the WSA would in many ways mimic the rise and fall of the NASL.
The success of the 1985 challenge series led the four teams into discussions regarding the establishment of something more than the ad hoc tournament of the first year.
Portland, F. C. Seattle and the San Jose Earthquakes voted to create the Western Soccer Alliance and elected San Jose Earthquakes president, Peter Bridgwater, as the league's first commissioner.
Several other independent west coast teams which wanted to play beyond their local leagues also requested to join the new alliance.
These included the Hollywood Kickers, Los Angeles Heat and San Diego Nomads.
Each team played 16 games and the champion was crowned based on end of year standings.
When the Western Soccer Alliance began its 1986 season, it was the lone U.S. "professional" outdoor league.
Some of these players also played in the MISL or AISA during the winter so they could accept smaller salaries in the summer.
[4] The WSL also added three new teams, Real Santa Barbara, Arizona Condors and Sacramento Senators.
The North Division comprised the San Francisco Bay Blackhawks, Portland Timbers, Seattle Storm and newly added Sacramento Senators.
The South Division had the San Diego Nomads, Los Angeles Heat, California Kickers and two new teams, Real Santa Barbara and the Arizona Condors.
As the league began its 1989 season, things appeared to be going well, but the seeds of the WSL's eventual collapse had now been sown.
One of the factors pushing the WSL in this direction was the creation of the third version of the American Soccer League on the east coast.
Another was the announcement in July 1988 that USSF intended to create a national, first division league in the United States to fulfill a FIFA requirement for the award of the 1994 FIFA World Cup to the United States.
Just over a minute later, national team forward Eric Eichmann scored for Fort Lauderdale.