ABSTRACT
This essay traces the evolution and influence of Cooper’s Block, a previously unknown Kearny, New Jersey soccer neighbourhood. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, The Block, a tiny soccer-loving hamlet on the banks of the Passaic River, played a pivotal role in nurturing, supporting and growing the game. British immigrants lived, worked and played in what came to be called ‘the cradle of American soccer’ and, in the process, continued to weave soccer into the fabric of everyday life. Soccer was not on the margins of American sporting space in places like Kearny as the intersection of immigration, labour and leisure established the game in certain urban neighbourhoods. Boys played on sandlots and for junior teams; men competed on weekends in a variety of leagues (amateur, semi-pro and professional) for a plethora of teams; and some players who grew up there went on to represent the United States on foreign tours and in World Cups. Cooper’s Block was both a founding and foundational American soccer neighbourhood.
