NEW YORK (AP) — A new group has acquired the name of the old Cosmos soccer team of the North American Soccer League and made Pele its honorary president.
The Cosmos said Sunday they have acquired the Copa NYC tournament and said their goal is to re-establish the team as “a part of Major League Soccer.”
The Cosmos had Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto in their most popular years but folded in 1985, a year after the NASL.
MLS commissioner Don Garber said a goal of his league is to have a second team in the New York area to form a rivalry with the Red Bulls, who play in New Jersey. Garber has held talks with the Wilpon family, owner of baseball’s New York Mets.
