Game changer: ‘Footwork’ exhibit tells Atlanta’s soccer story
Six decades ago, few people in Atlanta were fans of soccer.
Tell that to the cheering Emory fans during the university’s historic 2025 soccer season, when both the women’s and men’s teams made it to the NCAA Division III Final Four. The women’s team advanced to the championship match to finish with the national runner-up trophy, while the men’s team narrowly missed victory in their semifinal match.
Emory Eagles soccer fans now have plenty of company in Atlanta.
The city is home to dozens of youth leagues and Atlanta United, the city’s fiercely beloved Major League Soccer team. It’s one of 11 U.S. cities slated to host the FIFA World Cup 2026 games, with eight matches set for Mercedes-Benz Stadium, beginning June 15.
A new exhibit at the Robert W. Woodruff Library’s Schatten Gallery tells how the 1967 launch of the city’s first major league soccer team, the Atlanta Chiefs, and the long soccer history at Emory, helped pave the way for these achievements and others. “Footwork: Celebrating Soccer, Culture and Community,” on view through July 19, also highlights the sport’s unique place in popular culture and fashion around the globe.
“Soccer is a game that literally connects the world. Its story in Atlanta is one of epic transformation,” says Randy Gue, assistant director of collection development at the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives and Rare Book Library. Gue is also curator of political, cultural and social movements at the Rose Library.
Gue curated “Footwork” with Melissa Carnegie, the founder of Kicks & Fros, a lifestyle brand for Black and brown women in the sneaker community.
“Soccer has grown into much more than this beautiful game loved by so many,” says Carnegie. “It’s also about fashion lovers wearing jerseys and cleats that evolve, over time, into sneakers that people purchase and collect.”
“Footwork” visitors can peruse soccer jerseys and shoes from many continents, and trace the history of Adidas’ iconic “Samba” sneaker. The free exhibit also includes photographs, memorabilia, programs and other materials from the Atlanta Chiefs’ early days, as well as photos and other items celebrating Atlanta United and Emory soccer.
Presented by Emory Libraries, the Michael C. Carlos Museum and the Emory Center for Digital Scholarship, “Footwork” is part of a larger initiative highlighting soccer through events at Woodruff Library, the Carlos Museum and Emory’s Oxford campus.
It originated with a concept developed by Clinton Fluker, senior director of culture, community, and partner engagement at Emory Libraries; and Valeda Dent, vice provost of libraries, the Carlos Museum and Center for Digital Scholarship.
"The events and exhibits really have something for everyone," says Lisa Macklin, associate vice provost and university librarian, adding, “It’s great to see the historic Rose Library collections featuring Atlanta Chiefs soccer along with items celebrating soccer at Emory and the upcoming 2026 World Cup."
‘Footwork’ exhibits
Through July 19
Footwork: Celebrating Soccer, Culture and Community
Robert W. Woodruff Library, Schatten Gallery (third floor)
This exhibit looks at soccer as a global phenomenon and local gamechanger, with photos commemorating Atlanta United and Emory soccer. Other memorabilia and photos tell the story of how Atlanta’s first major league soccer team launched Atlanta to the international stage. Also on view are items examining the game’s place in fashion and culture, including the evolution of the modern soccer sneaker.
Through July 19
Footwork: Where We Gather
Michael C. Carlos Museum, Works on Paper Gallery
This exhibit, which is open to the public with admission to the museum, displays traditional sports photography of Walter Iooss and a new series by Sheila Pree Bright featuring photographs of sports fans.
March 18 - July 31
Footwork Firsts
Oxford College Campus, Oxford Library, Second Floor Gallery
This exhibit will spotlight Oxford College’s pioneering moments in its soccer program and diversity, including the stories of Oxford’s first African American athletes and the early women’s soccer program. Soccer-related student photography will also be on view. This exhibit is free and open to the public.
Six decades ago, few people in Atlanta were fans of soccer.
Tell that to the cheering Emory fans during the university’s historic 2025 soccer season, when both the women’s and men’s teams made it to the NCAA Division III Final Four. The women’s team advanced to the championship match to finish with the national runner-up trophy, while the men’s team narrowly missed victory in their semifinal match.
Emory Eagles soccer fans now have plenty of company in Atlanta.
The city is home to dozens of youth leagues and Atlanta United, the city’s fiercely beloved Major League Soccer team. It’s one of 11 U.S. cities slated to host the FIFA World Cup 2026 games, with eight matches set for Mercedes-Benz Stadium, beginning June 15.
A new exhibit at the Robert W. Woodruff Library’s Schatten Gallery tells how the 1967 launch of the city’s first major league soccer team, the Atlanta Chiefs, and the long soccer history at Emory, helped pave the way for these achievements and others. “Footwork: Celebrating Soccer, Culture and Community,” on view through July 19, also highlights the sport’s unique place in popular culture and fashion around the globe.
“Soccer is a game that literally connects the world. Its story in Atlanta is one of epic transformation,” says Randy Gue, assistant director of collection development at the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives and Rare Book Library. Gue is also curator of political, cultural and social movements at the Rose Library.
Gue curated “Footwork” with Melissa Carnegie, the founder of Kicks & Fros, a lifestyle brand for Black and brown women in the sneaker community.
“Soccer has grown into much more than this beautiful game loved by so many,” says Carnegie. “It’s also about fashion lovers wearing jerseys and cleats that evolve, over time, into sneakers that people purchase and collect.”
“Footwork” visitors can peruse soccer jerseys and shoes from many continents, and trace the history of Adidas’ iconic “Samba” sneaker. The free exhibit also includes photographs, memorabilia, programs and other materials from the Atlanta Chiefs’ early days, as well as photos and other items celebrating Atlanta United and Emory soccer.
Presented by Emory Libraries, the Michael C. Carlos Museum and the Emory Center for Digital Scholarship, “Footwork” is part of a larger initiative highlighting soccer through events at Woodruff Library, the Carlos Museum and Emory’s Oxford campus.
It originated with a concept developed by Clinton Fluker, senior director of culture, community, and partner engagement at Emory Libraries; and Valeda Dent, vice provost of libraries, the Carlos Museum and Center for Digital Scholarship.
"The events and exhibits really have something for everyone," says Lisa Macklin, associate vice provost and university librarian, adding, “It’s great to see the historic Rose Library collections featuring Atlanta Chiefs soccer along with items celebrating soccer at Emory and the upcoming 2026 World Cup."
Emory Eagles soccer photos and items representing the game’s worldwide appeal adorn the Schatten Gallery rotunda.
Emory Eagles soccer photos and items representing the game’s worldwide appeal adorn the Schatten Gallery rotunda.
A visitor learns about the evolution of the Adidas Samba soccer shoe.
A visitor learns about the evolution of the Adidas Samba soccer shoe.
The story of soccer's transformative impact on Atlanta comes alive in "Footwork."
The story of soccer's transformative impact on Atlanta comes alive in "Footwork."
An unfamiliar sport comes to town
When television broadcast the final matches of the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 1966, Richard Cecil saw an opportunity for Atlanta.
The city had recently gained its first major league teams — the Braves in baseball and the Falcons in football. Cecil was a Braves’ executive.
“He saw thousands of cheering fans packing eight stadiums across England for the World Cup,” says Gue, “and a chance to introduce a brand-new sport.”
Soccer was, in large part, fairly novel to the South.
As the Atlanta Chiefs launched with Cecil as vice president, “they not only had to introduce this new soccer team; they had to introduce the sport,” Gue says.
The Chiefs held their first practice at Emory in 1967. “The players, extremely small compared to American football players,” wrote an Atlanta Journal reporter, “showed amazing quickness and dexterity with their feet.”
The Chiefs held their first practice at Emory in 1967. “The players, extremely small compared to American football players,” wrote an Atlanta Journal reporter, “showed amazing quickness and dexterity with their feet.”
“Footwork” draws from Cecil’s papers, housed in the Rose Library, to tell this story.
“The Chiefs estimated there were fewer than 125 people in the metro Atlanta area who played soccer in 1966, before they arrived,” Gue says.
In a city of soccer greenhorns, Emory was a pioneer. The university was one of the earliest in the South to have a soccer team, starting in 1959. When the Chiefs launched, the university hosted tryouts and early practices.
The Chiefs began a promotional onslaught about the sport, including a bumper sticker emblazoned with the team logo and the words “Think Soccer.” A pamphlet explained the basics to potential new fans.
The Atlanta Chiefs created a pamphlet to explain game play to potential new fans and school coaches.
The Atlanta Chiefs created a pamphlet to explain game play to potential new fans and school coaches.
Cultivating new players and an international city
Like other U.S. soccer teams, the Chiefs recruited from abroad.
But unlike many American teams who recruited only from Europe, the Chiefs also brought in players from African and Caribbean countries. “That doesn’t seem like a big deal today,” Gue notes. “But in the Jim Crow South, in 1967, that was a really big deal.”
Players didn’t stick to the stadium. They were required to teach soccer clinics to Atlanta youth.
“They would go out in the community, introducing the sport to a region with no history or knowledge of it,” says Gue.
In a single year, he adds, DeKalb County schools went from having zero soccer players to “more boys playing soccer than were playing American football.”
International players’ efforts on the pitch and in neighborhoods marked the start of Atlanta’s global era.
“If you told anyone in 1968 that Atlanta would host the Summer Olympics in a few decades, nobody would believe you,” Gue says. “But the Chiefs pointed the way to our future, with these international players coming specifically to Atlanta to play.”
And playing to win.
In 1968, the Chiefs won the North American Soccer League championship. It was Atlanta’s first sports title — long before the Braves won the World Series in 1995, Gue notes.
It would be 50 years before Atlanta United scored its own Major League Soccer Cup win in 2018.
A player's 1967 visa application lists the job's requirements, which include playing professional soccer and promoting and coaching the sport in the community.
A player's 1967 visa application lists the job's requirements, which include playing professional soccer and promoting and coaching the sport in the community.
Atlanta soccer on the world stage
During the season when the Chiefs won their North American championship, English superstar team Manchester City challenged them to a match. Atlanta won.
“This did not sit well with the champions of England,” Gue says, “that these newcomers from the American South defeated them.”
Manchester City challenged the Chiefs to a second match two weeks later, which Atlanta also won.
It was as if a bunch of Brits had come to the U.S. to play American football, and then beat the team that won the Super Bowl, Chiefs’ captain Ray Bloomfield told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
It’s a favorite story of Will Cecil, Richard Cecil’s son and academic advisor in Emory’s Department of French and Italian.
“I mean, a lot of people don’t even know the Chiefs existed, much less brought Atlanta its first professional title in sports,” Cecil says.
He especially loves recounting the Chiefs’ victory over Manchester City to his European friends, “because it kind of blows their minds.”
It’s “surreal” to walk through the “Footwork” exhibit and see people marveling over items that sat in boxes or hung on the walls of his father’s office for years, Cecil says.
“I'm so happy it’s all out where people can look at it and appreciate it and learn about Atlanta soccer history,” he says. “I think that’s really important. And I know my father was super proud of it. So I’m really proud to see it out in the public and at Emory.”
A flyer advertising the Atlanta Chiefs' first game against Manchester United reads, in part, "It will be the first match in history pitting a professional American [s]occer team against international competition."
A flyer advertising the Atlanta Chiefs' first game against Manchester United reads, in part, "It will be the first match in history pitting a professional American [s]occer team against international competition."
"Sports world in frenzy as Atlanta beats Manchester City" reads the headline of a story in a May 29, 1968 issue of Telesport, a weekly soccer newspaper.
"Sports world in frenzy as Atlanta beats Manchester City" reads the headline of a story in a May 29, 1968 issue of Telesport, a weekly soccer newspaper.
'Footwork' exhibits
Feb. 19 - July 19
Footwork: Celebrating Soccer, Culture and Community
Robert W. Woodruff Library, Schatten Gallery (third floor)
This exhibit looks at soccer as a global phenomenon and local gamechanger, with photos commemorating Atlanta United and Emory soccer. Other memorabilia and photos tell the story of how Atlanta’s first major league soccer team launched Atlanta to the international stage. Also on view are items examining the game’s place in fashion and culture, including the evolution of the modern soccer sneaker.
Feb. 26 - July 19
Footwork: Where We Gather
Michael C. Carlos Museum, Works on Paper Gallery
This exhibit, which is open to the public with admission to the museum, displays traditional sports photography of Walter Iooss and a new series by Sheila Pree Bright featuring photographs of sports fans.
March 18 - July 31
Footwork Firsts
Oxford College Campus, Oxford Library, Second Floor Gallery
This exhibit will spotlight Oxford College’s pioneering moments in its soccer program and diversity, including the stories of Oxford’s first African American athletes and the early women’s soccer program. Soccer-related student photography will also be on view. This exhibit is free and open to the public.
To learn more about Emory, please visit:
Emory News Center
Emory University
About this story: Writing and design by Kate Sweeney. Title mural by Charly Palmer and Emory University students. Image courtesy of Charly Palmer. Exhibit photos by Sarah Woods, Emory Photo/Video. Atlanta United photo courtesy of Atlanta United. Additional photos by Kate Sweeney.
Built with Shorthand