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Eddie Pearson
Award - 1990
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As an amateur soccer player in
Colorado during the late 1960's he became acutely aware of the
many early organizational problems in soccer, especially
weaknesses in communication between the different segments of
the game at the state level.
A litigation partner
with the large Denver firm of Davis Graham and Stubbs it was no
surprise that his first administrative involvement with soccer
came in his role as legal advisor to the Colorado State Soccer
Association. He was elected secretary of his home association
in 1970 he rose up through the ranks and became vice president
of the United States Soccer Football Association for a two year
period from 1975 to 1977. He resigned his national level
appointment when his law firm transferred him to Washington DC
in the late 1970s.
During his years as
Colorado State secretary, Phillipson completely revised the
structure and operation of the State governing
body. Communication with the State's teams and players was
vastly improved and the Association's rules were distributed in
both English and Spanish. His impact on the national level was
immediate and profound, particularly in the area of
communications. As Chairman of the Referee Committee he was a
major force in the formation of the National Referee Development
Program as we know it today.
Inducted into the
National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1987. |
