Brooklyn native and National Soccer Hall of Famer Lloyd Monsen dies at 94

Brooklyn native and National Soccer Hall of Famer Lloyd Monsen died Feb. 4. He was 94.

Monsen attended Fort Hamilton High School, was a two-time Olympian and played in the American Soccer League (ASL) in the 1950s.

“A member of the U.S. Olympic team in 1952 (Helsinki) and 1956 (Melbourne), Monsen played five full internationals for the U.S. between 1952 and 1957,” stated the National Soccer Hall of Fame in a statement. “He signed with the New York Americans in 1949 when he was still in high school and played briefly in Germany with Hoechst S.C. while he was serving with the Army in 1952 and 1953.”

Monsen was also the captain of the American team that won the ASL championship and the U.S. Open Cup in 1954. 

The National Soccer Hall of Fame stated the team merged with the Brooklyn Hakoah in 1956 to form the New York Hakoah-Americans and won league titles in 1957, 1958 and 1959.

Monsen played with the Brooklyn German-Hungarians of the German American Soccer League before ending his career with Swedish FC of the National Soccer League of New York.

Monsen was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994.

Before his Hall of Fame career, Monsen played with Gjøa Juniors. The sporting club is a Brooklyn-based program started by Norwegian immigrants in 1911 and is the oldest soccer club in New York.