Bill Bertani

American soccer player

William Joseph Bertani (September 8, 1919 – December 12, 1988 in Fulton, Missouri) was an American soccer player who was a member of the 1948 U.S. Olympic soccer team.^[1] He also earned two caps with the U.S. national team that year.

Club career

Bertani spent his playing career in St. Louis, Missouri. He was with the St. Louis Raiders during the 1947–1948 season.^[2] In 1948, he joined St. Louis Simpkins-Ford and was a member of the Simpkins team which won both the 1948 and 1950 National Challenge Cup.^[3] He was the second leading scorer with seven goals during the 1947–1948 St. Louis Major League season.^[4]

Bertani was inducted into the St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame in 1975.^[5]

National and Olympic teams

In 1948, Bertani was selected for the U.S. soccer team at the Summer Olympics. Bertani played in the 9–0 loss to Italy in the first round of the Olympics, which eliminated the U.S. from the tournament.^[6]

Following the Olympics, the U.S. played two full internationals, an 11–0 loss to Norway, followed by a 5–0 loss to Northern Ireland on August 11, 1948.^[7]

References

^ "Bill Bertani". Olympedia. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
^ Genealogy: Soccer career of Robert C. Corbett Archived October 8, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
^ "History of Soccer in St. Louis". Archived from the original on November 2, 2009. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
^ "The Year in American Soccer – 1948". Archived from the original on March 3, 2009. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
^ "St. Louis Soccer HOF: Hall of Fame Members". Archived from the original on July 8, 2012. Retrieved October 11, 2007.
^ Football Tournament 1948 Olympiad
^ USA – Details of International Matches 1885–1969 Archived January 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine