| Club: | Fort Lauderdale Strikers |
| Season: | 1980 |
| Manager: |  Cor van der Hart |
| Owner: |  Elizabeth Robbie |
| Chairman: |  Bob Lemieux[1] (fired Oct. 14) Tim Robbie |
| Chrtitle: | General manager |
| Stadium: | Lockhart Stadium |
| League: | NASL |
| League Result: | Division:Second Place NASL Championship: Finalist |
| League Topscorer: |  Teófilo Cubillas Gerd Müller (14 goals) |
| Season Topscorer: | Teófilo Cubillas (18 goals) |
| Average Attendance: | 14,360 |
| American: | True |
| Pattern La1: | _red_hoops |
| Pattern B1: | _Fort12Home |
| Pattern Ra1: | _red_hoops |
| Pattern Sh1: | _udeg1718h |
| Pattern So1: | _redstripe |
| Leftarm1: | FFCC00 |
| Body1: | FFCC00 |
| Rightarm1: | FFCC00 |
| Shorts1: | 000000 |
| Socks1: | 000000 |
| Pattern La2: | _redborder |
| Pattern B2: | _horizontalonwhite |
| Pattern Ra2: | _redborder |
| Pattern Sh2: | _redbottom |
| Pattern So2: | _redstripe |
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| Prevseason: | 1979–80 Strikers (indoor) |
| Nextseason: | 1980–81 Strikers (indoor) |
The 1980 Fort Lauderdale Strikers season was the fourth season of the Fort Lauderdale Striker's team, and the club's fourteenth season in professional soccer. This year the team made it to the finals of North American Soccer League by reaching the Soccer Bowl. They were this year's Runners-up.
Fort Lauderdale finished their preseason exhibition schedule with one victory over an NCAA Division II squad, and two draws versus Peruvian First Division teams, three losses against NASL clubs and one loss to an NCAA Division II team.[2] [3] In April after the NASL season had begun, the Strikers easily handled the Miami Hurricanes and the junior side, Calry Bohemian FC, of Sligo, Ireland.[4] [5] They later fell to visiting Sunderland A.F.C. in a midseason friendly in May.
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2, 1980 | FIU Sunblazers | FIU South Campus | 2–3 | ???, ??? | ||
| March 9, 1980 | Miami Dade North Falcons | Dade North Stadium | 8–0 | Müller (3), Bonvallet (3), Cubillas, Cacciatore | ||
| March 12, 1980 | Detroit Express | Leonard High School | 0–1 | |||
| March 16, 1980 | Detroit Express | Bryant Stadium | 1–2(SO) | Nico Bodonczy | ||
| March 19, 1980 | Minnesota Kicks | Coral Springs High School | 0–1 | |||
| March 21, 1980 | Atlanta Chiefs | Lockhart Stadium | – | – | MATCH CANCELED | |
| March 22, 1980 | Alianza Lima | Estadio Alianza | 1–1 | 35,000 | David Irving | |
| March 24, 1980 | Club Universitario | Estadio Alianza | 1–1 | 35,000 | Gerd Müller | |
| April 14, 1980 | Miami Hurricanes | Mark Light Stadium | 6–1 | David Irving | ||
| April 16, 1980 | Calry Bohemian FC | Strikers practice facility | 8–0 | David Irving (3), Nico Bodonczy (2), Mike Ortiz-Velez (2) | ||
| May 14, 1980 | Sunderland A.F.C. | Lockhart Stadium | 1–2 | 4,649[6] | Ray Hudson (pk) |
PlayoffsIn 1979 and 1980, if a playoff series was tied at one victory each, a full 30 minute mini-game was played. If neither team held an advantage after the 30 minutes, the teams would then move on to a shoot-out to determine a series winner.[7]
| width=180 | Lower seed | width=5 | width=180 | Higher seed | width=80 | Game 1 | width=80 | Game 2 | width=100 | Mini-game | width=260 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California Surf | - | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 (SO, 2–3) | August 28 • Anaheim Stadium • 2,929 August 31 • Lockhart Stadium • 15,282 |
| width=180 | Lower seed | width=5 | width=180 | Higher seed | width=80 | Game 1 | width=80 | Game 2 | width=100 | Mini-game | width=260 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edmonton Drillers | - | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 0–1 | 3–2 (SO, 2–1) | 0 - 3 | September 3 • Commonwealth Stadium • 18,029 September 6 • Lockhart Stadium • 17,380 |
| width=180 | Lower seed | width=5 | width=180 | Higher seed | width=80 | Game 1 | width=80 | Game 2 | width=100 | Mini-game | width=260 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Sockers | - | Fort Lauderdale Strikers | 1–2 | 4–2 | 0–3 | September 11 • San Diego Stadium • 27,635 September 13 • Lockhart Stadium • 18,420 |