Place of birth Yugoslavia Years Team Name Werner Roth | Playing position 1972–1979 New York Cosmos | |
Date of birth (1948-04-04) April 4, 1948 (age 67) 1966–1972 New York German-Hungarians | ||
Werner Roth (born April 4, 1948) is a retired American professional football defender.
Contents
Mainly associated with the New York Cosmos, he also represented the United States men's national soccer team for three years. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Football career
Born in Yugoslavia, Roth emigrated to the United States at age eight, going on to become a rising star in American soccer through the 1960s. He attended Brooklyn Technical High School, playing on the varsity squad from 1962 to 1966, and captaining the team in his senior year.
Additionally, he studied architecture at the Pratt Institute, and played for the German-Hungarians in the German American Soccer League.
One of the few Americans on a star-studded New York Cosmos side (i.e. Pele, Franz Beckenbauer), Roth played with the club seven years, and helped it to the Soccer Bowl title in 1977. He also appeared 15 times for his adopted country's national team, in the 1970s.
Movie career / Personal
Roth played German soccer team captain Baumann in the 1981 movie Victory (titled Escape to Victory in Europe), which also featured former Cosmos teammate Pele, as well as Sylvester Stallone and Michael Caine. He was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1989.
In 2005, having been living in Brooklyn and Long Island for decades, Roth became engaged to soap opera actress Robin Mattson. The couple were married in June 2006.