Frank Borghi: The Keeper Who Held Off England
I’m a USMNT fan. In fact, I’d say I’m more of a USMNT fan than I am of any club team I follow, which helps when I’m writing about grassroots soccer for sure. I’m not a big fan of any specific club, so I cover them all. But one of my favorite things to do is to dip into USMNT history, which is mostly ignored, aside from a few big names. Especially when you move back further than 1990. The timeline is sparse and the names are mostly just names, without much background or context.
So allow me to give you some context on a player from the past, a goalkeeper by the name of Frank Borghi. If you want the short version of the story, Borghi was the keeper for the 1950 USMNT World Cup team, the team that famously beat England in the group stage. He was the man in the pipes in Brazil, sealing the victory for the team. Because of that win, Frank and the rest of the 1950 team were inducted into the National Hall of Fame in 1976. And if that’s all you knew, at least you knew something about that 1950 team. But there’s so much more to Frank Borghi.
Borghi was born in St. Louis on April 9, 1925. He grew up in a neighborhood in St. Louis called The Hill, a predominantly Italian part of the city, known for, as one tourism website puts it, “world-class athletes and Italian cuisine.” Famous baseball players of the 1950’s, Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola, were both from the area and much like those greats, Borghi originally wanted to play baseball.
He was good at baseball, really good. Good enough to play for the St. Louis Cardinals’ Double A team at third base. He only played soccer in the off season to stay in shape, because his real ambition was to play baseball professionally. He told the story in one interview that a scout had showed up to his mother’s doorstep to recruit him and she ran him out, yelling that her son would stay home with her forever.
Of course, in 1941, with World War II in full swing, many sons went off to war, Borghi among them. He would serve as a decorated medic in the war. He earned a bronze star and a purple heart for his service. There is a story that during his service, he actually treated Baseball Hall of Famer and eventual St. Louis Cardinals’ radio man, Jack Buck. Stranger things have happened.
When Frank returned home, he decided to play soccer full time, but made an important decision due to his own limitations. “I've got big hands and I was able to catch the soccer ball. Over the years, I never developed the kicking skills for playing soccer, so I had to play goalie.” According to David Lange, the coach was well aware of his limitations, as well as his strengths. “Borghi was a field player in his early soccer career, ‘but I had no ball skills or passing ability,’he said in the 2009 interview. When his team’s regular goalkeeper wasn’t available, Borghi asked his coach, Joe Numi, if he could play in goal. ‘I knew I could catch a ball and throw it 50 yards,’ Borghi said. ‘Joe says, ‘Yeah, go ahead.’ It worked out really good for me.’”
Borghi played in the powerhouse years of St. Louis soccer, with a club that would win two National Champion Cups, St. Louis Simpkins-Ford. Borghi was in goal for both Cups, in 1948 and 1950. The club won three Khoury League championships during the seven years Frank played with Simpkins. Borghi’s quality in the net would earn him a chance to play for the USMNT in their qualifying for the 1950 World Cup.
During the 1949 qualifying tournament between fellow North American teams, Mexico and Cuba, Borghi would be the keeper during the all important match up for second place against Cuba. The match was played in Mexico in front of 60,000 on September 21. The United States won handily, 6-2, qualifying for the World Cup.
In the World Cup, the Americans were drawn into a group that featured England, Spain, and Chile. In the first match, against Spain, the USMNT scored first, but surrendered 3 goals in the last 12 minutes to lose 3-1. How that would have affected Borghi heading into the next match against England, it’s hard to say, though he did joke that he hoped to not give up five prior to the match.
The English came out firing, prepared to put the upstarts in their place quickly. In the first 15 minutes of the half, Borghie would face six shots, with two going off the posts. But, in the 37th minute, Joe Gaetjens would head the ball into the corner to give the USMNT a lead that Borghie would have to make good on. When the shot went in, he knew the English would be even more aggressive and is quoted as saying, “Oh my God, the roof is going to cave in.”
David Lange’s excellent article, written at the death of the keeper in 2015, describes the biggest moment of the 1950 World Cup showdown. “Perhaps Borghi’s biggest save came on a free kick just outside the U.S. penalty area late in the game. St. Louis center back Charlie Colombo tackled Stanley Mortensen from behind just outside the top of the penalty area... England’s Jimmy Mullen headed the free kick on the bounce past Borghi, but Borghi somehow reached behind and knocked the ball away. The British claimed they had scored, but the referee ruled the ball had not crossed the line entirely before Borghi reached it.”
Joe Gaetjens, the game’s lone scorer, being carried off the field.
When the match ended, with the US triumphant 1-0, Borghi and Gaetjens were carried off the field on the Brazilian fans’ shoulders. Brazil saw England as a potential rival and desperately wanted them to lose. When the USMNT delivered, they were instant heroes. Three days later, they would lose to Chile 5-2 and finish last in Group 2. While Borghi would continue to play club ball, his time with the national team was done.
After his World Cup time, Frank Borghi continued to live in St. Louis with his wife Rosemary, having seven children. After the end of his playing days, he ran a funeral parlor. In an interview in the St. Louis Dispatch, he was asked if he was a soccer legend. His response showed his character, that of a hard working man who used his talents of the best of his abilities.”I don't know about that. Let's just say I was very fortunate to have played with some outstanding players. They were my friends.”
Frank Borghi’s hand (image credit St. Louis Dispatch)
