At least it looked that way in the late '70s, as the North American Soccer League (NASL) grew in popularity in North America. Kids all over the continent were playing in youth leagues, while the NASL grew to 24 teams in 1978, a number it maintained until 1981 when interest in the league began to wane.
The sweatshirt is great, but the image on the website needs to be updated. A short sleeved shirt is shown and I think that led to confusion with my initial order.