Erich Geyer

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Erich Geyer

| fullname =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1950|11|7}}

| birth_place = Adelsdorf, West Germany

| height = {{height|ft=6|in=0}}

| position = Forward, defender

| youthyears1 =

| youthclubs1 = Adelsdorf

| youthyears2 =

| youthclubs2 = Büchenbach

| youthyears3 =

| youthclubs3 = ASV Herzogenaurach

| years1 = 1973–1975

| clubs1 = TSV Höchstadt

| caps1 =

| goals1 =

| years2 = 1975–1976

| clubs2 = 1. FC Bamberg

| caps2 =

| goals2 =

| years3 = 1976–1980

| clubs3 = SpVgg Fürth

| caps3 = 96

| goals3 = 11

| years4 = 1980–1981

| clubs4 = Hartford Hellions (indoor)

| caps4 = 10

| goals4 = 0

| years5 = 1981–1984

| clubs5 = San Diego Sockers

| caps5 = 57

| goals5 = 6

| years6 = 1982–1983

| clubs6 = San Diego Sockers (MISL)

| caps6 = 39

| goals6 = 10

| years7 = 1983–1984

| clubs7 = San Diego Sockers (NASL indoor)

| caps7 = 23

| goals7 = 8

| years8 = 1984–1985

| clubs8 = Chicago Sting (indoor)

| caps8 = 17

| goals8 = 2

| years9 = 1985

| clubs9 = San Diego Sockers (MISL)

| caps9 = 8

| goals9 = 0

| manageryears1 = 1984

| managerclubs1 = San Diego Sockers (assistant)

| manageryears2 = 1986–1988

| managerclubs2 = Chicago Sting

| manageryears3 = 1989–1992

| managerclubs3 = San Diego Sockers (assistant)

| manageryears4 = 1993–1997

| managerclubs4 = Monterrey La Raza

| manageryears5 = 1993–

| managerclubs5 = Mexican Futsal

| manageryears6 = 1999–2000

| managerclubs6 = Monterrey La Raza

| manageryears7 = 2002–2004

| managerclubs7 = Harrisburg Heat

| manageryears8 = 2004

| managerclubs8 = Monterrey Fury

| manageryears9 = 2004

| managerclubs9 = Monterrey Tigres

| manageryears10 = 2007–2009

| managerclubs10 = Monterrey La Raza

}}

Erich Geyer (born November 7, 1950) is a German former football (soccer) defender who spent most of his career in the North American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League. Following his retirement from playing, he coached for over twenty years.

Player

Geyer graduated from the Hochschulinstitut fuer Leibesübungen in Erlangen, Germany. He then became a teacher and did not begin playing professional soccer until his early twenties when he signed with TSV Höchstadt. He played for Höchstadt from 1973 to 1975. After one season with 1. FC Bamberg in the Regionalliga, he moved to SpVgg Fürth in 1977. In 1980, he moved to the United States and joined the Hartford Hellions of the Major Indoor Soccer League. A forward in Germany, Geyer moved to defense in the U.S. After one season, he left the Hellions and signed with the San Diego Sockers of the North American Soccer League. He played four outdoor and one indoor NASL seasons with the Sockers. During the winter of 1982–83, the team competed in the MISL where it won the league championship. The Sockers then took the 1983–84 NASL indoor title before moving permanently to the MISL in the fall of 1984. However, the Sockers released Geyer during the preseason, and he signed as a free agent with the Chicago Sting in November 1984.{{cite news |title = Sockers trim four for indoor season | publisher = The San Diego Union (CA) | date = September 26, 1984}} On February 21, 1985, the Sting sold Geyer's contract back to the Sockers. The team released him again in June 1985.>{{cite news |title = Daley, Geyer, Moura dropped from Sockers | publisher = The San Diego Union (CA) | date = June 9, 1985}}

Coach

During the Sockers 1984 outdoor season, Geyer played only two games, spending most of the season as an assistant coach. He was named to succeed Willy Roy as Sting head coach on December 23, 1986.{{cite web | url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/1986/12/24/era-ends-in-style-for-sting/ | title = Era Ends In Style For Sting | publisher = Chicago Tribune | date = December 24, 1986| access-date = February 12, 2013 | last = Leptich | first = John}} Geyer was fired by the Sting on February 22, 1988 and replaced by Gary Hindley.{{cite web | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-02-28-sp-488-story.html | title = Former Socker Geyer Considers Future After Losing Sting Coaching Job | work = Los Angeles Times | date = February 28, 1988 | first = Marc | last = Appleman | access-date =May 28, 2012}} In 1989, he became an assistant coach with the San Diego Sockers, a position he held until the spring of 1992.{{cite web | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-12-24-sp-2169-story.html | title = The 'H' Is Back in Eric, Geyer Is Back With Sockers | work = Los Angeles Times | date = December 24, 1989 | first = Don | last = Patterson | access-date =May 28, 2012}} In 1992, he became the head coach of the Monterrey La Raza of the Continental Indoor Soccer League. He was the 1995 CISL Coach of the Year.{{cite web | url = http://homepages.sover.net/~spectrum/year/1995.html#CISL | title = Continental Indoor Soccer League | publisher = homepages.sover.net | date = January 29, 2006 | accessdate = May 28, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120226150651/http://homepages.sover.net/~spectrum/year/1995.html#CISL | archive-date = February 26, 2012 | url-status = dead }} In 1993, he also became the head coach of the Mexican Futsal team. He left La Raza in 1997, then returned in 1999 as they played in the World Indoor Soccer League. In August 2002, the Harrisburg Heat announced they had hired Geyer to replace Richard Chinapoo.{{cite web | url = http://airwolf.lmtonline.com/sports/archive/080702/pageb2.pdf | title = Scoreboard | publisher = Laredo Morning Times | date = August 7, 2002 | accessdate = May 28, 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120303093135/http://airwolf.lmtonline.com/sports/archive/080702/pageb2.pdf | archive-date = March 3, 2012 | url-status = dead }} In March 2004, he became the head coach of the Monterrey Fury of the second Major Indoor Soccer League.{{cite web | url = http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3009440 | title = Erich Geyer named new head coach of the Fury | publisher = oursportscentral.com | date = March 8, 2004 | accessdate =May 28, 2012}} When that team collapsed before the 2004–05 season, the Monterrey Tigres replaced it in the standings. Geyer became the head coach of the Tigres, but the league terminated the franchise after only a few games.

Referee

After his retirement in 1985, Geyer became an MISL referee. He served in that capacity until hired as head coach of the Sting in 1986.{{cite web | url = https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-01-21-sp-31239-story.html | title = OH, GO AHEAD: BOO HIM : Just Because He Was the Sockers' Wolfman Doesn't Mean Geyer Expects to Hear Cheers | work = Los Angeles Times | date = January 21, 1986 | access-date =May 28, 2012 | first = Marc | last = Appleman}}