Houston Force

The Houston Force were an American soccer club. In 1994, the club was originally called the Puerto Rico Islanders, but were forced to move by FIFA before playing any games. They instead played in Houston, Texas, where the Force only played one game before folding.{{cite news |first=Joe |last=Conway |newspaper=Houston Chronicle |title=Can 1836 be a hit where other soccer teams have missed? |url=http://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2006/01/can-1836-be-a-hit-where-other-soccer-teams-have-missed/ |date=January 30, 2006 |accessdate=September 20, 2014 |archive-date=July 14, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150714080811/http://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2006/01/can-1836-be-a-hit-where-other-soccer-teams-have-missed/ |url-status=dead }}

The team had only three players with any significant professional experience, David Vaudreuil, Chris Charles and Eloy Salgado. Vaudreuil and Charles had both played with the Tampa Bay Rowdies in 1993 and Salgado had played in MISL. The team hired experienced manager Hernan "Chico" Borja as head coach.

The Force played the Los Angeles Salsa on July 14, 1994, in Houston's Joe Kelly Butler Stadium. The Salsa handled the Force easily, winning 3-0, in front of an official attendance of 1,400 fans (estimated to be lower).{{cite news |last=Stinson |first=Dan |date=July 26, 1994 |title=Salsa lose nine points awarded for win over defunct Houston |page=D9 |work=The Vancouver Sun |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115099238/salsa-lose-nine-points-awarded-for-win/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=January 1, 2023}} Seven days later, the APSL executive board revoked the team's league membership based on financial issues.{{cite news |date=July 24, 1994 |title=The Force no longer with APSL |page=A63 |work=The Province |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/115003361/the-force-no-longer-with-apsl/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=January 1, 2023}}