 Atlanta Chiefs logo, 1980–1981 | |||
| Full name | Atlanta Chiefs (1967–1972, 1979–1981) Atlanta Apollos (1973) | ||
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| Founded | 1967 (original team) 1979 (reformed team) | ||
| Dissolved | 1973 (original team) 1981 (reformed team) | ||
| Stadium | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium (outdoor) (1967–1969, 1971–1972, 1979–1981) Tara Stadium (outdoor) (1970) Grant Field (outdoor) (1973) Omni Coliseum (indoor) (1979–1981) | ||
| Capacity | 51,383 (Atlanta Stadium) 10,000 (Tara Stadium) 58,121 (Grant Field) 15,155 (Omni Coliseum) | ||
| Owners | Atlanta Braves, Inc (1967–73), Atlanta Hawks, Inc (1973), Ted Turner & Dick Cecil (1979–81) | ||
| League | NPSL (1967) NASL (1968–1973, 1979–1981) | ||
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The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1967 and the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1968 to 1973 and again from 1979 to 1981. For the 1973 season, the team played as the Atlanta Apollos.
Founded in 1967 as a charter member of the NPSL, the club was the brainchild of Dick Cecil, then Vice President of the Atlanta Braves baseball franchise who was the Chiefs' owner. Cecil was intrigued by the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England and decided that a professional soccer team would add valuable events for Atlanta Stadium. From 1967 to 1972, the stadium would serve as the Chiefs' home field for all seasons except 1970, when the Chiefs played their home games at Tara Stadium.
In 1973, the team was sold and rebranded as the Atlanta Apollos. They played their home games at Grant Field before folding at the end of the 1973 season. The Chiefs' brand would later be revived by Cecil and Ted Turner in 1979 after the Colorado Caribous of the NASL relocated to Atlanta. The Chiefs again played at Atlanta—Fulton County Stadium, as well as the Omni Coliseum for two seasons of indoor soccer before the franchise again folded in 1981.
Kaizer Chiefs F.C., a professional soccer team that plays in the South African Premier Soccer League, was founded by Kaizer Motaung, who played for the Atlanta Chiefs in their initial incarnation. The Kaizer Chiefs' name and logo were inspired by those of the Atlanta club.