New Documentary Highlights Rowdies Legend Clyde Best's Trailblazing Career
USL Tampa Bay Rowdies

New Documentary Highlights Rowdies Legend Clyde Best's Trailblazing Career

Published on March 25, 2026 under United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Tampa Bay Rowdies News Release


Clyde Best stepped off the plane on Florida's Gulf Coast in 1975 ready for a new challenge. The upstart Tampa Bay Rowdies had come knocking on the Bermudan striker's door looking to recruit him for their first season in the North American Soccer League. After blazing a trail as one of England's first black stars over a seven-year career at West Ham United, Best was inclined to take newly appointed Rowdies Head Coach Eddie Firmani up on the offer.

Best was accompanied on his flight to Tampa Bay by Mark Lindsay, one of his new Rowdies teammates who had started his professional career at Crystal a couple years before.

"I knew I was in for a new adventure... I hopped on the plane and was so emotional, and tears started to come down my cheeks," recalls Best. "Mark didn't know they were tears of joy. It was more excitement about going to play in Tampa."

There had been black players in England before Best first arrived from Bermuda at 17 years old for a trial with West Ham, but the sharp increase in televised matches at the time helped make him a household name unlike any of his predecessors. That notoriety also came with hardships, as Best routinely faced open racism from fans in the stands and even threats of violence during his seven years with West Ham.

A new documentary, Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story, charts Best's career as pioneering figure of the sport in England and his exploits with the Rowdies and Portland Timbers as one of the superstars of the NASL. The film, which recently had its world premiere in London ahead of a North American tour this spring, features newly uncovered archive footage as well as interviews with Best and players who were inspired to follow in his footsteps.

Best broke barriers while showcasing his exceptional quality as a player, scoring 58 goals in over 200 appearances for West Ham. He, Clive Charles, and Ade Coker also made history in 1972 as the first black trio to start a match in the English First Division.

"I had a job to do," says Best. "I wasn't worried so much about myself. It was more about the players coming after me. That's what I had to think about. I heard the names and the chants, but I had to block it out... if you want to call me names, I'm going to show you what I can do."

Despite establishing himself as a fan favorite for the Hammers, Best missed out on being a part of the squad that defeated Fulham in the 1975 FA Cup Final, delivering the club its first major trophy in a decade. Best's move to Tampa Bay that same year, though, allowed him to live out his dreams of playing in a championship final. He and his Rowdies teammates became the toast of Tampa Bay, climbing the NASL standings and playing in front of steadily growing crowds at Tampa Stadium on their way to the Soccer Bowl Final in their first season.

Best assured Tampa Bay's victory over the Timbers in the Soccer Bowl Final with a goal on a breakaway opportunity late in the match, securing the club's first championship title and cementing his status as a Rowdies legend in the process.

"I think it's one of the best moves I made in my life because I was going somewhere football was just taking off," Best says of his move to Tampa Bay. "To be a part of helping that growth, and especially to win a championship in our first year was unbelievable, mindboggling. I will always be tied to Tampa Bay, because I love the place and I'm very grateful for the opportunity the team and the fans gave me to express myself."

Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story will be screened at The Palladium in Downtown St. Petersburg on May 7-8. Tickets for both showings are available for purchase at mypalladium.org. Tickets and information for showings in other cities included in the film's North American Tour can be found at clydebest.com.

Transforming the Beautiful Game North American Tour Dates

April 21-26 Bermuda Earl Cameron Theatre & Ruth Seaton James Auditorium

May 7-8 Tampa Bay, FL, The Palladium (Tickets)

June 4-5 Portland, OR, Aladdin Theater

June 12 Boston, MA, Hibernian Hall

June 20 Atlanta, GA, Rialto Theater

June 26 Nashua, NH, Nashua Center for the Arts

June 27 Providence, RI, Park Theatre

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United Soccer League Championship Stories from March 25, 2026


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