Bob Rigby

Youth

Rigby, the son of school teachers, was born in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. He played soccer while a student at Ridley High School in Folsom, Pennsylvania and continued on the collegiate level at East Stroudsburg (PA) State University and was named a first team All-American in 1972.

Professional

In 1973, Philadelphia Atoms coach Al Miller, an alumnus of East Stroudsburg University, took Rigby as the first pick in the 1973 NASL college draft. Miller was building his team for the Atoms, which were an expansion franchise that year. Rigby set a league record of 0.62 goals allowed as a rookie that stood until the end of the league. That year, Philadelphia became the first U.S. professional team in any sport to win a championship their first year in existence. Rigby became a local and league hero and found himself on the cover of the September 3, 1973 Sports Illustrated, the first soccer player to be so honored. Rigby continued to provide positive exposure to the young NASL when he took fourth place in ABC's 1976 Superstars, a televised athletic competition pitting athletes from various sports. February 1974 saw Rigby involved in another significant first. The NASL was toying with the idea of indoor soccer and the Atoms hosted the Red Army of Moscow team in Philadelphia's Spectrum. This was one of the first indoor games to use the configuration familiar to future indoor leagues, an astroturf-covered ice rink with small goals set into the far walls.…

During his stint with the San Jose Earthquakes in 1985, Rigby coached the Los Gatos High School boys varsity team. After his retirement, Rigby became the head coach of the Ridley High School in Folsom, Pennsylvania. He remains active as a coach, recently as part of the Star Soccer Academy.