1999 Connecticut Huskies Men's Soccer Set

The 1999 Connecticut Huskies Men's Soccer set is a perfect example of why soccer cards will never be fully documented. Who the heck even knew these existed?

Consisting of fifteen player cards, these measure the standard 2-1/2 by 3-1/2 inches and are printed on white card stock with semi-gloss fronts. Large, color photos grace the fronts and are borderless except for the top, where a light grey box contains the "UConn" designation, player's uniform number, and "1999 Connecticut Men's Soccer." The player's names are found along the front bottoms, along with a small Huskies logo and First Union bank sponsor logo. Card backs feature college stats and summaries of high school and college performances. Cards are not numbered except for the player uniform numbers on the front.

Much of the fun of collecting the kinds of sets involves learning about the players, and quick internet searches reveal all kinds of information. Matt Chavlovich, the starting goalkeeper for UConn in 1999, went on to play one year in the USL with the Connecticut Wolves and is currently the Vice President of Licensing for MLS. Chris Gbandi played professionally for FC Dallas, Haugesund and Miami FC from 2002-2010, and is currently head coach of the Northeastern Huskies men's team. Back Max Zieky played one year for the Connecticut Wolves and has been been with Dell Computer since 2002, where he is currently in charge of Business Intelligence and Sales Analytics. Back Sam Forko, originally from Liberia, was on the roster for nine games with the MetroStars in 2002. 

A collector could probably spend the remainder of their life stumbling upon this kind of obscure issue. I love soccer oddball sets, though I couldn't care less about the sport itself (soccer oddballs are just... cool). It's difficult to place a value on a set that doesn't sell very often, but I'd certainly jump on this if I could get it for ten dollars or less. To the right fan or collector, the set might sell for considerably more.

Click here to find Huskies Soccer Cards on eBay

 (1) Matt Chavlovich, Goalkeeper

(2) Sam Forko, Back

(4) Chris Gbandi, Back

(7) Meurys Cajas, Midfielder

(8) Darin Lewis, Midfielder/Forward

(9) Ryan Brown, Back

(10) Luis Arauz, Forward

(11) Brent Rahim, Midfielder

(12) Roberto Vargas, Back

 (14) Alex Cortes, Midfielder

(17) Edwin Rivera, Midfielder/Forward

(18) Bryheem Hancock, Goalkeeper

(20) Ryan Tishon, Back

(22) Mansour Ndiaye, Midfielder

(23) Max Zieky, Back