Mike Bakic: Man of the Match

On Sunday, April 16, 1978, the Dips hosted the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers in a nationally televised match on the TVS network. Mike Bakic scored one goal and assisted on two others, which earned him Man of the Match honors. See the goal here: Bakic Goal vs Strikers

"The photo you see there of me and the trophy, that was taken after the Washington Diplomats defeated the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers 4-1 on April 16, 1978. I scored a goal and was voted man of the match. The men I’m surrounded by are Henry Kissinger who was a huge soccer fan and since he was a well known American politician, he was invited by the league and awarded me with the trophy. The other two are NASL commissioner Phil Woosnam and a representative of the Happy Days tobacco company who made a donation to charity in my name." -Mike Bakic

Photo and caption quote provided by

RedNation, Canada's Online Soccer Magazine

Djuradj Vujcic, Author, 4/30/12