Ralph Caraffi

Ralph Caraffi (born January 19, 1901 in Dunlevy, Pennsylvania; died January, 1978 in Cleveland, Ohio) was a U.S. soccer midfielder. He played on season in the professional American Soccer League. The remainder of his nineteen year career was with semi-professional and amateur leagues. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame In 1915, Caraffi, who was fifteen at the time, began playing with the semi-professional Vestaburg which competed in an obscure Pennsylvania league. He left Vestaburg in 1917 after which there is a two year gap in the record of his career. However, the U.S. involvement in World War I caused the suspension of several leagues due to the loss of players to military service. Caraffi’s National Soccer Hall of Fame profile notes that he played for the U.S. Army team in Europe and this may account for those missing two years. In 1919, Caraffi signed with the Fall River Rovers of the semi-professional Southern New England Soccer League. He spent two seasons with...