{{Short description|American soccer player-coach}} {{BLP sources|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2023}} {{Use American English|date=February 2023}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Steve Pecher | image = | fullname = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1956|2|13}} | birth_place = [[St. Louis, Missouri]], United States | height = {{height|ft=6|in=0}} | position = [[Defender (association football)|Defender]] | youthyears1 = 1975–1976 | youthclubs1 = [[St. Louis Community College|Florissant Valley Community College]] | years1 = 1976–1980 | years2 = 1979–1984 | years3 = 1984–1985 | years4 = 1985–1987 | years5 = 1987–1988 | clubs1 = [[Dallas Tornado]] | clubs2 = [[St. Louis Steamers (1979–1988)|St. Louis Steamers]] ''(indoor)'' | clubs3 = [[Kansas City Comets (1979–91)|Kansas City Comets]] ''(indoor)'' | clubs4 = [[St. Louis Steamers (1979–1988)|St. Louis Steamers]] ''(indoor)'' | clubs5 = [[Los Angeles Lazers]] ''(indoor)'' | caps1 = 139 | caps2 = 152 | caps3 = 54 | caps4 = 58 | caps5 = 45 | goals1 = 7 | goals2 = 39 | goals3 = 6 | goals4 = 14 | goals5 = 3 | nationalyears1 = 1976–1980 | nationalteam1 = [[United States men's national soccer team|United States]] | nationalcaps1 = 17 | nationalgoals1 = 0 }} '''Steve Pecher''' (born [[St. Louis, Missouri]]) is an American former [[Association football|soccer]] [[Defender (association football)|defender]] who is currently the President of St Louis Scott Gallagher.
==Youth and college== Pecher began playing soccer with the youth club, Florissant Cougars, then with his high school team at Normandy High School in St. Louis. He was part of the team which took the Missouri state championship in 1974, his senior year. He was also All State both his junior and senior years. The next year attended [[St. Louis Community College|Florissant Valley Community College]] where he played on the national junior college championship team in 1975. He was a junior college All American both years at Florissant.
==Professional== In 1976, the [[Dallas Tornado]] of the [[North American Soccer League (1968-1984)|North American Soccer League]] (NASL) signed Pecher. That season he was named the 1976 NASL Rookie of the Year. He remained with the club through the 1980 season. By 1980, Pecher had begun a transition to indoor soccer when he joined the [[St. Louis Steamers (1979–1988)|St. Louis Steamers]] of [[Major Soccer League|Major Indoor Soccer League]] (MISL) for the 1979–1980 season. He was a 1980 MISL All Star with the Steamers. He remained with the Steamers through the 1983–1984 season. Pecher became a free agent in August 1984 and on September 11, 1984, he signed with the [[Kansas City Comets (1979–91)|Kansas City Comets]].<ref>''FOOTBALL: National Football Conference'' Washington Post, The (DC) - Wednesday, September 12, 1984</ref> He began the 1985–1986 season in Kansas City, but the Comets traded him to the Steamers for [[Stuart Lee]] in December 1985.<ref>''LONG TRIP PAYS OFF FOR STING'' Chicago Tribune - Monday, December 23, 1985</ref> He would remain with the Steamers until they traded him and [[Don Ebert]] on February 20, 1987, to the [[Los Angeles Lazers]] in exchange for [[Poli Garcia]] and [[Jim Kavanaugh]].<ref>''DEALS'' THE SEATTLE TIMES - Saturday, February 21, 1987</ref> He retired at the end of the 1987–1988 season.
==National team== Pecher earned 17 [[cap (sports)|caps]] with the [[United States men's national soccer team|U.S. national team]] from 1976 to 1980. He made his first appearance with the national team in a September 24, 1976, 1–1 tie with [[Canada men's national soccer team|Canada]] in [[Vancouver]] where he received a red card. He received another red card in 0–3 loss to Canada in [[Port-au-Prince]] on December 22, 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesu/usa-intres-det70.html|title=USA - Details of International Matches 1970-1979|date= |website=[[RSSSF]]|accessdate=2020-04-21}}</ref> He played his last game with the U.S. national team in a November 9, 1980 1–5 loss to [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] in [[Mexico City]] and was U.S. captain from 1978 to 1980.
==Post-playing career== After retiring from playing, Pecher joined Marriott, where he became the director of retail sales. In September 2002, he was hired as the director of the former Busch Soccer Club then St. Louis Soccer Club and now the St. Louis Scott Gallagher. He had spent time with the team as a coach and continues to coach the younger girls teams.
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20040113110850/http://www.stlsoccer.net/cgi-bin/webdata_pro.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=znews&keyval=znews.znew_id=70 Interview with Pecher] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20040920213551/http://members.fortunecity.com/lori19/golden.html Article on Pecher’s MISL penalty minutes problems] * [http://nasljerseys.com/Players/P/Pecher.Steve.htm NASL/MISL stats]
{{North American Soccer League (1968–1984) Rookie of the Year}} {{1977 NASL All-Stars}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pecher, Steve}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:1956 births]] [[Category:American soccer coaches]] [[Category:American men's soccer players]] [[Category:Dallas Tornado players]] [[Category:Kansas City Comets (1979–1991) players]] [[Category:Los Angeles Lazers players]] [[Category:Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players]] [[Category:North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players]] [[Category:North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players]] [[Category:Soccer players from St. Louis]] [[Category:St. Louis Steamers (1979–1988) players]] [[Category:United States men's international soccer players]] [[Category:Men's association football defenders]] [[Category:St. Louis Community College alumni]] [[Category:St. Louis Ambush (1992–2000) coaches]] [[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]