Fall 1931 American Soccer League. At the start of this season the American Soccer League was in decline, suffering from the effects of the Great Depression. Clubs had begun to fold, merge and disappear. The eventual champions, New Bedford Whalers, had been formed by Sam Mark following the merger of Fall River F.C. and New York Yankees. Long time ASL members Brooklyn Wanderers folded before the season. However New York Americans, later to become a perennial contender in the second ASL, made their debut.
The season saw strong performances by New Bedford Whalers, New York Giants and a resurgent Pawtucket Rangers. Hakoah All-Stars improved markedly to take fourth place. Although the Whalers won this season, they lost the playoff series for the overall 1931 champion, being defeated by Spring 1931 champions New York Giants in a play-off. Whalers took the first game at home 8-3 before the Giants came back to win 6-0, taking the series on a 9-8 aggregate score.
| Place | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | PTS | PCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Bedford Whalers | 21 | 14 | 2 | 5 | 60 | 32 | 30 | .714 |
| 2 | New York Giants | 20 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 54 | 38 | 26 | .650 |
| 3 | Pawtucket Rangers | 20 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 58 | 42 | 26 | .650 |
| 4 | Hakoah All-Stars | 21 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 44 | 34 | 26 | .615 |
| 5 | Boston Bears | 19 | 4 | 3 | 12 | 34 | 50 | 11 | .289 |
| 6 | New York Americans | 20 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 32 | 69 | 9 | .225 |
| 7 | Newark Americans | 11 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 16 | 39 | 4 | .183 |
| Rank | Scorer | Club | GP | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bert Patenaude | New York Giants | 16 | 24 |
| 2 | Werner Nielsen | New Bedford Whalers | 21 | 16 |
| 3 | Tommy Florie | New Bedford Whalers | 19 | 15 |
| 4 | Bob McIntyre | Pawtucket Rangers | 16 | 15 |
| 5 | James Hogg | Pawtucket Rangers | 18 | 13 |
| 6 | Rudolph Nikolsberger | Hakoah All-Stars | 19 | 11 |