Soccer in the Streets holds 4th annual Nations Cup Tournament

Soccer in the Streets holds 4th annual

Nations Cup Tournament

Over $50,000 raised to support sustainable free youth soccer programs in Atlanta

ATLANTA (May 7, 2019) - The 4th annual Soccer in the Streets ATL Nations Cup event was held on Sunday, April 28th at Grady High School and the reigning champions the United Kingdom won the soccer side of the tournament. Germany came in as the fundraising champion to support youth players in Atlanta.

The tournament helps Soccer in the Streets provide sustainable free youth soccer programs that cultivate change, education, and empower youth. The event raised over $50,000 breaking last year’s total of $35,587. “We couldn't have reached our goal without the support of the players and their fundraising efforts,” said Phil Hill, Executive Director of Soccer in the Streets. “The tournament was a great success and we are looking forward to next year.”

The ATL Nations Cup featured teams that represent the United States, United Kingdom, Colombia, the Netherlands, Argentina, Iceland, Belgium, and Germany; a total of eight teams competed both on and off the field. Team Germany’s Tilo Fruth led his team to raise just shy of $10,000 in the fundraising portion of the event.

“The efforts from both our teams and their sponsors this year were incredible,” said  Tournament Director Jessica Charman. “Our players raised, on average, an impressive $330 each. It is clear participants believe in our mission and wants to make a difference to Atlanta’s youth. Their funds will make a lasting impact on the communities we serve.”

City of East Point Is Newest Soccer in the Streets Collaborator

City of East Point Is Newest Soccer in the Streets Collaborator

Third StationSoccer™ Location To Be Built Across from East Point MARTA Station

The City of East Point today announced an official collaboration with Soccer in the Streets to create the third StationSoccer™ location. It will be built across the street from the East Point MARTA station at 2848 East Main Street and expands the world's first network of soccer fields insid­­­­­e and surrounding major transit stations. Officially named StationSoccer - East Point, the third location of this innovative project will see construction commence on April 11th, with an unveiling to the community within the next month.

The latest StationSoccer location is a partnership with the City of East Point, the Atlanta United Foundation and the Transformation Alliance. Also collaborating on the location are Chris Wiley of Oz Pizza and Joel Baskin, of Joel M. Baskin, P.C., as each is the landowners and operates their businesses on either side of the field. To view the renderings of StationSoccer - East Point, click here.

"This is a milestone moment that will bring vibrant activity to our downtown," said Mayor Deana Holiday Ingraham. "We're excited to be the site of the newest StationSoccer location and bring an opportunity for people to connect and enjoy the game of soccer in our City."

"We continue to expand the vision of providing children in Atlanta with the opportunity to participate in grassroots soccer by providing the StationSoccer locations that make it easier for interested youth to participate," said Phil Hill, Executive Director of Soccer in the Streets. "Our organization also provides work readiness programs like financial literacy. We are excited to bring this program to the East Point community."

"Through this ongoing collaborative initiative, we continue to build the first League of Stations here in Atlanta," said Sanjay Patel, Director of Strategic Projects for Soccer in the Streets. "Growing the game of soccer and providing life skills along the way is our key mission, and the addition of the latest Station is underway."

StationSoccer - East Point is the culmination of a group of partners aligned toward providing access to soccer for all and connecting communities. The first StationSoccer location was opened at the Five Points MARTA Station in 2016. The second location opened in September 2018 at West End MARTA. Additional StationSoccer locations will be announced later as part of the program's planned expansion.

The founding partners of StationSoccer - Atlanta United Foundation, The City of Atlanta and MARTA - are committed to the growth of StationSoccer over the long term and the project is a result of a collaborative effort involving other key partners, including the Transformation Alliance, as part of the Strong Prosperous and Resilient Communities Challenge (SPARCC), Musco Lighting, FieldTurf, Deluxe Athletics and, US Soccer Foundation, Hothouse and Oxblue.

The ribbon cutting for StationSoccer - East Point will be announced in the near future. The digital assests from the groundbreaking can be found here.  

February StationSoccer Partner Highlight

TransFormation Alliance

Soccer in the Streets is proud of our partners that help impact the communities we serve. This month we are highlighting the Transformation Alliance who has worked with us in the West End since 2017.

TransFormation Alliance

Managing Director, Odetta MacLeish-White

• Why did TFA partner with Soccer in the Streets?

"We needed to build out our health partnership. Our Senior planner, Marisa Ghani, with the Atlanta Regional Commission and TFA's program manger heard about StationSoccer at Five Points MARTA and encouraged us to learn more," said Mac-Leish White."I had met Sanjay Patel, the Director of Strategic Projects, and soon realized the StationSoccer concept was an incredible real-world platform to explain how race, climate and health outcomes are intertwined."

• What are some of the current outcomes of the partnership?

"We were happy to write a letter of support for grants that track health outcomes in the program, and are excited to support all the community serving initiatives that can live in a StationSoccer model - classrooms, health screenings, improved community safety, community gardens for health food, and perhaps most importantly a public space that is truly safe for families of color to enjoy fully," said Mac-Leish White.

• What does it mean to you, to be apart of the organization?

"After being a partner now for 3 years with Soccer in the Streets, TFA is proud to be apart of such an empowering organization," said Mac-Leish White. "StationSoccer is tangible, visible, and deeply pleasurable - this makes it an essential tool in explaining what TransFormation Alliance does to others. To be able to take people to a physical location and show them how race, climate, and health can be operationalized in a programmatic strategy is invaluable."