Neighborhood Street Soccer Fests

A core part of the Street Soccer USA model is our community 'Street Soccer Fests' that bring our neighborhood programs together for a big day of games and fun each season. This year we hosted 32 festivals in 12 different communities engaging over 3000 youth. We thank our partners who helped make these festivals happen through funding and volunteering: Allstate Foundation, NYC Councilman Carlos Menchaca, Uniqlo, ESPN, SF City FC, The National Charity League, Academy of Art University, Sacramento Republic FC, The NY Cosmos.

Introducing the Blue Unity Card

In March 2017, Street Soccer USA officially transformed the our Green Card into the “Street Soccer USA Blue Unity Card.” The blue color of this card is inspired by our Unity patch, as unity is one of the core values that Street Soccer USA embraces. In addition to promoting sportsmanship on the field, the Blue Unity Card represents our belief in the value and potential of everyone and the power of sports in uniting players from everywhere. Since implementing the Blue Card in March organizations like America Scores and Play Rugby USA have adopted the method to positively reinforce players.

Street Soccer USA Awards and Recognitions

Street Soccer USA had the opportunity to speak about our work on a national and global stage this year as well as be recognized for our leadership in the sports for development sector. Below are some of the ways we gave a voice to our program this year.

• 2017 Lauren Beam Philanthropy Award at the NYU Sports Business Society (April)
• Featured Speakers at the World Football Summit in Madrid (September)
• Featured Speakers at the Aspen Institute #ProjectPlay (September)
• Beyond Sport United Community in Action initiative visits Red Hook (July)
• Featured Speakers at the LA84 Foundation Summit (October)
• NYC City Council Proclamation acknowledging 5 years of outstanding contributions to Sunset Park and Red Hook Communities (October)

Street Soccer USA National Cup

On June 11th, SSUSA held the Street Soccer USA National Cup at the iconic Rocky Steps at the Philadelphia Art Museum with former US Women’s National Soccer team player and three time Olympic gold-medalist Heather Mitts and US Women's National Soccer team player Hope Solo.

Thanks to the support from our sponsors and partners, over three days 140 teams and 1200 registered players competed. 2017 Sponsors and Partners: UNIQLO, Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, HELP USA, The Baxter Family Foundation, Holman Enterprises, the Philadelphia Union and Sons of Ben.

Sports for Social Change Award: We were particularly proud to have the Family of Muhammad Ali receive the Street Soccer USA 'Sports for Social Change' Award from SSUSA Co-Founder Rob Cann, and Philadelphia Councilmember Curtis Jones and Councilmember Mark Squilla.

New Ambassador: Hope Solo joined Street Soccer USA as an ambassador at the Philadelphia National Cup and spoke passionately to our program participants about overcoming adversity.

Street Soccer USA NYC Cup at Times Square

On Saturday, July 15, Street Soccer USA hosted the NYC Cup at Times Square. Special guests included Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, City Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, CNN Anchor John Berman, New England Revolution midfielder Zachary Herivaux, Lianne Sanderson, and Ashley Nick.

We also kicked off our global partnership with AFE - Asociación de Futbolistas Españoles. AFE and Street Soccer USA have begun work on a partnership that will bring coaches and curriculum from Spain to our programs, as well as set a long term strategy to develop SSUSA - AFE Academies in the United States.

Thanks to the support from our sponsors and participating teams, the NYC Cup was the most successful to-date, raising over $100,000 for our NYC Programs.

Official Sponsors: New York Cosmos, Allstate Foundation, You Are the Ref. Official Program Supporters: UNIQLO, ESPN Corporate Citizenship. Program Partners: HELP USA, NYC Department of Homeless Services. Team Sponsors: Major League Soccer, Zaremba Brown, Blackstone, New York Red Bulls, Sachs Policy Group, American Express, and Lennox Advisors.

Street Soccer USA Bay Area Cup

On August 5th and 6th, we held our Bay Area Cup at the Street Soccer USA Park featuring our youth program teams from San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose. We also hosted the 2nd Annual Bay Area Celebrity Match during the Cup with National Ambassador Chris Wondolowski, Todd Dunivant, Tommy Thompson, Danny Cruz, Greg Jordan, Jeremy Gunn, Chris Dangerfield, Danny Kirkland, Tim Hanley and Steve Ralston. SF City FC won the Corporate Cup and Donald FC won the Open Division. The Cup raised over $45,000 for our Bay Area programs.

STREET SOCCER USA - LOS ANGELES CHAPTER LAUNCHED

In partnership with the LA84 Foundation and the Los Angeles City Council President Herb J. Wesson, Street Soccer USA announced the Street Soccer – LA pilot program to reach homeless and at-risk youth in Los Angeles. The pilot program is the first step in a city wide initiative to address the 15,000 estimated students in LA Unified School District who are homeless and the many more who are on the verge of homelessness.

“It’s up to us to push the envelope, not protect the status quo, when it comes to finding ways to support and empower our city’s vulnerable youth. This innovative program will not only provide young members of our community with access to sports, but it will also teach them to be determined, courageous and ambitious on and off the field.” -Councilman Herb J. Wesson

Street Soccer USA Participants travel to Norway for the Homeless World Cup

Street Soccer USA men and women competed in the Homeless World Cup in Olso, Norway in August. Sixteen players who have overcome homelessness through SSUSA programs from eight different cities were chosen to represent SSUSA at the 40-nation Homeless World Cup. The SSUSA National Cup and Homeless World Cup continue to be an inspiration and cornerstone of our adult program for men and women experiencing homelessness.

Street Soccer USA Celebrity Ambassadors

This year our celebrity ambassadors made an impact for Street Soccer USA through pledging percentages of their salary, selling merchandise, appearing at events, mentoring players, donating equipment and hosting clinics for Street Soccer USA.

Thanks to our Ambassadors: Tommy Thompson (San Jose Earthquakes), Chris Wondolowski (SJ Earthquakes), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Hope Solo (World Champion), Heather Mitts (USWNT), Khari Stevenson (former SJ Earthquakes), Todd Dunivant (former LA Galaxy) .