Through the United for Girls initiative, we have tripled the number of girls in our programs and engaged 5,475 women and non-binary coaches. To help others engage girls, we worked with 21 diverse partners on a new Count Her In Playbook.

Our VP of Programs, Sarah Pickens, reflects on what the 50th anniversary of Title IX and Pride month mean to her.

Our 500th mini-pitch is open for play. The new mini-pitch at Hendley Elementary School in Washington, DC. marks our halfway point toward 1,000 mini-pitches by 2026.

Having played soccer at The Simple Foundation herself and now a full-time professional running the Soccer for Success program at the Foundation, Afiya is on a mission to more girls involved in soccer.

This International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating the women coach-mentors who help make everyone feel valued by creating diverse, equitable, and inclusive spaces for young people.

This group of organizations will test innovative approaches for creating sports environments that are truly inclusive and show every child that there is a safe place for them in sport.

You could say that Vanessa Spero’s decision to host a summer Soccer for Success program for children with Down syndrome was a personal one. And it benefited not only the kids in the programs, but the teen coach-mentors who had the opportunity to work with them and make lasting relationships.

I am so blessed to say that I get to do what I love for a living. Since 2017 through the U.S. Soccer Foundation’s and the Independent Health Foundation’s Soccer for Success program, I’ve been able to call one of our sites at JH Williams Park my second home and safe space.

We sat down with coach-mentors Sal and Perla to learn more about their love for the game, experiences as coach-mentors, and their goals outside of soccer.