Passion, recession and the business of soccer

"I say unto you: one must still have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star. I say unto you: you still have chaos in yourselves." ~NietzscheThus Spoke Zarathustra.

I fell in love with that quote since I read it for the first time in my philosophy class in college, not knowing that it would relate to my life in many ways. I am 29 years of age, with a wife and 2 kids and this is my first recession. Being involved in the financial industry, I saw first-hand all the signs and trends that factor into the downturn of the economy.

Although it seems so hard to get ahead during uncertain times, people tend to overcome and accomplish the extraordinary.  As many businesses are failing and people are losing jobs, there are some who are searching deep within themselves to search for an opportunity. When there are no jobs or opportunities out in the market, we must create our own opportunities. Out of this chaos of uncertainty, we discover our own dancing star – i.e. those things we are good at, things we enjoy doing and can make us money.

I began to grow Revolver Football Club at the head of the recession, and was amazed at how many soccer leagues started to appear all over Orlando and Central Florida, offering 6 Vs 6, 7 Vs 7, COED formats etc.  Intrigued, I began to investigate the cause of this soccer growth phenomenon. Is soccer the passion of many entrepreneurs or is soccer a business that needs to be explored more in depth?

What is the true potential for soccer as a business in Central Florida? My personal opinion is that there is a market for it. I can relate personally, because during these times of high stress and insecurity, I can always take my mind away from it out on the soccer field; it’s like going to a life coach, without the $100 dollar price tag and it’s great for my health. And many people feel the same way; we need balance in our life, and the sport of soccer evens things out for me.

I give all my respect to those individuals that take the risk during these times and get those leagues going because not only do they contribute to the economy but they also help people balance their lives and keep us healthy.

Running your own business can be incredibly rewarding when it is fueled by your passion and desire to succeed. However, we must first possess the know-how to start, manage and grow that business. Many dancing stars have fizzled out much too soon because this know-how was not there.  Soccer can be like business in many ways; if we stop practicing or learning new skills, our abilities will start to decay.  So it is with business - if we stop honing our business and do not continue learning something new every day, our business will decay before our eyes.  So my final recommendation to you is to join Revolver F.C. and come train and play to keep improving your soccer skills.

Can we take soccer in Central Florida to the next level?

Growing up in Central Florida was very easy when it concerned soccer - plenty of youth soccer clubs to choose from, adult soccer organized by the Central Florida Soccer League and pick up games that happen all over town.  In recent years the growth of soccer has experienced exponential growth; you can choose from many leagues to play all over town any day of the week (especially during recession times, I will discus this phenomenon on my next article).  With all this activity regarding soccer I have wondered why the professional level has not been explored by those who know the business of soccer.

After being part of many teams within the Central Florida Soccer League, I have always wondered if there are more opportunities after the premier division?

I started to gather information about the United States Adult Soccer Association which is the governing body of most all adult soccer leagues in the country. As I began to build my adult soccer club REVOLVER F.C. it became clear that we must take advantage of the opportunities that the USASA offers the amateur soccer player. The USASA offers two specific programs of which we want to take full advantage: the National Men’s Open Cup and the Elite Player Development.

According to the USASA website the National Cups Competition is the oldest and most prestigious soccer tournament in the United States for any person who is a member of a team playing in a league of four or more teams affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation and the United States Adult Soccer Association. The competition began in 1914 for the Men’s Open Cup. In 1923, the Men’s Amateur Cup was added; in 1980 the Women’s Amateur and Over 30 Cups were initiated. Each year, some 250 teams across the United States participate in the National Cups Competition.

The Elite Player Program, originally known as the Select Teams Program, identifies players that exhibit skillful qualities with the intent of becoming a part of the USASA National Select Team player pool. Once selected, the player will be showcased in competitions against professional and international teams. The exposure that our elite players may gain by competing against those professional and international teams can result in professional opportunities for those players. In addition to identifying our elite players, the program provides our coaches the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and knowledge in highly competitive game situations.

As you can see there are opportunities for those players that want to take their passion for soccer to the professional stage. With hard work and the right attitude, I firmly believe that we can take soccer in Orlando and Central Florida to the next level. If you have comments or ideas that can help us please post it or contact us at revolverfc@hotmail.com