Have a look at the San Diego area and you'll see how soccer is growing rapidly. The passion, commitment and genuine love for the game at the youth lev
Have a look at the San Diego area and you’ll see how soccer is growing rapidly. The passion, commitment and genuine love for the game at the youth level resonates in the players, coaches and fans of their teams. In San Diego’s South Bay region, Chula Vista Football Club (CVFC), established in 1982, is a prime example of the excellence in soccer fuelled by that passion. “We have a soccer culture unlike any other part of town,” said J Hector Diaz, Director of Coaching for CVFC. This club and others from the South Bay region have produced star players like Alejandro Guido, Paul Arriola, Joe Corona, as well as Michael and Gabriel Farfan due to the immense amount of talent located in the area, and the club’s commitment to development. Diaz stated that the coaches “encourage kids to follow their dreams and work hard towards them.” To grow a sustainable youth soccer organization that takes American soccer to the next level, coaches and staff must be creative and leverage both home-grown excellence and international expertise.
CVFC is an active contributor to the ongoing storyline of San Diego’s success in soccer at the youth level, and their adult team has also had success, most notably in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The 2016 edition of the annual tournament kicked off last month with qualifying fixtures and CVFC hopes to continue on their road to success next weekend here in San Diego. There will be eight games played the weekend of Nov. 21-22 in California, Colorado, Florida and Louisiana. The featured matchup will be right here in our backyard vs. La Maquina. Last year, CVFC defeated teams from the PDL and USL before falling short to Sacramento Republic FC. “We were glad with our results, but not satisfied,” said Diaz. Next weekend’s matchup is sure to bring excitement to the region.
The big-picture vision of the leadership of CVFC is reflected in their success. The youth-to-adult club structure within the CVFC organization is something that yields massive pride within the club. “Our accomplishments at the adult level just establishes what is possible when we have goals, and work hard towards them,” said Diaz. CVFC wants to motivate the young players to be better by succeeding in the tournament, and demonstrating that the sky is the limit. You can support the growth of soccer here in San Diego by heading out to Eastlake High on November 21! You can purchase tickets to Chula Vista FC vs. La Maquina here.
For more information on CVFC, visit their Facebook page or check out their website www.chulavistafc.com.
