Daisy Garcia Montoya 
Education Reporter 
Photos by Dorri Partain

With only 100 days away from the World Cup soccer championship games, Northeast youth soccer organizations are preparing their programs for the world’s biggest sporting event coming to Kansas City. 

To take advantage of this once-in-a-generation event, organizations are holding conversations and sharing ideas on how they can best create programming that will further excite youth in the Northeast, provide them with opportunities to be involved and create long-lasting memories. 

During the Northeast Kansas City (NEKC) Chamber of Commerce February Luncheon on February 24th, leaders and members of Northeast youth soccer programs and surrounding areas gathered to discuss their current programming, what they do, and what they have in store for this summer.

The luncheon began with individuals introducing themselves and stating who they represented before luncheon attendees filled their plates.

Although the luncheon was set as a round-table discussion, featured panelists included:

Reggie Francois: Senior Recreation Director with Kansas City Parks and Recreation 

Rev. Nicholas Kaufmann Mamisashvili: Operations Director with Global FC

Brad Leonard: Ryogoku Soccer Academy Director 

Hector “Moy” Solorio: Director for Coaching at Ryogoku Soccer Academy and Youth Development Coordinator at Mattie Rhodes Center 

Seyoum W. Kassa: President of Heartland African Soccer Federation 

Diego Barrera: Student-athlete at Ryogoku Soccer Academy 

Since the Northeast is home to one of the most diverse communities in Kansas City in regards to culture and business, the World Cup provides an extraordinary opportunity for businesses to connect with international visitors. 

NEKC Chamber Events Director Rebecca Koop said that the chamber has developed the International Marketplace, a website designed to showcase local businesses and make them more discoverable for out-of-town visitors, especially during the World Cup. 

This website is currently up and running while still being designed further to improve it before the start of the World Cup. More information can be found at https://nekc-internationalmarketplace.com/

President of the NEKC Chamber Bobbi Baker said that she is excited for the opportunity this will bring to the youth and various businesses located in the Northeast.

“We are really, really excited to be able to promote our businesses in a more focused manner during the World Cup,” Baker said.  “Not only our businesses, but we want to be able to support other cultural entities that we have here in the northeast area, our churches, our mosques, our parks, places that people come together from around the world.”

Although programming is being planned for the duration of the World Cup, many of the organizations present shared the current soccer programming they have available and how they plan to align it with the international tournament. 

Senior Recreation Director with Kansas City Parks and Recreation Reggie Francois provided information about the ‘Let’s Play Soccer’ initiative that starts in the spring and is intended to teach children aged 3-6 the basics of soccer. Additionally, there is a 8v8 Women Soccer League that runs for seven weeks and is intended for women +18 who wish to participate on a team. Both programs take place at the 9th & Van Brunt Athletic Fields and have a fee in order to join.

Francios also shared that one of the initiatives Parks and Recreation is preparing is a world cup styled tournament to take place at the 9th & Van Brunt Athletic Fields in May, a month before the kickoff of the World Cup. To ensure that the entire community partakes in the planned tournament, the city department plans to bring food trucks from local business, live music and entertainment, teams that represent the Northeast as well as inviting other communities. 

Other free programming, sponsored by VISA, is being planned with more information to be available closer to the start of the World Cup. 

Jordan Shiele, a mentor with Global FC, said that the organization will have a league that will run through the spring. Efforts are also being made by the organization to organize youth and help neighborhood associations that may want to create soccer teams.

Baker reminded the audience that creating a lasting legacy for area youth through the connections and guidance to follow a positive path in life, was the goal. 

As discussions continued about programming, leaders emphasized the importance of putting Northeast youth at the forefront and finding ways for them to be an active participant in planning and in activities during the World Cup. 

“When all this is said and done, it’s the experience that kids had, and what memories they’re going to carry with them  because this should be something that they’re talking about for the rest of their lives,” Director of Ryogoku Soccer Academy Brad Leonard said. 

Such an opportunity will be granted to 110 kids that will be chosen to be official escorts for players during the matches taking place in Kansas City. Ryogoku, Mattie Rhodes Center and Football for the World, an organization based in Omaha, Nebraska, have been selected to take on the task of selecting kids ages 8-11 years old that will fulfill this memorable role. 

“Kids that are gonna be able to walk out with these players and just experience a once in a lifetime opportunity and so when we think about legacy, that’s a really cool experience but we’re thinking about the legacy behind that and the storytelling,” Leonard said. “So once that experience is over, how do we keep eyes on the northeast, how do we keep eyes on these kids?”

One Northeast student-athlete from Ryogoku Soccer Academy is contributing to the global stage directly while also bringing new ideas and feedback to his community. 

As the youth representative for Kansas City on the Generation 2026 Youth Leadership Council, led by the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, with support from UNICEF USA and UNICEF Mexico, Diego Barrera is serving as a youth advocate and exchanging ideas with other youth leaders across the 16 World Cup 2026 host cities and bringing recommendations.

Barrera is planning on bringing another edition of Copa de Calle, a soccer-tennis tournament that first took place during Spring 2025 in the Crossroads, to further engage the community and heighten the excitement and teach others about the World Cup. Along with the plans for Copa de Calle, Barrera wants to focus on content creation and storytelling, creating videos that share the stories of many student-athletes, their backgrounds and the impact soccer has had on their lives. 

Hector “Moy” Solorio, Director for Coaching at Ryogoku Soccer Academy and Youth Development Coordinator at Mattie Rhodes Center shared with attendees and other panelists the work being done at Mattie Rhodes Center regarding health and nutrition.

With on-going after-school programming, students are able to learn about healthy habits and how to implement them every day.

“We have parents saying ‘I don’t know what you’re telling my kid but they’re now eating more fruits and paying attention to how much water and sleep they get’, we are getting positive feedback from parents,” Solorio said. 

Northeast’s neighbors, KC Current women’s NWSL soccer team at CPKC Stadium, are also hoping to contribute to the activities and entertainment available during the month-long tournament. 

Executive Director of Community Relations DePrice Taylor said that watch parties during the tournament are planned for Current Landing and around CPKC Stadium. Other programming with KC Parks and Rec is also in the planning process, with details being released later. 

As the luncheon came to an end, organizations agreed on a key takeaway, that this summer, Northeast’s hidden secret, their youth and high quality soccer programs, will shine in the spotlight for Kansas City and beyond.