Soccer is an international pastime, as baseball is here in the States. In some countries around the world, soccer is as beloved as music or food: it’s just a part of the culture, inextricable, like language. Whatever the name—fútbol in Spain, sakkā (サッカー) in Japan, sepak bola in Indonesia—soccer has a foothold across the globe.
When thinking about the microcosms of activity and community that attend to soccer everywhere, it’s easy to be reminded of the old maxim: to think globally and act locally.
Locally, here in the Missoula Valley, soccer has a ubiquity. There are soccer clubs for competition or simply for recreation, from beginner to pre-professional. One, however, stands somewhat apart as being quite early to give soccer a home in our little corner of the world.
According to Katie Grutsch, Missoula YMCA’s Director of Youth Sports, this coming autumn will mark the 50th soccer season for the Missoula YMCA.
“So many people have grown up playing Y soccer in Missoula,” Katie says. “I think a lot of people in Missoula have fond memories of Y soccer. It's cool that we've been doing it for so long.”
“And I think that game in 1977 was the first youth soccer game in Montana, for any organization,” she continues. “So, not only did a lot of people get their start with Y soccer, but Y soccer was kind of what started things in Montana.”
So, you can see that this is a big deal. And the Missoula YMCA’s 50th soccer season just happens to land in the same year as the World Cup, for a little extra dash of magic.
In the spirit of microcosms and community, Katie explains that the YMCA’s youth soccer program is about more than just soccer; it is, in some ways, an incubator for kids to figure out some things about life and the world and how to co-exist with others.
“In general, I think that sports are so great for kids for a variety of reasons,” she says. “You're learning fundamental skills, and you're exercising and getting to compete a little bit, and I definitely think that's good for kids to learn that, that good healthy level of competition.”
“But I also think for kids, they're learning how to listen to another adult, how to interact with other kids, both as teammates and opponents,” Katie continues. “You know, how do you treat an opponent, someone that maybe you don't always see eye to eye with, that you have different goals from but you can still treat with respect and kindness.”
As much as the Y’s youth soccer program opens up the world for kids who partake, it also has the potential to deepen and strengthen what they already know.
“One of my favorite parts is just listening to kids interact with their parents or grandparents after the game,” Katie says, “and for the little conversations: ‘I'm proud of you, you did so good, that was awesome.’ Some kids have that environment, but I think sports brings out an opportunity for kids to be praised, and to have their family members take a moment to say they're proud of them.
“I think it boils down to even little things like that that are so much more beyond just soccer.”
The more Katie talks about YMCA youth soccer, the more an ideal, idyllic vision of the world begins to emerge, all based around this relatively simple game. If that sounds grandiose, it shouldn’t: this stuff brings people out, and it brings out the best in them.
Missoulians love giving back; it’s in our DNA. Katie, in her twelve years as Director of Youth Sports, has seen this firsthand. The YMCA couldn’t do everything they do without a small army of folks volunteering their time to help make their community, and the lives of those in it, better.
“We have a lot of teams each season,” Katie says, “which means we need a lot of volunteers. This season we have, I think, 907 kids signed up. So, we're at 94 teams. That's a lot of volunteer coaches. We wouldn't be able to do this without good community involvement and volunteers.”
This spirit of generosity goes all the way to the core of the YMCA’s youth soccer program, which is, ultimately, about access. It’s noncompetitive, and there’s no cost to participate, so kids get to gain those invaluable life skills that soccer imparts no matter their situation or their ability.
“I think one thing that's really great about our program is we do have a pretty significant financial assistance program,” Katie says. “We raise funds every year just from community donations that go towards financial assistance for any Y programs, childcare, membership, but also things like soccer.”
“In a world where youth sports is becoming more and more exclusive,” she continues, “like we said with those life lessons, those are things every kid deserves, regardless of their parents’ financial ability to get them in a sport or not. Everyone gets the same jersey, everyone's out there together playing, and you don't necessarily know which kids are there with a sponsorship or not. It just kind of allows kids to interact with their peers in a different way than school.”
"You know, how do you treat an opponent, someone that maybe you don't always see eye to eye with, that you have different goals from but you can still treat with respect and kindness.” - Katie Grutsch, Missoula YMCA’s Director of Youth Sports