SOCCER WITHOUT BORDERS
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Mission Statement
Soccer Without Borders (SWB) envisions a more inclusive and equitable world, where all youth reach their inherent potential. Established in 2006, our mission is to use soccer as a vehicle for positive change, providing under-served youth with a toolkit to overcome obstacles to growth, inclusion, and personal success. We directly run programs across 41 communities in 5 US regions and 3 countries, delivering soccer, education, and community programming that creates a sense of belonging among marginalized youth. We also lead collaborative projects that use soccer as a vehicle for gender equality, social inclusion, and racial and ethnic equity.
About This Cause
Soccer Without Borders (SWB) envisions a more inclusive and equitable world, where all youth have the opportunity to reach their inherent potential. Established in 2006, our mission is to use soccer as a vehicle for positive change, providing under-served youth with a toolkit to overcome obstacles to growth, inclusion, and personal success. Sport may be the single greatest social change mechanism on Earth, but it takes much more than just rolling out a ball to harness that change. It requires intention and a long-term investment for sport to positively impact individuals and communities. By the 2026 North America World Cup, SWB will have directly served over 50,000 youth, growing through replication to serve over 5,000 youth annually through our direct service programs and reaching tens of thousands more through collaborative projects around the globe. Soccer is uniquely suited to contribute to social inclusion; it creates a sense of belonging, builds agency, and elevates the contributions of populations who are too often excluded by reason of their gender, race, ethnicity, or immigration status. We provide year-round direct services to more than 4,000 refugee and immigrant youth and marginalized girls ages 5-20 from 75 different countries of origin, speaking 54 languages. Nearly all of our participants are English language learners with few or no English-speaking adults at home. Approximately 35% of our current participants are refugees, 30% are asylum-seekers including unaccompanied minors, and the remainder are new immigrants or marginalized girls. Economically, more than 99% of our participants qualify for public assistance. Notably, 47% of SWB participants identify as girls. We value representation and gender balance in our coaching staff: one-third of our head coaches identify as refugee or immigrant, 48% of our coaches identify as women, and one-third of our staff members are program alumni. Currently, we implement year-round programming at 42 sites across 5 U.S. states and 3 countries, including 79 teams, 44 camps, 16 league seasons, and over 100 community events. We leverage the skilled work of 99 full and part-time staff, supported by over 130 youth leaders and more than 250 volunteers annually. Our program design deliberately addresses barriers that typically leave marginalized youth excluded; we provide all necessary equipment, transportation, coaching, materials, and activities free of cost to participants. Our holistic, evidence-based model combines soccer practices and games with educational support and community-building activities. The balance and dosage of these activities creates a powerfully influential environment that is focused on the development of the whole person over many years, with retention rates of 70% and higher even into the high school years. Youth choose to remain a part of SWB because- as they would tell you- it is more like family than a “program.” As Soccer Without Borders has grown in depth and quality, it has been recognized with awards such as the Lipman Family Prize from the Wharton Business School, the FIFA Diversity Award, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Sports Award, and the US Soccer Foundation’s Impact Award. We maintain Platinum status on Guidestar/Candid and four-star status on Charity Navigator.