May 2014 To All MSFC Athletes, Families, and Prospective Players/Families ‐ As we prepare for upcoming Tryouts, I thought that I should provide a “State of the Club” letter to share an overview of several exciting initiatives underway. First, and most importantly, our athletes are improving their skills and further developing their love of the game by learning from some of the best coaches in our region. Richard Bute, Director of Coaching, was recently inducted into Tennessee Soccer’s Hall of Fame; Carl Schmitt, Youth Director of Coaching, recent (2012) TN Soccer Coach of the Year, and U17 Region III ODP Coaching Assistant, continued his education by visiting with Bayern Munich’s Academy staff and brought nationally renowned coaches to our club for coaching clinics; and club alumnus and current Coach, Kevin Hensley, was selected to the US Men’s National Paralympic team this year. Candice Spinolas, Girl’s Director of Coaching, enjoyed great success with her club and high school teams. We announced former club alumnus, University of Memphis’ Men’s Soccer Team Assistant Coach, 10‐year pro veteran and USSF A licensed, Tony McManus, to our staff. Our coaching staff continues to pursue advanced coaching certifications, dedicated to providing top level coaching resources to our athletes. As we grow, we are committed to recruiting the best coaching talent available to instruct and educate our players. This past year, we celebrated having 17 MSFC players selected to Tennessee and Mississippi Soccer’s Olympic Development Teams, indicating our programs are effective in developing talent to compete amongst the best players in the state. Over the past several months, we have made significant improvements in the MidSouth Futbol Club experience for our players and families. Beginning with establishing social media outlets to celebrate our teams’ successes, and development and launching our new website to improve communication channels between our coaches, players and families. We are committed to improving the sense of community within our club, promoting our ONE CLUB philosophy. Committees are being formed to improve our efforts with communications, facilities, development and tournament planning efforts. We are establishing a sponsorship program, and will soon announce opportunities for our families and friends to invest in our future and facilities. Recognizing the opportunity to improve our facilities, we will soon begin investing in our current facility and playing areas. Meanwhile, we are exploring other possibilities at nearby churches and vacant complexes to utilize, in addition to MidSouth Park. These facilities will bring to our club indoor training facilities for fitness and futsal programs during winter season. We continue to build our alliances with Bartlett Soccer, Arlington Soccer Association and Soccer Ole, and we are exploring opportunities to establish recreational programs in Memphis and West Memphis to improve the Where Champions Play quality of instruction in those communities, increasing our exposure to young talent. We are also developing an alumni network, reconnecting with the 400+ college and professional players and coaches who have come through our programs. Part of our tradition is providing international travel playing opportunities for our players. Accordingly, we are making plans to organize trips to the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Finals in Canada and UEFA EURO 2016 Finals. Finally, we are establishing new resources and programs to assist our senior level athletes with collegiate application preparation and placement processes. Hosting the annual Germantown Invitational Soccer tournament in the fall, as well as MidSouth F.C.’s Spring Challenge, highlight our commitment to improving our region’s premier tournaments. With approximately 600 teams participating in our tournaments, we are committed to providing opportunities for our teams and athletes to compete with the best teams in the Midwestern, Southeastern, and Southwestern regions of the United States. This year was not without challenges, as one of our club founders and a leader in the Memphis soccer community, Larry Creson, left us. We are dedicated to honoring his legacy and commitment to the game by taking our club to the next level and restoring our identity as the premier club in our region. It is an exciting time for soccer in our country with 2014 FIFA World Cup Finals approaching, and in our community with the resurgence of our club. We look forward to the New Year and encourage you to register for upcoming Tryouts to learn more about our programs and experience how we can help your athlete reach their potential. Jogo Bonito, Garen Haddad | MidSouth F.C. President (901)277.8117 | [email protected] | www.midsouthfc.com Where Champions Play Connect with us: facebook | twitter | instagram Where Champions Play