UCLA to host Soccer Without Borders charity event

Every time she walks off a soccer pitch, Sam Mewis rolls down her socks, extracts her shin guards and takes her cleats off. The routine of putting on and taking off her equipment has become hardwired for the senior midfielder, who has been playing soccer almost all her life.

But on Sunday, Mewis will leave her gear on for an extra hour after UCLA women’s soccer’s game against Colorado, as she and her teammates will be leading a children’s soccer clinic at Drake Stadium, while also helping raise funds for Soccer Without Borders. Mewis said it’s all in the name of making sure the girls who never had the equipment or even the means to play “the Beautiful Game” get a fair shot – just like she did.

“I can’t really imagine where I’d be without soccer,” Mewis said. “So I think (being) given the chance to donate to that kind of a program is such a cool opportunity and I think we’re all just really excited to participate.”

The non-profit organization hopes to use sales from 130 T-shirts during UCLA’s soccer clinic event to fund its efforts to give children in developing countries a chance to play soccer by providing games, coaching and equipment.

Sunday’s event will be the first time the team has organized a fundraising activity. The collection of funds will be handled directly through personnel from the Soccer Without Borders organization, in compliance with California laws.

While the children’s soccer clinic itself is part of UCLA women’s soccer’s alumnae weekend and will not be directly linked with the Soccer Without Borders fundraising activities, Mewis said the notion of offering free soccer lessons to anyone who wishes to sign up meshes well with the organization’s mission of making soccer more accessible.

“They had been looking for something to do for a clinic after this game because it’s alumni weekend and it just coincided well that I had this idea,” Mewis said.

This is not the first time the team will give back to the community, having regularly visited UCLA’s children’s hospital and provided free soccer lessons for the children of servicemen during their time in Japan during spring break last school year. But the Bruins said they always had their sights set on hosting a fundraising event since spring of last year.

The team said fundraising for Soccer Without Borders complements the team’s clinic since it represents the ideals of empowerment through soccer.

“(The children) have soccer as a vehicle, as a positive place where people can dream about going on and having an education, having some positivity,” said assistant coach Josh Walters. “They can learn leadership and how to develop in places where women don’t get as many opportunities.”

For players like Mewis and senior forward Rosie White, who play on their respective senior national teams, soccer has become an avenue for various opportunities that include international travel, education and chances to represent their countries.

At the same time, they said they understand that not everyone has that chance – especially women who live in countries where the opportunity to play sports may not be so readily available due to cultural limitations.

The UCLA women’s soccer players said they hope that the message of Soccer Without Borders can go beyond just spreading a love for soccer by also normalizing the idea of gender equality, starting with providing opportunities to play soccer to girls who have not yet had that chance.

“We’re the ones who are in a position to actually enforce something and show women should have just as equal rights,” White said. “We’re in that position to make steps towards helping change in other countries because we know how it should be; we understand that.”