United States’ Women’s World Cup win empowers girls beyond soccer, youth organizers say

Natalie Powell’s soccer players love Rose Lavelle. They love Megan Rapinoe, and they love Alex Morgan. But Powell is more of a Julie Ertz fan herself.

While her 8- to 12-year-old girls players love the flashy goals and big personalities of the United States women’s soccer team, Powell, the president of Catonsville Youth Soccer League, appreciates the behind-the-scenes value Ertz has.

While it’s too early to tell if the success of the U.S. women has led to a wave of increased participation in soccer, several managers of local youth organizations have seen the World Cup champions inspire and empower their girls players.

“It’s not sport-specific,” Ridgely Middle School girls’ soccer coordinator Monica Koors said. “They’re giving girls from all sports the ability to believe they can do something amazing.”

The national team players were 14-year-olds once, too, Koors said. They were even 8-year-olds dreaming of being Mia Hamm someday, Powell said, referencing the Hamm costume Lavelle wore in elementary school.

Whether it’s because of the World Cup, girls soccer seems to be growing.

Powell said that three of Catonsville’s four youngest age groups will have two girls teams for the first time this fall, and of the organization’s 22 travel teams, 10 will be girls clubs, two more than last year.

Soccer Shots, a grassroots program focused on character development and growing youth soccer for kids ages 2-8, has seen a growth in participation, particularly among girls. According to Camilo Beltran, the Baltimore chapter’s executive director, Soccer Shots has grown from 5,000 participants in 2012 to 9,000 in the spring of 2019, and the number of girls registered is growing rapidly.

“It’s not quite 50-50 [with the boys], but it’s getting there,” said Beltran, who also pointed out that Soccer Shots was invited to participate in more community events related to the tournament. “In the next five years, we wouldn’t be surprised if there are more girls than boys.”

The spark hasn’t only affected the athletes.

Powell said she’s seen increased interest in soccer in many different groups, including the parents involved with Catonsville soccer. They’re even making more of an effort to understand what rules and calls actually mean.

“I had one parent that said ... 'Question of the day — I need to know more about offsides,’ ” Powell said.

Beltran said soccer fever has even reached those too young to play, including his 3-year-old daughter.

“I ask her what team [she roots for], and she says the [USA],” Beltran said. “She’s definitely a soccer fan, even at age 3. She screams for every goal.”

There aren’t yet numbers that prove the World Cup directly caused increased participation in girls soccer.

In Catonsville, registration closed before the tournament. In terms of the Ridgely program, Koors won’t receive the mailed registration forms for at least another week. Soccer Shots has had more participation in its summer program, which isn’t usually large because of summer vacation plans, but Beltran said it’s impossible to attribute it to the World Cup.

Beltran said the effect probably won’t be evident until fall. Koors said her program often sees a spike around the World Cup because soccer becomes the “sport of the moment.”

A lot of the girls who play soccer for Ridgely also play lacrosse. Normally, they’re more focused on lacrosse, but this year, Koors heard them constantly talking about the World Cup.

Some even started talking about what it would be like to be on a national team.

Over the course of the World Cup, Catonsville’s 8- to 12-year-olds had at least four watch parties, Powell said, where they could see what they learned in practice be translated to the largest stage.

“It’s neat because you hear them talk about things coaches tell them in practice,” Powell said. “The national team is doing it, and it’s stuff they’re doing at age 8. It makes it less menial and more important.”