Children's soccer program feels community excitement after Team USA wins second Women's World Cup

SAN ANTONIO – Soccer fanatics in the U.S. are still elated after Team USA won its second straight Women’s World Cup.

The excitement around the women's team is also sparking excitement in young soccer players and their parents.

Adam Haight, program director for San Antonio Soccer Shots, said he and his two sons were very excited about Sunday’s match against the Netherlands.

That excitement was a shared feeling throughout the Soccer Shots community.

"Every time a U.S. Women's World Cup would end, our phones would start ringing and parents have been calling and signing their children up,” Haight said. “I think a lot of that has to do with the visibility of the Women’s World Cup and certainly the success that the team showed.”

Soccer Shots is a children's "soccer experience" with a mission to positively impact children's lives. The program is open to boys and girls ages 2 through 8.

“It’s obviously really important for young girls to see women being successful, but it’s equally important for young boys, too,” Haight said.

Haight also said they've taken the success of the women's team as an opportunity for lessons off the field as well.

“At Soccer Shots, we teach character words every week: teamwork, determination, respect, sportsmanship," Haight said. "I think all those things were exhibited on the pitch, and it’s really important to highlight those examples.”

  


About the Author:

Stephanie Serna is a weekday anchor on Good Morning San Antonio and GMSA at 9 a.m. She joined the KSAT 12 News team in November 2009 as a general assignments reporter.