{"id":274156,"date":"2026-06-22T17:17:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T17:17:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/274156\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T17:17:52","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T17:17:52","slug":"nycfc-hosts-fifth-annual-community-cup-at-official-world-cup-fan-fest-in-queens-qns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/274156\/","title":{"rendered":"NYCFC hosts fifth annual Community Cup at official World Cup fan fest in Queens \u2013 QNS"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hundreds of young soccer stars from across the five boroughs flocked to Louis Armstrong Stadium at the National Tennis Center Friday afternoon to take part in New York City FC\u2019s (NYCFC\u2019s)<\/a> annual Community Cup, which pits 30 neighborhoods from across the city against one another.<\/p>\n

Organized by City in the Community (CITC), the non-profit arm of NYCFC, the fifth annual Community Cup took place in a special setting on June 19, taking center stage at the NYNJ Group Stage HQ fan fest at Louis Armstrong Stadium and serving as the curtain-raiser for a watch party for the USA\u2019s 2-0 victory over Australia.<\/p>\n

Ten neighborhoods who made it through earlier rounds got the chance to compete at the famous tennis stadium in Corona during Friday\u2019s showpiece event.\n<\/p>\n

The Community Cup is open to children aged 8-11 who avail of CITC\u2019s free programming on more than 50 mini soccer pitches across the five boroughs.\n<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s tournament marked CITC\u2019s \u201ccapstone event\u201d and an opportunity for children who take part in the organization\u2019s free programming to represent their neighborhood on the big stage.<\/p>\n

CITC Executive Director Bailee Eaglin said the event always generates excitement and neighborhood pride but noted that the excitement had reached a fever pitch this year because it coincides with the World Cup.<\/p>\n

\"TeamsTeams from St. George and Crown Heights take part in the 2026 Community Cup final at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

\u201cThey take it very seriously,\u201d Eaglin said. \u201cBut being here on a stage like this today \u2014 particularly in an official FIFA fan zone \u2014 and getting to take part and represent their own neighborhood, it means the world to them. It means the world to their parents.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be a young person here in New York City during the World Cup, it\u2019s just spectacular for them.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Eaglin added that CITC wanted to make sure that young soccer players didn\u2019t miss out on the excitement generated by the World Cup, leading to Friday\u2019s Community cup at Louis Armstrong Stadium.<\/p>\n

The non-profit is also bringing 154 players to World Cup games at MetLife Stadium through the end of the tournament on July 19, with players set to appear as individual player mascots at seven out of the eight games taking place in New Jersey.<\/p>\n

For the first batch of players to experience a World Cup game in-person, the experience will live long in the memory.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it meant everything to them. It was so special to see them next to some of the biggest stars in the world,\u201d Eaglin said.\n<\/p>\n

But Friday\u2019s Community Cup provided even more young soccer players to take part in the World Cup festivities, providing over a hundred players with an opportunity to play in front of family members and neighbors in the 14,000-seater Louis Armstrong Stadium, which began filling up with USMNT fans by the end of the tournament.<\/p>\n

For the 10 neighborhoods who made the Community Cup final stages at Louis Armstrong Stadium, the experience was \u201cunbelievable,\u201d according to Heather Butts, coach of the victorious St. George team.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter all their hard work and everything they\u2019ve done, the ability to be at the US Open where people like Venus and Serena Williams have played, that\u2019s just unbelievable,\u201d Butts said.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe St. George team celebrates after winning the Community Cup on Friday. Photo by Shane O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Butts, who lives in Bayside<\/a>, has been involved with CITC for six years through her H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths non-profit, which runs an alternative to incarceration program across the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love programs that help to keep young people out of harm\u2019s way,\u201d Butts said.\n<\/p>\n

She credited CITC for installing more than 50 pitches across the city and creating access for children in disadvantaged areas.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cI know for a fact that our students would not be able to play the game that they love if it wasn\u2019t for CITC,\u201d Butts said.\n<\/p>\n

Butts\u2019 St. George team defeated a team representing Crown Heights 1-0 in an evenly contested final in front of a large crowd of parents, neighbors and Team USA fans.\n<\/p>\n

Eaglin said the talent on show at Friday\u2019s event was a direct result of CITC\u2019s efforts to provide free access for children across the city, regardless of their family\u2019s economic status.<\/p>\n

\u201cPay to play is something that we tackle daily,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s phenomenal talent across the city and there\u2019s phenomenal levels of interest in the sport. Soccer is the greatest sport in the world. It\u2019s a common denominator. It\u2019s something that every young person should have access to along with all of the benefits that come with it: socialization, mental health, and well-being.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s our responsibility to ensure that we\u2019re making it as accessible as possible.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Butts, an associate professor at Columbia University\u2019s School of Public Health, similarly believes that providing free access to soccer programming is of paramount importance to children\u2019s mental and physical health.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey get fresh, healthy food at the program, they\u2019re able to socialize with their peers and people they\u2019ve never met,\u201d Butts said. \u201cThey\u2019re able to have access to a healthy environment to be able to play soccer.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hundreds of young soccer stars from across the five boroughs flocked to Louis Armstrong Stadium at the National…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":274157,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[105496,105497,105498,105499,62392,102289,9,24,63,6584,122,124,123,24332,14771,102290],"class_list":["post-274156","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-bailee-eaglin","tag-city-in-the-community","tag-community-cup","tag-free-soccer-programming","tag-louis-armstrong-stadium","tag-national-tennis-center","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-nycfc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-usta","tag-world-cup","tag-world-cup-group-stage-hq"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/274156","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=274156"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/274156\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/274157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=274156"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=274156"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=274156"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}