How Coastal Outreach Soccer, Atlanta United FC created unprecedented access for Black youth with Opportunity Cup
By Drake Hills, Black Players for Change contributor
The courtship between Black culture and soccer in the greater Atlanta community is a story with origins that can be traced back through the previous decade. With the second-largest Black population behind New York City, according to a 2022 Brookings Institution report, Atlanta United FC’s authentic ties to the city and its 2018 MLS Cup victory have fueled the romance.
Located 300 miles southeast, edging toward Jacksonville, is Brunswick, Georgia, where Coastal Outreach Soccer has been joining Black excellence and the world’s game for 20 years through clinics, leagues, education, mentorship, and, of course, a block party.
Coastal Outreach Soccer is a 501(c)(3) public charity, whose mission is to remove all barriers for student-athletes and their families, giving youth soccer players exposure to new opportunities, regardless of their socio-economic status.
COS founder and program director Shawn Williams collaborated with his four-person staff more than two years ago to create the Opportunity Cup — a five-day Black soccer festival that took place last December 4-8 for underserved and underprivileged youth soccer athletes, as well as parents, professional and Historically Black College and University (HBCU) soccer coaches, and Brunswick city officials to build opportunity equity for Black boys and girls.
“I think it was a great infusion of our creativity that we bring to the table and creating an environment that just elevates and celebrates that freedom. And I think that was the thing that really came out of this — was that you saw how much joy and laughter it brought to our students who were participating, the parents who were there, the community that came out to support it — that everybody found their place while watching the game of soccer. ‘Hey, the DJ is playing my tune’, right? The barbecue was great, so everyone had their place within what we were doing, but it all wrapped around the game of soccer.”
COS strives for the Opportunity Cup, first held in 2024, to be the premier national outreach for Black and Brown student-athletes of low-to-moderate income families. Aged seven to 29, nearly 100 athletes gathered at Howard Coffin Park for a COS all-stars vs. alumni game, before a 3-on-3 futsal tournament, an HBCU recruitment clinic for academy players to showcase their skills, as well as a coaching development session.
HBCU’s Allen University and Talladega College were represented. Newly appointed NWSL Houston Dash head coach Fabrice Gutrart led the coaching development session.
Joining Williams are his sons: former Chowan University and Andrew College midfielder Shawn Williams Jr., former Fisk University forward Jaelin Williams, as well as Neil Dawson and Otis Muhammad.
Together, the COS staff oversee an academy (boys aged 4-11), a travel soccer program (boys aged 12 and up) and a girls academy program called “Our Time.” COS couples its soccer pipeline with a robust academic support system called the Big Play Center of Excellence, which “offers essential support and resources at no cost to 6th to 12th-grade students. Equipped with 20 Chromebooks, students have access to technology for test preparation, coursework review, homework completion, and more,” per the COS website. COS also provides STEM programs for students and parents, particularly in computer engineering, coding, robotics, and virtual reality (VR).
COS ran three soccer events during the week-long cup, based in three locations: Howard Coffin Park — where COS has played its games since 2004 — Lanier Field and the COS Futsal Court.
And in March 2022, the latter became the first soccer mini-pitch the Atlanta United Foundation, now known as the Atlanta United Community Fund, a matching grant fund, installed as part of its Georgia 100 initiative, which in partnership with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), is committed to constructing 100 mini-pitches throughout Georgia.
COS first sought a permanent soccer surface before United’s expansion into Major League Soccer, back when Orlando City SC was the sole franchise in the southeast region. So when Atlanta joined MLS, reconstructing regional MLS rights, Orlando introduced Williams to the United community relations team. And from 2017 to 2020, COS raised $100,000 for that soccer mini-pitch, which the Atlanta United Community Fund matched with $67,500, according to the Brunswick News.
“Our committee is a committee of associates, not only from Atlanta United but across the (AMB Sports & Entertainment) business and upon review and everything that they do, not only from the academic support but the athletic support, using soccer as that motivator, in that vehicle in an area of Georgia that soccer may even be a just foreign term to some of those kids…what he was really trying to do and establish throughout the different programs of Coastal Outreach was really inspiring,” said Atlanta United director of community engagement Marissa Ahrens.
The United Community Fund and LISC have now helped build 13 soccer pitches throughout Georgia. Ahrens said partner organizations, like COS, are eligible for future matching grants.
Coastal Outreach Soccer Team.
Williams has plans too. The 2025 Opportunity Cup will return on December 3-7, and Williams is looking to expand the block party.
“We're looking to move into phase two of this development,” Williams said. “We will be adding HBCU all-star men's and women's games and an (HBCU) development clinic, and then ultimately, we’re hoping to be able to have an HBCU band also attend. So we're going to look to continue to grow it. And again, that's going to be based on just how financials come together.
“If they’re corporate sponsors, individual sponsors that want to continue to see the game of soccer elevated within the Black community, financially, they can support us through our platform,” Williams added. “They can go online and make those contributions. If they're looking to be a guest, just like these coaches are coming…there's an opportunity for everyone to lend to the growth of this Opportunity Cup.”
ABOUT COASTAL OUTREACH SOCCER
The Coastal Outreach Soccer Program is a coordinated effort involving the Glynn County School System, Brunswick Recreation Department and local certified coaches. COS was founded in 2004 with 15 players from the Head Start program. COS started as an in-house recreational level soccer program with 1st generation soccer players and coaches. By 2005 the program was providing activities for 60 underserved and underprivileged youth annually. Today, COS teams play at a competitive level against clubs with far more resources and larger player pools. Despite this, COS teams have won Georgia Recreational and Parks District Titles in 2011 and 2012 and continue to compete well against soccer clubs throughout South Georgia and North Florida. Moreover, educational mentoring that is a core ingredient of the program has helped COS players stay academically on track and has played a part in enabling a number of players to earn athletic and academic scholarships upon graduation.
ABOUT DRAKE HILLS
Drake Hills is a contributor to Black Players for Change and has recorded the organization's work since its genesis. Drake is a San Diego native, a proud Oregon Duck and Northwestern Wildcat. Before his six years covering American soccer for the USA TODAY Network, Drake's world changed when he discovered Diasporic studies. He's been chasing stories that live at the intersection of Blackness and soccer ever since.
