Black Players for Change Reflects on Cobi Jones’ impact on the Community
LOS ANGELES, CA (April 24, 2026) - From “Cobi Jones’ Legacy Endures as Statue Unveil Approaches” by Shawn Medow
Black Players for Change Co-founder and former MLS defender Justin Morrow
“As a Black person, when we were young we were always looking to figures that were where we wanted to be one day and he was one of those. Not only his skin color but his hair and how he used to and continues to wear his dreads is just iconic. It’s something that young Black kids of my generation noticed right away.”
Black Players for Change Executive Director Allen Hopkins Jr.
“I remember when Cobi went down to Vasco. He was doing stuff that no one had ever done. Cobi isn’t just a legend. I consider him a blueprint. For me, a Black American kid and now an OG in this space, from competing against him in college and a short time later seeing him out there in 1994 with the hair, the vibes, that relentless engine, it just changed the math on what I thought was possible.”
Cobi Jones sports his BPC x Adidas “I AM” pre-game shirt during a Juneteenth clinic hosted by Black Star Soccer.
About Black Players for Change
Black Players for Change (BPC) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization consisting of Black players, coaches and staff from Major League Soccer, working to bridge the racial equality gap that exists in society. BPC is committed to tackling the racial injustices that have limited Black people from having an equitable stake in the game of soccer and society. Among the many goals, the organization strives to advance the attention on human rights inequalities from protest to programs, partnerships, and policies that address systemic discrimination.
