Shani Simpson has coached this team for the last three years, in San Francisco’s own “Upper House” and in NorCal’s Silver and Gold Divisions.  They have competed in Association Cup, NorCal’s State Cup and 4-6 tournaments per year in Northern California.  Seven of these players participated in an earlier international tournament in Dirinon, France as U11 Boys, but for the rest of the squad this will be their first international tournament.  Coach Shani has seen his share of Gothia Cup tournaments, having participated in numerous Gothia Cups both as a player and a coach.  Last year Shani lead his U16 Boys team to first place in Dana Cup’s B bracket and was just a few points shy of the playoffs against some of the strongest teams in the Gothia Cup.   He’s very confident about this year’s squad.  “This is a team that has worked hard on incorporating fundamentals, with a strong passing game, composure, and a disciplined approach to playing our game,” says Shani, “and I think we’ll do very well in these tournaments.”  

In Denmark’s “Dana Cup No.1” tournament 250 teams compete in beachside Frederikshavn.  It’s a week of competition against impressively strong teams from 20 different countries around the world, including Cameroon, Brazil, El Salvador, Ghana, Germany, Philippines, and India.  The Seals arrive on Sunday, with a day to recover from jetlag, orient themselves, and get used to their school dorms.  Of course, with the town dominated by the international tournament there won’t be much orientation needed!  Everything, including the free shuttles around the town, will be dominated by the enormous numbers of youth soccer players and pointed towards enormous soccer complex at Fodboldvej.

In some ways the Dana Cup will serve as a warmup for the team, getting them adjusted to jetlag and to the intensity of international soccer tournaments.  After the championships round and the conclusion of the Dana Cup, the Seals hop on the ferry and cross the Kattegat Strait for Gothenburg to test themselves in the world’s largest youth soccer tournament, the Gothia Cup or “Youth World Cup.”  With 1,625 teams from 80 countries it will be the largest tournament any of the players have ever participated in.  It includes team from soccer strongholds like Brazil and the Netherlands but also teams from further afield like Mongolia, Australia, Kenya, South Africa, Japan, Iceland and Indonesia.  To give you some sense of the scale of this tournament, the championship games have about 26,000 spectators and the Gothia Cup itself has an estimated 300,000 spectators over the course of the week.

No doubt the boys will gain a wealth of soccer experience and knowledge from the tournament, both from the games they compete in and the matches they watch during their off time.  One of the great benefits of the tournaments, however, is the interaction with other kids from all over the world.  It’s not just that they will be learning new ball tricks and skills from the Brazilian, German, or Ghanian players, but as these young Seals players interact with their peers from all over the world they will be unconsciously and effortlessly learning how to communicate with, enjoy, and respect the great cultural heritages of our planet.