History

Pekin Pride started in 2003 when John Campbell, then coach of a co-ed team that played in the Inter Community Soccer League, decided to form Pekin, Illinois’ first all girls traveling soccer team.

The team began playing through the Boys and Girls Club of Pekin, but even just getting started was a challenge.  Five girls showed up to the first night of practice.

“So, I told each of the 5 girls at tryouts to go to their school and invite anyone who they think runs well in gym to come out for our team. I felt I could teach a good athlete to play soccer,” says Campbell.

Despite struggling through loss after loss during its inaugural fall season, parents and players decided to stick with it.  The team worked hard over the winter, didn’t give up and managed to win half its games.  The girls were just starting to compete with the stronger teams in the area.

In 2004, Pekin Pride entered the Orange and Blue Classic in Champaign and did more than compete: they won, defeating a team from Michigan for the title. 

“That win changed our mental approach and increased our momentum. We now believe we can compete with anyone in any tournament.”

That winter, the team started training with the John Gaspar Soccer Academy and they have continued to improve by leaps and bounds, finishing first or second in more than a dozen tournaments throughout the state and qualifying for the SuperClubs national championships in the summer of 2006.  They have also finished in first place in the Central Illinois Youth Soccer League for the spring of 2005 and fall of 2006, going a combined 16-0.  In the fall of 2006, the team did not allow a goal in league play.

In the fall of 2006, Pekin Pride split off from Boys and Girls Club to form the Pekin Pride Soccer Club and is in the process of expanding to include the next generation of traveling soccer players in Pekin.