A variety of people gather at the futsal court at King Elementary School.4906 NE 6th Ave.) every Tuesday night until the sun goes down. The Portland chapter of Street Soccer USA is hosting a street soccer match in partnership with Laundry PDX, a vintage teamwear shop on Northeast Alberta Street. Tuesday Night Futsal (instagram.com/streetsoccerpdx) Sessions run until the end of summer and involve 5-on-5 futsal (a sort of basketball using your feet) where the winning team gets to stay on the court to play again. It's free to play and free to watch, and teams play on two courts. Evening events are more well attended, with some nights seeing 30-40 people turn up to play.
The court remains abuzz, even after matches begin at 6 p.m. Organizers play music, provide water and snacks, and display the kind of signs you'd see at matches in South America or Europe: brightly colored, hand-painted signs showcasing pride for club and country teams. “Since we opened in May, we've grown quickly because the community was craving a space like this,” says Portland chapter director Julian Alexander. “It's become a great place not only to play futsal, but to meet new people.”
Street Soccer USA-PDX, the nonprofit that runs the sessions, aims to fight poverty and strengthen communities through soccer. Founded in North Carolina in 2009, Street Soccer USA now has chapters in 16 cities across the U.S., primarily serving communities where 33 percent of residents live below the poverty line, according to SSU. “Our mission is to provide free, year-round soccer programming to disadvantaged youth and adults in the Pacific Northwest,” Alexander says. “We aim to provide an alternative to the pay-to-play model by providing a comprehensive, accessible soccer program.”
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