![](https://www.courier-journal.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/05/16/PLOU/73708999007-west-soccer-04-sam.jpg?crop=4499,2531,x0,y296&width=660&height=372&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
For kids from all backgrounds in Louisville, soccer is a universal language.
It's less expensive than most team sports, doesn't require a lot of equipment, and kids of all ages and genders can play. Former Louisville City FC star George Davis IV said its popularity overseas “breathes life into the sport,” making it appealing to kids from immigrant families looking for peer connection.
There, Jefferson Circuit Judge Brian Edwards watched his two sons become obsessed with soccer and noticed glaring flaws in Louisville's youth soccer system.
“What I found problematic was the lack of diversity in the participants,” he said. “There were very few Black kids playing the sport, and even fewer kids from West Louisville playing at a competitive level.”
Edwards' answer was the West Louisville football team, now in its third season.
![Chance Hayes, left, of the West Louisville Soccer Club's 12-and-under boys team, handles the ball during a game at Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center.](https://www.courier-journal.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/05/16/PLOU/73709492007-west-soccer-01-sam.jpg?width=660&height=493&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
Edwards founded the growing youth soccer club in 2022 alongside Marcus Harris, an experienced West End organizer, and Davis, who won two USL championships with Louisville City FC before moving into the club's front office.
Competitive soccer can open new doors. Teens who excel at soccer can land scholarships they wouldn't have had access to otherwise. Davis, for example, played for the University of Kentucky men's soccer team before embarking on his professional career, and continues to make a living from soccer even after his playing days are over.
Still, “to be with the best players, to be with the best coaches, you have to pay to play,” Davis noted. “Not every player can afford to do that, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't have the ability to play competitive travel football.”
While Louisville's most well-known soccer clubs are based in the East End, West Louisville Soccer's goal is to give kids in the city's West End neighborhood, which has the highest poverty rate, better opportunities to play by reducing barriers such as transportation and lack of access to quality coaches and facilities.
![The West Louisville Soccer Club's 12-and-under girls team warmed up before a game on May 12 at Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center.](https://www.courier-journal.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/05/16/PLOU/73709012007-west-soccer-13-sam.jpg?width=660&height=413&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
The league's competitive teams practice and play at the Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center, a $53 million athletics complex at 30th Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard. The league also works with Jefferson County Public Schools to create a recreational league for kids just starting out in sports, practicing at local schools and playing games every Saturday at Russell Lee Park in Park Duval.
The Louis City & Racing Foundation, the charitable arm of the city's two professional soccer teams, provides equipment for players and coaches and is one of several sponsors, including the Louisville Parks Department, JCPS and HJI Supply Solutions, which handles uniforms. Edwards said West Louisville Soccer is partnering with six public schools west of Ninth Street during the 2023 season, with a growing roster of about 80 kids on multiple teams.
“This year it's just taken it to a whole other level,” he said.
In May, the recreational team concluded its spring season with a tournament held at the Louisville City FC and Racing Louisville FC training facilities. More clinics are planned for the summer. Families interested in participating can visit the league's website at westlouisvillesoccer.org for more information.
Davis became a professional soccer player, but he credits that achievement to his parents: “They weren't necessarily in a position to drive me up and down the highway to give me opportunities, but they definitely gave me opportunities.” As West Louisville soccer's director of coaching, he wants to be someone kids “look up to and look up to.”
But that's not all.
![West Louisville Soccer Club 12-and-under girls coaches Peyton Cox, left, and Lexi Caudill hand out red carnations to the 12-and-under boys team to give to their mothers or important women in their lives on Mother's Day after a game at Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center.](https://www.courier-journal.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/05/16/PLOU/73709007007-west-soccer-10-sam.jpg?width=660&height=483&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
Only a small percentage of kids who play soccer as kids end up playing at the collegiate or professional level, but joining a team keeps kids active and teaches them responsibility, Edwards said. West Louisville soccer is focused on winning, regardless of the team's performance on the field.
“Ultimately, if some kids develop an aptitude and love for football and go on to play football in college, that's great,” Judge said, “but if we have some kids that just enjoy football, stay focused, play football in high school and stay out of trouble, then we've accomplished a lot.”
Lucas Aulbach can be reached at laulbach@courier-journal.com.