More than 50 years ago, a partnership between a local YMCA and a professional soccer team helped spark a movement. Now, as Atlanta prepares to host matches during the FIFA World Cup 2026, the YMCA of Metro Atlanta is sharing that story.
It started in the late 1960s in Decatur. Players from the Atlanta Chiefs, the city’s professional soccer team, were living and practicing at Columbia Theological Seminary. They began teaching neighborhood kids how to play through informal clinics on the seminary’s fields.
The Decatur-DeKalb YMCA — now known as the Decatur Family YMCA — saw something in those early sessions. In 1968, the organization teamed up with the Atlanta Chiefs to launch the YMCA Summer Soccer League. The league had age divisions, set schedules and a simple rule: every child would get meaningful time on the field, no matter their skill level.
The response was fast. By 1970, about 3,000 young people were playing in YMCA soccer leagues across metro Atlanta. That made the Decatur-DeKalb program one of the largest youth soccer efforts in the country at the time.
“As Atlanta hosts the world’s biggest soccer tournament, it’s important to reflect on how the game took root here,” said Lauren Koontz, president and chief executive officer of the YMCA of Metro Atlanta. “The YMCA of Metro Atlanta helped introduce youth soccer to this community in its earliest days. That legacy helped spark the growth of the sport across the country and continues to shape how young people experience the game today.”
As more kids got involved, schools across DeKalb County began starting their own soccer programs. Many of those students had first learned the game through the YMCA. To keep up with demand, the organization built systems to train volunteer and parent coaches — a model that helped the sport grow in a lasting way.
Other YMCAs across the country took notice. Similar youth soccer leagues began popping up in communities nationwide, helping introduce the game to generations of children.
Today, hundreds of thousands of children play in YMCA soccer programs across the country each year. The focus remains the same as it was in 1968: character development, teamwork, sportsmanship and making sure every child belongs.
The YMCA of Metro Atlanta has also released a series of short documentary-style videos about its soccer history. More information is available at ymcaatlanta.org.
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
- B.T. Clark
