Welcome to Futbol Play Zone Project Rally Campaign

Hello, my name is Kenyon Cook, co-owner of Chucktown Futbol in Charleston, SC. My partner, Juan Roncancio, and I have a vision called the Futbol Play Zone Project (FPZP). The FPZP represents the idea that the best teacher of "the beautiful game" is the game itself. It is no secret that youth players in the US are not engaging enough in open free play where they can hone their technical and decision-making skills under the pressure of live small-sided play.

The FPZP is being tested and developed in the Charleston soccer community, working with local clubs and other soccer organizations. It will be a fluid project open to ideas and suggestions from the soccer community.

We have found a home in the U-Plex Soccer Complex (indoor/outdoor fields) in Summerville where we are launching (4) FPZ programs:

• Open Play Sessions (3v3/4v4/5v5)-complement to club training/match play,
• Development Program (5-12 yrs)-low cost alternative focused on balanced teach/play sessions,
• 3v3/5v5 Winter Indoor League (U8, U10, U12, U15),
• Chucktown Holiday 5v5 Indoor Cup (for HS age players)

Our initial fundraising campaign goal is $5,000 (see below for list of needs). This will also include FPZP business sponsors.

The Futbol Play Zone is where kids will come to play soccer and have fun, no matter the skill level of the players. The FPZ Project is, at its core, a complement to club soccer training and match play. This summer, FPZ sites will be located throughout the local soccer community engaging players in hours and hours of small-sided open play.

We hope you will help us bring the FPZ to our kids and grow a natural passion for the "beautiful game". 

What is the Futbol Play Zone Project?  (download PDF)

Why I'm Raising Funds

Funds initially raised in this campaign for the FPZ Project will be earmarked for such items as:

• Field Development & Facility costs at the U-Plex Soccer Complex,
• Scholarships for needy participants,
• Equipment costs (small-sided goals 4x6 ft & 6x12/18 ft),
• Marketing costs

The next fundraising campaign will address the cost associated with the development of a mobile FPZ Ap to locate FPZ sites, facilitate registration, create Player Profiles, ... ; using technology to grow FPZ locally and into other soccer communities.

How We Got Here

Juan and I have a relationship that dates back to 1982 when he put a coed adult team in my first adult league (Charleston Summer Coed League). Over the ensuing years, Juan continued to support my Charleston Soccer League (CSL) while he began coaching youth soccer for his (3) children: Maritza, Edwin, and Carlos. Funny how he was blamed for having good teams because they were more skilled.

Juan grew up in Colombia and learned the game organically with the game as the primary teacher. He moved to the states as a teenager and played collegiately in NY. Juan still, at the young age of 64, is a baller!

I grew up in different countries as the son of a diplomat and began playing in Denmark at the age of 10. We then moved to El Salvador where Erik, my younger brother, and I played mostly unorganized free play. Our fondest memories were playing on hard dirt with the native Guatemalan indian kids (of Mayan decent) in a small village called Panajachel on the shores of Lake Atitlan (altitude 5,000 ft), where my Swedish grandmother lived. I played HS soccer in Bethesda, MD and went on to play collegiately at UNC-Chapel Hill with Erik.

I share this because the both of us learned the game of futbol without a lot of coaching before the age of 14 and we turned out ok :)!

Juan's journey has been dedicated to teaching/coaching the game to boys and girls developing players who are comfortable with the ball on their feet. His methodology is framed around the game as the teacher and the discipline to be fit. His legacy continues on through his grand kids who all love to have the ball on their feet and the many players he coached who went on the play at the college level. He currently coaches the boys at Porter Gaud School.

My journey in Charleston began in 1977 at the Citadel as the Asst. Coach. I decided to stay in Charleston and began growing the game with clinics, camps, coaching (B License) and helping start the first youth club association. I would go on to grow a vibrant year round adult program (CSL) through the City of Charleston Dept. of Recreation. DOR also allowed me the opportunity to begin organizing youth and adult tournaments such as: Charleston Thanksgiving Soccer Shootout (youth) and the Lowcountry Soccer Inviational (adult on Memorial Day weekend). I became President of the SCASA for 6 years in the 90's. Hundreds of tournaments later, my greatest memories have been from my many 3v3 soccer events and witnessing the joy and benefits kids have playing small sided games.

I took a step back from the pressure of the business side in 2016 and have so enjoyed re-connecting with so many from my past through refereeing and witnessing a new generation of young players. Thanks to Uber/Lyft and refereeing, I have been able to regain a foothold on life. I did not know when my next futbol mission would present itself, but that it would come organically.

Earlier this year, Juan reached out to me for lunch and the ideas of Chucktown Futbol, re-kindling adult events and the Futbol Play Zone Project were born......

Our Team

We look forward to engaging young players and their families with our FPZ programs. We will also be looking for passionate soccer people to volunteer and/or employ to move this new futbol journey forward.

Join Us and Spread the Word!

Thank you for your support and please share our mission and Rally fundraising campaign via social media and other platforms of communication.