USL Oakland Roots

Oakland Roots & Soul Sports Club Welcomes Delegation from Fiji and Tonga to Celebrate AAPI Heritage Month

May 23, 2023 - United Soccer League Championship (USL)
Oakland Roots News Release


Oakland, CA - On Saturday May 27th, Oakland Roots Sports Club will celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month at its match against San Diego Loyal at Cal State University East Bay in Hayward. The celebrations will feature a live performance of traditional dancing by a delegation of 20 sports coaches from Fiji and Tonga, who are visiting the Bay Area to explore how sports can be used as a tool to tackle gender-based violence.

Ahead of the match, on Thursday May 25th, the delegation will pay a visit to the Roots' UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Training Facility to observe practice and meet players and coaches from Oakland Soul, The Town's new women's soccer team which launched this month.

The coaches are keen to learn about Oakland Roots and Soul's unique model of integrating a social purpose into the heart of a professional sports organization in order to promote health, equity and happiness in the community.

The visit is part of the International Sports Programming Initiative, a project led by Women Win and the U.S. Department of State designed to build the capacity and leadership of young, non-elite sport coaches and administrators and strengthen the capacity of organizations and institutions in the U.S. and abroad to deliver effective grassroots sport and social change programs.

The visit to the Bay Area includes site visits to local sport-based youth development organizations, discussions with groups working to address gender-based violence, leadership development workshops and visits to cultural sites and will culminate in a celebration of AAPI culture and heritage at the Oakland Roots game on Saturday May 27th.

Check out the Oakland Roots Statistics



United Soccer League Championship Stories from May 23, 2023


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central