Beyond the Pitch: How Businesses Support Local Soccer

As a 2026 FIFA World Cup host city, Vancouver is welcoming the world, and a global spotlight is shining on our soccer community. While much of the attention is on the professional game, soccer’s foundation is built at a grassroots level, where thousands of young players develop skills, confidence, and lifelong connections.

Across B.C., businesses, charities, and community organizations are helping make those opportunities possible. Their support keeps costs manageable, improves access, and creates safer, more positive experiences for youth. As families and clubs face rising costs, that support is becoming increasingly important. 

Together, these organizations show that soccer doesn’t grow alone on the pitch, it is strengthened by the businesses that invest in the people, facilities, and experiences that make the game possible. 

Creating Places to Play

For youth, access to soccer starts with a safe place to play. 

Through Jumpstart Charities, Canadian Tire has launched a national initiative to build 25 community soccer pitches across Canada, with a focus on removing barriers and expanding access to play.

“It's something we're all really passionate about at Canadian Tire,” said James Prescott, Senior Vice President Global Sourcing & Product Integrity at Canadian Tire. “It's really about removing barriers to participation and trying to create better access.”

Prescott said soccer is one of the most widely played sports in Canada, but financial and infrastructure barriers still keep many young people from participating. Access to sport, he added, can help children build confidence and support their mental, emotional and physical well-being. 
 
“As youth get more confidence and feel stronger about themselves, that translates into to stronger families, and stronger families lead to stronger neighbourhoods, communities, and it just blossoms that way,” he shared.  
 
Jumpstart works closely with communities to design projects that meet local needs. In B.C., the charity recently launched its second project at Surrey’s Guildford Heights.

“There's something about soccer’s global nature that comes to life here in Canada,” Prescott said. “What’s exciting about the initiative for us is the impact is has at a community level.”

Keeping the Game Affordable for Families 

While accessible pitches help open doors, affordability remains one of the biggest challenges facing youth sport. Registration, equipment, travel, and tournament costs can add up quickly, making business support an important part of keeping young players involved. 
 
Body Energy Club, a Vancouver-founded health and wellness retailer, is an active supporter of youth soccer. The company has partnered with the Vancouver Whitecaps to support youth camp programming and is a long-time supporter of South Delta United, where it is a key sponsor of the club’s new 3v3 league. 

Rick Ocean, Co-Founder of Body Energy Club and President of South Delta United Soccer Club, sees youth sport affordability issues from both the business and club side.

“The ultimate goal here for me, wearing the two hats, is to help keep the soccer costs low for kids because everything has gone up in price,” Ocean said. “With partnerships like Body Energy Club, we were able to keep registration at South Delta United static over the last three years.” 

The company supports the club in several ways, including providing juices that can be sold to raise funds and offering gift bags to parent volunteers. Ocean said South Delta United relies on about 400 parent volunteers who coach, manage teams, and help keep the club running.

For Ocean, supporting youth soccer is about more than athletics.

“There are countless studies that show that kids who are actively engaged in youth sports stay out of trouble and develop stronger peer groups,” he said, adding that if a child has a falling out at school, there is diversity in their friend groups, and they can lean on those relationships fostered through sport. 
 
As youth sports organizations face rising costs, Ocean believes businesses can play an important role through sponsorship, donations, resources, or volunteer time. 
 
“It’s of critical importance that businesses look at how they can get involved,” he said.

Celebrating Effort, Achievement, and Fair Play 

Beyond supporting access and affordability, businesses can also help shape the culture of youth soccer.

For nearly 30 years, Clarkes Recognition Products has helped soccer organizations celebrate achievement, fair play, and community. 

Based in Burnaby, Clarkes is an “old school” trophy shop offering custom engravings, medallions, referee coins and a wide range of trophies. Owner Peter Clarke said his connection to sport is rooted in what it teaches young people.

“I started off primarily with the sportsmanship mindset, which is teaching kids how to work together and treat each other respectfully,” Clarke said. “I just thought really strongly about that in multiple sports, not just soccer, as an ethic of growing up and learning how to compete but also how to support.”

Clarkes longest-standing soccer partnership is with BC Soccer. The company also engraves trophies for other leagues across the Lower Mainland.

“I'm in this business because of the connection that we have with individual growth, confidence and sportsmanship,” he said. “We need fresh air, exercise and sportsmanship, and so that all lines up for me.”

Moving Teams and Developing Players 

As players advance, soccer increasingly extends beyond local fields. Teams visit different jurisdictions for tournaments, and clubs build relationships across regions.  
 
Travel is another aspect of soccer that businesses can help support, and Vancouver-headquartered Uniglobe Travel International is doing just that by helping our local teams get to where they need to be. 

In 2011, Neal Chark, Senior Travel Consultant at Uniglobe, began specializing in sports travel. That led to a relationship with the Vancouver Whitecaps during the club’s first MLS season, and Uniglobe remains connected to the club today.

Chark’s work later expanded to BC Soccer, where Uniglobe helps book trips and provides funding for scholarships. The company is also involved with Pacific FC on Vancouver Island and Vancouver Rise FC.  
 
“We book their travel, but we are also a sponsor of those clubs, and the funds that we provide assist with their development,” Chark said. “We know how important these teams are to the soccer community, and we want to make sure that we can contribute in any way possible.” 

Supporting Athletes off the Field 

Businesses’ role in soccer also extends into athlete health, recovery, and long-term performance.

Brains Bioceutical, a Vancouver-headquartered company that develops and manufactures natural cannabinoid APIs for the pharmaceutical industry, supports soccer through athlete-focused research and local community involvement.

Through its global clinical research, the company is exploring ways to support athlete rehabilitation, including inflammation and sleep.

“Those are two of the main concerns that come up when athletes are traveling,” said Barinder Bhullar, Senior VP, Corporate Affairs, at Brains Bioceutical. “Working to ensure that athletes are performing at their best is a way that we contribute to the soccer community.” 

The company has also sponsored the annual Jordy Rasode Soccer Tournament in Surrey for years. Calvin Rasode, Vice President of Marketing at Brains Bioceutical, said the tournament was founded by his father in memory of his brother 21 years ago and has grown into a longstanding community event.

Bhullar said businesses have an opportunity to support the next generation of players by investing in the sport.

“You look at the Whitecaps where you have home grown talent like Jeevan Badwal from Surrey,” he said. “I think this is where businesses have the opportunity to support those athletes, support those smaller clubs, to ensure that they are given the best training, the best coaching, and the best facilities to move forward.”

Building Safe Spaces for Youth to Play

As families enroll their children in soccer, and as the sport grows in our community, creating positive experiences for everyone involved in the sport also means ensuring clubs and sport organizations have the tools they need to keep children safe.

The Canadian Centre for Child Protection (C3P) is a national charity that offers a variety of programs and resources for child serving organizations, including sport, to help reduce the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. 

Through its Commit to Kids program, C3P works with soccer and other sport organizations to create safer environments for children.

“Child-serving organizations, including sport, are generally safe places for kids, and sport has such a wealth that it offers to children, their growth, development, and self-esteem,” said Karyn Kisbey, Senior Manager of Education and Training with C3P.  

Kisbey said that while most people at child-serving sport organizations are there for the right reasons, it doesn't mean they're invulnerable from child sexual abuse.

“This program provides tools and information to those organizations to create safer spaces and ensure that there are healthy boundaries in the interactions that adults have with kids.”

To learn more about Commit to Kid, its resources, and how it applies to child-serving organizations, visit commit2kids.ca.

A Legacy Built by Community

Together, these organizations show how integral business is to the soccer community. From building fields and lowering costs to recognizing achievement, arranging travel, and supporting athlete development, businesses and charities help make the game more accessible, safe, and positive space.

As Vancouver hosts the World Cup, their work is a reminder that the game’s legacy is often built beyond the stadium. It is fostered in local fields, community clubs, through volunteer networks, and with the support of businesses that understand soccer’s power to bring people together.