It takes guts. Determination. Extraordinary effort.
It takes talent. And heart.
The will to win. The refusal to lose.
On a sunny Sunday in Hayward, California, the FC Gold Pride put all these factors to work.
And, playing in their home stadium before a near-sellout crowd 5,000 screaming fans, the Pride clinched the Women’s Professional Soccer championship in a 4-0 match against Philadelphia.
Because Amway is the presenting sponsor of the FC Gold Pride, I was proud to be with Amway North America Managing Director Steve Lieberman as we joined that huge Bay Area throng in cheering the Pride on to victory.
And of course, everyone here at Amway takes special pride in these incredibly talented soccer champions. After all, who doesn’t love winners?
But this year’s championship felt especially sweet – since the Pride finished the 2009 season in last place. That’s an amazing achievement, in any sport.
And, while team star and FIFA World Player of the Year Marta gave the game her usual 300% effort, this championship wasn’t about any one player. It was about a team. A team that pulled together, making the most of their many talents, and always believing in their ability to win.
This year’s FC Gold Pride stats say it all: Longest winning streak (five games, twice), most goals in a game (six) and most goals in a half (five). The championship game also extends the Pride's WPS record, 14-game unbeaten streak.
Congratulations to everyone on the FC Gold Pride championship team – and thanks, for giving all of us a real-life example of the power of positive!
Our youngest daughter, Bailey, plays on a travel soccer team. Naturally, she follows women’s soccer pretty closely, especially her hero, FIFA World Player of the Year Marta, of FC Gold Pride.
Throughout this season, without her even realizing it, the Pride has helped Bailey learn the value of trying harder, and going after your dreams even when the chips are down.
You see, last year, she watched as FC Gold Pride finished the season dead last. Worst record in the entire league. Nowhere to go but up.
This year, “up” is exactly where the Pride zoomed. Right to the top.
Almost as if the Pride started the season with one goal in mind (no pun intended): Win.
Be the best. Never mind our last-place finish. It’s a different year, a different season.
Bailey saw that yes, a team really can turn itself around – by training harder, by believing in themselves, and with a lot of positivity prevailing throughout every game.
The Pride finished the season with a 14-3-5 record.
The end of August, Marta and her team exploded in a decisive 6-1 drubbing of the Atlanta Beat on the Beat’s home turf (Hot-lanta to those in the know.)
The Pride went on to capture the Women’s Professional Soccer regular season championship with a thrilling 3-2 victory over the Chicago Red Stars.
On Wednesday, September 1st, the team closed out its 2010 road schedule with a tie against Sky Blue FC. In doing so, the Pride extended its unbeaten streak to 11 games, tying the WPS record set by the Los Angeles Sol in 2009.
And, on September 26, at Pioneer Stadium on their home turf at California State University in East Bay, FC Gold Pride will go from last place last season, to competing for this year’s Women’s Professional Soccer Championship.
The night was cool, the team was hot, and 4,000 fans cheered their favorite women’s soccer team – FC Gold Pride and its star player, Marta – to victory against the Boston Breakers. It was the first game played in the Pride’s brand-new Pioneer Stadium on the campus of California State University in Hayworth, Calif.
And when Amway Global Vice President and Managing Director Steve Lieberman and I officially kicked off the game in the center of the field, the crowd got on its feet for the FC Gold Pride’s team sponsor!
Everybody had a great time at Saturday’s game, including the many soccer fans who stopped by the Amway Global tent to spin the wheel and get prizes ranging from official soccer balls to T-shirts. The NUTRILITE® Vanilla Pretzel Energy Bars giveaways were definite crowd pleasers.
In another tent, we kicked off the Marta Power of 10 initiative. It’s a social media-driven campaign helping girls and young women to discover their passion, just as their hero Marta has done. Taking its cue from Marta’s #10 jersey, Power of 10 promotes achievement, inspiring girls to dream big and reach their full potential.
At the tent, girls used Apple® iPads® for the first time in their lives, and signed up for our Power of 10 Facebook page. We now have 180 new friends!
Next stop for the FC Gold Pride: Sunday, June 27, at Pioneer Stadium against FC Sky Blue of New Jersey. Hope you can join us!
It’s that time of year again – soccer season is in the air! Last weekend, I had the chance to attend the sold out San Jose Earthquakes season opener. This is Amway Global’s second year sponsoring the team, and it was great to get the season started!
We’re also pleased to announce that we are the presenting sponsor of the FC Gold Pride of the Womens Professional Soccer league. Marta, the four-time FIFA World Player of the Year, who joined the team in February, also endorses Amway Global and its NUTRILITE health and ARTISTRY beauty brands.
Amway Global, the Earthquakes, and the FC Gold Pride are also reaching out to kids in the area through the Amway Global Kicks for Kids program. With the FC Gold Pride, kids are invited to sit in a specially branded seating section, called “Marta’s Maniacs.” And before each Quakes home game, a player visits a school or community organization to talk to kids about wellness and personal effort. But it doesn’t stop there. We then invite the kids to the stadium with the Quakes player where they watch the game from the Amway Global Kicks for Kids section. At last weekend’s game, some of the kids were even invited down on the field to cheer for the Earthquakes as they ran onto the field.
This is a great opportunity for us to sponsor both Mens and Womens Professional Soccer. These sponsorships are just one of the ways we’re introducing ourselves to people across America. We’re looking forward to an exciting season!
