LATINO SPACE ENGINEERS INSPIRING & UPLIFTING COMMUNITIES ON EARTH THROUGH SOCCER.
SEATTLE, WA – Local Latinx engineer-founded soccer club, Space United, takes their mission of inspiring underrepresented youth and diversity in STEM to a national platform in this summer’s NISA Independent Cup Tournament.
Space United, which is an organization that includes two amateur soccer teams of players who are actively pushing the boundaries of space exploration at companies such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Relativity Space, etc., also includes a nonprofit foundation using space and soccer to break through the barriers of STEM outreach with underrepresented youth.
Space United’s nonprofit, aptly named Goal For Launch, is led by engineer-athletes, such as Space United founder and former player for the professional Colombian club Millonarios, Camilo Tobacia, who started the soccer club as SpaceX Football Club, in 2014, when he became an Spacecraft Engineer at SpaceX.
Since then, the club evolved into Space United after drawing in players from multiple space ventures, including Blue Origin, where Camilo currently works. As their club grew, they began realizing their potential and role in impacting the community.
Having grown up with humble means in Colombia and understanding the existing lack of minority role models and access to STEM resources, Camilo was inspired to use Space United to reach minority communities.
“Space and soccer give people hope and the means to achieve and change lives,” said Space United founder, Camilo Tobacia. “We want people from all walks of life to be inspired by what they are capable of and not only stop at inspired but, continue to find support in a community that values sharing each other’s success.”
During 2020 and the pandemic, Space United reached more than 7,000 students around the world through school outreach talks, connecting as STEM role models, providing Spanish language space exploration content, and their postcards to space collaboration with Blue Origin’s foundation, Club for the Future, where students send their vision of sports in space to space and back.
Space United in the upcoming NISA Independent Cup
Now, as life and soccer are slowly returning to normal, Space United is making an impressionable return to soccer and elevating their positive message to a national level with the upcoming NISA Independent Cup.
This July's national tournament is organized by NISA, a professional third tier U.S. men’s soccer league distinguished as a promotion/relegation system and features 36 amateur and professional teams competing for regional championships in nationally televised games.
Space United will be playing 3 games throughout the Pacific region, with a home game in the Renton Memorial Stadium, on July 10th, 2021, that will showcase a Space STEM gameday experience with booths from a growing list of STEM related organizations. and also their recent front jersey partnership with Blue Origin’s nonprofit “Club For the Future” on the front of their award-winning rocket design jersey.
As the tournament nears, Space United is drawing upon their unique mix of experience from building rockets and connecting with the community, to gear up and invite the community’s support.
Space United said that this upcoming NISA Independent Cup is an exciting first step towards becoming a professional soccer club and are calling on the community to come experience soccer and space and also consider sponsoring and/or donating to their one of a kind mission.
Your donation will support Space United’s non-profit foundation Goal for Launch, a community outreach organization with a mission to inspire underrepresented youth to pursue careers in STEM and participate in this summer’s NISA Independent Cup as the first Football Club of Space!
For donation information, please visit spaceunited.com/donate
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Emily Chow, Director of Communications at Space United
Emily@spaceunited.com
Camilo Tobacia, Founder & President at Space United
Camilo@spaceunited.com
ABOUT SPACE UNITED
Space United Football Club® is an organization made up of space engineer-athletes that unites space & soccer to inspire & uplift communities on earth. Our players in Los Angeles and Seattle are space professionals actively pushing the boundaries of space exploration at companies such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Relativity Space and more. Our goals include inspiring youth to pursue careers in STEM, increase diversity in the space industry and establish a professional soccer club in the US by 2022. For more information about Space United visit www.spaceunited.com or contact us at info@spaceunited.com.
Follow Space United on Twitter, Instagram & Facebook @SpaceUnitedFC.
ABOUT NISA
The National Independent Soccer Association was founded in 2017 with a mission to bring professional soccer to every city in the United States. A pro league member of U.S. Soccer, NISA focuses on a model based on meritocracy, independent clubs controlling their own league, clubs owning their intellectual property, all without the barrier of territorial rights. A member of the U.S. Soccer Federation, NISA also runs the mid-summer Independent Cup, open to independent professional and amateur clubs alike. For more information about NISA visit NISASoccer.com or contact at info@nisasoccer.com.
Follow NISA on Twitter @NISALeague and on Instagram @nisasoccer.
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