EL CAJON, CA.— “My dream was to see soccer players grow from their home,” said Mohamed Mansour, president of the new local club San Diego FC, with conviction.
The club’s founder and owner delivered his speech at the Singing Hills Golf Club in Sycuan, surrounded by the mountains where the Kumeyaay tribe natives have grown up, east of San Diego. To his right was Cody Martinez, current president of the Sycuan Reservation of the Kumeyaay Nation.
Mansour is a successful Egyptian-English businessman who has promoted the global model called Right Dream, which has brought the new local expansion team to MLS.
Just a week before the start of the season, the club that will represent San Diego in the highly competitive Major League Soccer (MLS) brings hope and aspires to become a new icon for San Diegans. Mansour spoke during the inauguration ceremony of the club’s state-of-the-art Sharp HealthCare Performance facility.
THE RELEVANCE OF SPIRIT AND MATTER
The importance of spirit, soul, fire, and the land where they were born was highlighted at the beginning of the event by Jamie Labrake, Tribal Elder & Councilmember of the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation.
To the left stood the brand-new Performance Health Center, popularly known as the Sports Medicine Center, of San Diego FC.
“BUILT FROM NOTHING”
“It was built from nothing. In just six months,” an invited guest marveled as they admired the new SHARP Performance Health Center.
While Tom Penn, CEO of San Diego FC, emphasized the significance of innovation and excellence in the new soccer club’s project—one that aims to compensate for the painful loss of the San Diego Chargers—Mike Varas, Head Coach of San Diego FC, made a confident prediction: “We will be a winning team, I have no doubt in saying it.”
EMOTIONAL TESTIMONY
A particularly moving testimony came from player Emmanuel Boateng, who arrived in the United States at the age of 15 from Ghana on a scholarship to attend Cate School in Carpinteria, California. He was later named Player of the Year in 2012, receiving the award from former U.S. national soccer team member Alexi Lalas.
In a statement released by the soccer club, it was announced that the team is conducting its preseason training at the Sharp HealthCare Performance Center, in preparation for its 2025 season debut on Saturday, February 23, against LA Galaxy at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles, the reigning 2024 MLS champion.
“LET TALENT FLOURISH AND SAN DIEGO SHINE”
After reservation leaders participated in a traditional ritual (which blended the tribe’s classic musical instruments with dance), a symbolic ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the beginning of a new chapter in San Diego’s history.
Shortly after, during a tour of the Sports Health Performance Center, a sign at the entrance stood out, reading: “Our Story Begins Now. Write It.” Inside, the Vision statement read: “To be the epicenter of excellence and innovation in North America.” The Mission statement followed: “To create opportunities for talent to flourish and for San Diego to shine.”