by NISA Network Staff September 9, 2021
Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News

We Are NISA Nation: An Interview with Pioneer Premier League Commissioner Desmond Armstrong

By Alexa Doebler Last week, the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA) proudly announced an amateur league affiliation with the new Tennessee-based Pioneer Premier League (PPL). The Pioneer Premier League is owned and led by Desmond Armstrong and his business partner. Desmond himself is a pioneer in the American game as the first Black player born in the United States to start for the USA at a FIFA World Cup (Italia '90), ...

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by NISA Network Staff September 3, 2021
EDI , Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News , Stumptown AC

Kevin Gonzalez Is The Perfect Man For The Job

By Sebastian Johnson It takes a special type of person to be a goalkeeper. A goalkeeper isn’t just another element of a team’s defense - far from it, in fact. The goalkeeper is the final defensive measure a team has, tasked with possibly the most crucial job on the pitch. Professional soccer players can send a ball towards the goal at speeds up to 80 miles per hour. It takes a unique ...

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by NISA Network Staff August 23, 2021
California United Strikers FC , EDI , Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News

For Shinya Kadono, No Distance Is Too Far To Close Through Understanding

By Sebastian Johnson The distance from Kobe, Japan, to Irvine, Calif., is 9,262 kilometers. In imperial units that’s just over 5,755 miles - a measure so great as to be nearly abstract. The average person can hardly visualize 10 miles; 5,755 miles is close to being rendered without meaning in its expanse. That is, unless you’re Shinya Kadono. Despite moving nearly 6,000 miles at age seven, the understanding he was met with ...

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by NISA Network Staff August 16, 2021
Chattanooga FC , EDI , Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News

Experience Shapes Actions for Shaun Russell

By Sebastian Johnson Shaun Russell didn’t realize the athlete he was becoming until he was 14 years old. “I realized I was good when I got my first college letter,” he says. It wasn’t much longer after that he got his first college call - a moment that cemented into his mind the fact that he just might be an above average soccer player. Even though Russell doesn’t remember the school that sent ...

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by NISA Network Staff August 7, 2021
EDI , Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News , Maryland Bobcats FC

Interview with Babajide Saba: President of the Maryland Bobcats Football Club

By Sebastian Johnson Babajide Saba is the president of the Maryland Bobcats Football Club. He also is a member of a growing number of front office executives who have taken non-traditional paths. He is a man forged by his experiences; a man who has grown to allow his unique past to inform not just his own future, but the futures of every life he has the power to affect. It’s easy to ...

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by NISA Network Staff July 23, 2021
Featured , Independent Cup , Interview Series , Latest News

Level Up: An Independent Cup Amateur Club Spotlight Series

Space United FC By Alexa Doebler Next up in our series is Space United FC Founder and CEO, Camilo Tobacia. Tobacia's own story is so deeply intertwined with the development and identity of the club that to know about Space United FC, you really need to start with Tobacia's story. "Soccer runs deep. All the way back. Since I could walk, really. I was born in South America in Bogota, Colombia and I ...

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by NISA Network Staff July 16, 2021
Featured , Independent Cup , Interview Series , Latest News

Level Up: An Independent Cup Amateur Club Spotlight Series

Allentown United FC By Alexa Doebler This week, we dive into Allentown United FC as we hear from Founder and President of the Club Emmanuel Ntow-Mensah. Ntow-Mensah tells us of the origins of Allentown United FC, or as it is often referred to, ‘The People’s Club’. Ntow-Mensah moved to Pennsylvania for a wealth management operations job and noticed the soccer scene in the area felt lacking.  As a former college player, while finance ...

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by NISA Network Staff July 8, 2021
Featured , Independent Cup , Interview Series , Latest News

Level Up: An Independent Cup Amateur Club Spotlight Series

Atletico Atlanta By: Alexa Doebler As we head into the Independent Cup, a tournament that brings together both pro and amateur clubs, NISA wanted to highlight some of these amateur clubs that you'll see taking the pitch over the next month. This week we chat with Joao Garcia of Atletico Atlanta, a club whose first match is a big one, taking on NISA Pro Club Chattanooga FC. As Garcia put it, "We ...

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by admin May 21, 2021
Featured , Interview Series , Interview With . . . , Latest News , Stumptown AC

Difference Makers in the Game of Soccer: An Interview with Stumptown AC Head Coach Rod Underwood

By Alexa Doebler Heading into Week 4 of our 2021 Spring Season, our Game of the Week comes to you from Matthews Sportsplex, the stadium of NISA’s newest team, Stumptown AC. They will be lacing up to take on Cal United Strikers FC this Saturday, May 22nd. And while this club is young- 7 games and about 2 months since initial tryouts- they are taking to the pitch in an impressive showing ...

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by NISA Network Staff July 3, 2020
Chattanooga FC , Detroit City , Independent Cup , Latest News , New Amsterdam FC , New York Cosmos

What is the Independent Cup?

What is the NISA Independent Cup? By NISA Nation Staff   The “I” in NISA stands for independent. It is a guiding principle for everyone working in NISA that our clubs represent the top tier of independent clubs and represent growing an open system.  But what about clubs that may not meet mandated standards yet to compete in that top tier – do we represent them as well?  Many of these clubs ...

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