Sophia Page spends her mornings around a bunch of, as she would describe, crazy kids. And she loves it.
“I like that there's kids that are crazy, and I like wondering to myself, ‘Was that what I was like?’” Sophia said.
Sophia is one of three coaches in Atlanta United’s inaugural Junior Coach Program, an opportunity for participants in the club’s Youth Programs who have shown excellence as learners and leaders to flip the script from player to coach.
At one point, Sophia was one of those kids, though she would’ve hardly been characterized as crazy. If anything, she was too quiet.
“I didn't talk at all,” Sophia said. “I looked like some [of the] other kids. It's definitely weird saying, ‘Oh that's how I was.’”
Her transformation over the course of her experience in Atlanta United’s Youth Programs was monumental. Now, it’s opening another door for her to continue in the sport she loves, in a different avenue. There, she’s helping kids follow her same trajectory, from shy to outgoing.
Sophia, who goes to Atlanta International School, is a rising junior in high school. She’s versed in Atlanta United’s Youth Programs, but originally as a participant. She spent time in coed Kickstart Camps and progressed to Regional Development School trainings, the tryout-based competitive starter for promising players ages 7-14.
Since the club doesn’t have a girls Academy, girls often participate in RDS supplementary to opportunities at other women’s clubs across Georgia. Sophia chose to return to the Camps, this time just with the girls.
“I did some coed, but mostly girls camps,” Sophia said. “Because I feel like for the girls it’d be a little bit easier if it's only girls, so they don’t have pressure.”
Those experiences were more fun-focused, with kids ages 5-14 developing through competition and camaraderie. But they did much more than just stoke Sophia’s passion for the game.
The camps, for Sophia, were social reps as much as soccer reps. She was always a competitor, especially in her other favorite sport of handball, she just didn’t quite know how to express it.
Sophia said her experience being at the same school since she was four meant she knew everyone in that environment. Youth camps were an opportunity to branch out, to meet kids from all over with unique stories to tell.
“I used to be [shy],” Sophia said. “I think [it’s about] meeting new people and learning how I can get out of my comfort zone [whether] I’m actually playing and doing stuff that I've never done before or meeting new people.”
Coming from an Argentinian background, there was no shortage of fire for the game for Sophia growing up. Help from coaches across a variety of different camps allowed her to harness it.
She’s got plans to continue carving out time for soccer, even considering playing at the collegiate level. But why get into coaching herself?
“Because I've never coached before. I wanted to see that perspective,” she said.
These days, Sophia is paying it forward, helping the next generation kids come out of their shells just as she did — no matter whether they want to be the Messi’s, Ronaldo’s, Marta’s, Hamm’s, Lloyd’s of the world.
“Let’s just say I click more with the Messi fans,” Sophia said with a smile. “There are also always some Argentine kids that are there, so we'll just talk about that. Since I grew up with football, it's kind of easier for me to connect with the kids because they've also grown up [with it]. I mostly stay with smaller kids, so they're still learning, and I help them.”
Sophia is a long way from that quiet kid. It’s the kind of personality she encounters now as a coach all the time, the one who wants to be there but might not have the bravado that others are naturally gifted with. The one who loves soccer but might not know how to show it just yet. The one who could use some guidance and encouragement.
“It's very cool because there's kids that just don't talk in the beginning, and then you just start like asking them random things like, ‘What's your favorite color? Do you have any siblings? What’s your favorite sport?’” Sophia said. “Then, they'll start talking more and more, and then at the end of the camp, they'll just be so talkative.
“For me at least, I did get out of my comfort zone. It could help people get out of their comfort zone and try new things and be braver and more outgoing.”
