26 x 2026

Zakaria would play soccer every waking moment of the day if he could.

Miahney loves the sport because it is a chance for boys and girls to play alongside each other and have fun.

Both 10-year-olds have the chance to live out their dreams – one in Pasco and one in Seattle - thanks to RAVE Foundation’s initiative with massive help from supporters and partners to build 26 mini soccer fields before the 2026 World Cup™.

What started as an idea to create free play spaces in communities that lack them has turned into a statewide movement where the fields come to life within each individual community.

From the very first RAVE field at Yesler Terrace in 2019 in downtown Seattle where Zakaria lives to the 26th field opened as part of the initiative in Pasco near Miahney’s house, the impact is deep and meaningful.

That lasting impact and its profound effect on communities of need throughout the state is why RAVE recently announced that they are doing MORE by pledging to build 26 more fields statewide - before the FIFA World Cup™ comes to Seattle in less than two years.

“I was really excited to have a field by my house,” Zakaria said of the mini pitch located less than a mile from Lumen Field. “I didn’t have to go far away to play, I could just go right out of my house and practice. It is really fun.”

The Yesler and Pasco fields bookend RAVE’s “26 Fields by 2026” initiative launched in 2022 and includes fields from Spokane to Yakima to Seattle and many small and big towns in between.

“In 2013, RAVE’s mission was built around free play, and it hasn’t wavered since,” said Ashley Fosberg, RAVE Executive Director. “That vision is to build small fields for free play and to use soccer as a vehicle to inspire youth and strengthen communities. The fields are incredible beacons for play and healthy activity -but it is the programs and our long-term commitment to the communities that inhabit RAVE fields that set RAVE apart from other organizations.”

BRINGING A COMMUNITY TOGETHER

Fathiya grew up in Somalia watching soccer.

She never missed a chance to go outside and play with the neighborhood kids, kicking a ball around.

While she never was able to play organized soccer on teams because those were reserved for boys only, she still loved the sport and passed that on to her son, Zakaria, in the United States.

“I am very happy to see my son when he plays, especially when he is scoring goals,” she said through a translator. “Soccer is our passion. If he doesn’t go to a game or practice, sometimes he will not even eat because he is so emotionally attached to the sport – he is committed to it.”

Before the field at Yesler Terrace opened, the family didn’t have anywhere nearby to play. While Seattle has plenty of parks, having one right next to your house is a luxury – one that the vast majority of people in Seattle do not have. The family doesn’t own a car and with Fathiya needing to care for other small children at home, traveling to far flung fields puts a real strain on the family.

“It is very important that this field was built here,” she said. “I don’t drive. I struggle to take him to practice elsewhere. He doesn’t want to play any other sport besides soccer, so we try to support him. With the field here, he can play with his neighbors and his friends, and he is near me.”

The field is more than just a place for young kids to cut their teeth on the sport. It is a true neighborhood center as in addition to Zakaria and his friends, the field attracts people from all over the neighborhood, high school and middle school kids join in as well as even students from nearby Seattle University.

“Soccer is something that will always stay in my life – it is a constant,” he said.

GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER

Ashley Fosberg, RAVE’s Executive Director, grew up playing recreational soccer.

She remembers going to Sounders games in the Kingdome. All her children played rec soccer as well, but it wasn’t until the RAVE Foundation was launched that her life’s work of helping people melded with her understanding and passion for the sport of soccer.

“I was just a kid excited about soccer,” she said. “What I’ve discovered along the way is the uniqueness of soccer as a sport and how it truly connects people locally and globally. You don’t have to teach it; you just have to give access to it.”

Giving access to free play isn’t a new concept, by any means, but what sets RAVE apart is their willingness and commitment to go to communities and listen to their needs, rather than just tell the communities what they will do for them.

“What excites me the most is seeing how soccer is used to connect kids, families and communities,” Fosberg said. “It already has a language that everyone speaks. This sport brings people in ways that no other activity can.” And while she’s quick to point to the hard work of everyone involved to make this a success, she is proud to be involved.

“I don’t think of it as any one person’s impact,” she said. “We are all part of an organization that is making an impact. The legacy we are leaving is access to play and I hope we have created a model for others that leverages an amazing sport to do more than just coach the sport or grow the sport – it is a model that will continue to meet communities where they are, and use soccer to inspire joy, learning and good health.”

SPREADING THE JOY

Miahney was all smiles when hearing the news that a new field was coming to Pasco.

Two new fields in fact.

The 25th and 26th fields to open are at Kurtzman Park and Highland Park in the Eastern Washington city where soccer is king.

“I was so excited that they were opening something new, and I was there to enjoy it,” she said. “I think it helps the community to have more open spaces to play soccer so not just I can enjoy it, but everyone in the community can.”

Much like Zakaria’s family on the other side of the state, soccer has been a family affair for Miahney and her family.

Everyone plays it and they definitely watch it, so getting access to a field that encourages free play is a cherry on top.

“It feels nice to because you get to be together and you can make a mix of boys and girls to play an adventurous game,” she said. “It’s fun. You get to kick the ball. Sometimes I play with my dad or with friends from school.”

WHAT'S NEXT – 26 MORE FIELDS RAVE’s mission is to impact as many children in our state as possible, but they want to do so in a way that has a lasting effect.

The planning for the next 26 fields is already in motion with communities like Moses Lake being added to the mix.

RAVE Foundation is always looking for more ways to partner with communities and individuals throughout the state – be that through financial donations, volunteering of time or just helping spread the word.

“Having a place to play that is impactful for even that one individual makes the whole thing worthwhile,” said Adrian Hanauer, Sounders FC owner. “We know you can’t do everything, and one of the secrets to the success of the RAVE Foundation is the simplicity of what we do – creating places to play for instance – and our strong focus on mission and how that comes to life through our fields and programs. From the start, we didn’t want to be an inch deep and a mile wide. We wanted to have a real focus that would result in real impacts. When I meet a kid on a pitch I know we are making that impact. When I see all of the fields we’ve built and all of the fields we’re going to build, I know we’re making that much more of an impact on people’s lives.”

If you’d like to donate money, time or receive updates on the progress of RAVE’s mission, visit their website at RaveFoundation.org.