A few years ago, I moved back home. Instead of feeling that sense of belonging I had growing up, I just felt lost. I needed to find my “why”: the one thing that would fuel passion within me.

Week after week, I turned to pick-up soccer. For two hours every Tuesday evening, all of my worries were put on pause. Playing with strangers was uncomfortable at first, but our shared love of fútbol brought us together in the end. Slowly, I found a community, which made me fall in love with soccer in the first place.



Of course, I’ve had countless awkward encounters when asking people to play. It’s especially difficult as a woman, with pickup culture and soccer in general being a very male-dominated sport. Even finding where to play was a challenge. I figured posting about pickup in my area would help me engage with people who shared my experience. What I didn’t expect was that so many people would resonate with my content.

The number one comment I would get is “where can I find pickup soccer?”

I realized that there was a strong need for a space where people could just come as they are and play soccer. As a woman, a welcoming, inclusive environment was few and far between on the soccer field. In pickup, it’s rare to feel like the only requirement is that you play for the love of the game.

So, I created Alana’s Fútbol Club.


I’ve broken my club up into different skill levels, so that any player can find a group that works best for them. I wanted to disrupt the system of pickup that left women and beginners out of the game. At the end of the day, movement and soccer brought me back into myself, and my club is where others can rekindle that too. 

No meetup is complete without our rituals: a group warm-up, intentional stretches that ground us in the outdoors, and a Yerba Madre. With the steady boost we get from Yerba, our game flows in the best way possible, taking everything to the next level. Pickup is more about community, it’s about pushing ourselves to move with intention and flow.

As we get older, the responsibilities and demands of life pile up, making it harder to find the time and mental capacity to play soccer. My club is about finally making the consistent space and time for people to come back to a sport that they loved as a kid. This is what keeps me going, and how I come to life. Alana’s Fútbol Club is for anyone and everyone, regardless of their background.


Recently a player reached out, saying that she was struggling to find her spark again after ending her college soccer career. By joining AFC, she finally felt excited about soccer again and comfortable to freely move, play, and come back to herself. Often, the love of the game gets lost in the structures and demands the sport was built on.

Realizing how much of an impact Alana’s Fútbol Club had made on her and countless other girls reminded me why I created this club in the first place. I have found such joy building something bigger than myself.

There are challenges that come with every process of growing something from the ground up. Through every pickup game, cheering section, and community-based event, I rely on Yerba Madre to keep my community connected. On the hardest days, we come together on the field to show up for ourselves. Yerba is always on the sidelines as our quiet cheerleader.

No matter what the day brings me, I know I have soccer, my fútbol club, and Yerba Madre to keep me going.