University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Fútbol en America

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Fútbol en America

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Fútbol en America

Randy Vazquez

A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ANNENBERG SCHOOL
FOR COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF ARTS
(SPECIALIZED JOURNALISM)
AUGUST 2022

ii
Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Dan Birman for providing me knowledge, thoughtful criticism, and
support throughout the process of my documentary. I would also like to thank my committee
members Sandy Tolan and Jeff Fellenzer for accepting to be part of this journey with me. I
would like to thank the coaches, staff, and players at Los Angeles United Futbol Academy
(LAUFA) for granting me access and letting me share the work they do to help Latino kids in
Southern California play competitive youth soccer. I also want to thank the parents of the players
for letting me into their homes and sharing a slice of their lives with me. I especially want to
acknowledge Maricela Abad and her son Jonathan Juarez who is a member of the LAUFA
under-17 soccer team. Thanks to Martin Vasquez for sharing his unique experience of being one
of a handful of people who played for both the U.S. and Mexican national teams, and his
extensive knowledge of youth soccer in the United States. Thanks to Hugo Salcedo who
provided global context to my documentary with his insight from his long career as a FIFA
representative. Finally, I would like to thank Nomads Soccer Club for their willingness to
participate in the documentary.

iii
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………. ii
Abstract……………………………………………………………………….……...iv
Reflection……………………………………………………………………….…....1
References …………………………………………………………………………...7
Documentary Script………………………………………………………………….8

iv
Abstract

“Fútbol en America” is a documentary that examines youth soccer in the United States. The story
focuses on Latino American soccer players and how the current structure of competitive youth
soccer impacts them. Soccer clubs in the United States operate under the pay-to-play model. This
is the process of paying money to join a team and later play for that club. This can create a
financial obstacle for some who can’t afford to pay. The story is told through Los Angeles
United Football Academy. An L.A. based youth soccer club who is trying to make soccer more
accessible to Latinos in Southern California. This documentary also follows one player’s journey
who is attempting to earn a soccer scholarship. He would be the first in his family to attend a
four-year university. The story provides insight from experts and personal stories. This makes for
a documentary that informs viewers and aims to create an emotional connection.

1
Reflection

“Fútbol en America” is a documentary on Latino American soccer players and how the
pay-to-play youth soccer system in America impacts them. I told this story through Los Angeles
United Futbol Academy, a youth soccer team that helps Latinos in the L.A. area play in the MLS
Next League. According to Major League Soccer it is the “highest level of competition” for
youth soccer in North America.
1
Playing in a league like this opens the door for aspiring soccer
players to play in college, and for some, even make it to the professional level. Unfortunately,
the cost to join some of these clubs is not cheap. It is common for some of these clubs to charge
thousands of dollars a year to play for them. The cost excludes players who do not have the
financial means to pay these fees.
2
In Southern California, many of the impacted players are
Latino. The springboard to pursue this subject was a result of my upbringing in Southern
California and my background as a first-generation Mexican American. For me, like for many
other Latino American youth, soccer is the first sport we are introduced to. Some of my first
memories in life are of watching family members play or joining my family to watch games on
television. Even as a kid, I would always wonder why I didn’t see a lot of Latinos like me play
professionally in the United States. I would often see players from Mexico such as Jorge Campos
and Mauricio Cienfuegos, from El Salvador, join Major League Soccer and become stars. But I
didn’t see a lot of American-born Latinos play professionally in the United States. On any given
afternoon I would see hundreds of American-born Latinos play soccer at my local park; but in
the professional ranks it was a different reality. What started as a curiosity led me to unearth
some of the potential systemic obstacles that hamper some Latinos from reaching the

1
2022. “MLS Next – Youth Soccer Reimagined.” Major League Soccer.
2
2018. “Latinos in Soccer: What's the US Model so They're Not Left behind?” The Aspen Institute

2
professional ranks.
3
It also motivated me to find those who are trying to help create bridges to
overcome some of these challenges. While I decided to tell this story through one club, this is a
story that touches on bigger societal issues that can translate to other communities and other
sports in the United States.
The pursuit of this subject landed me on the doorstep of Los Angeles United Futbol
Academy. The team is based out of Los Angeles and is made up of mostly Latino soccer players
from around Southern California. The team attracts players from all walks of life but many of the
players who take advantage of the team’s lower fees are Latinos. The team competes in the MLS
Next League, which is made up of clubs from around the country. The competition is a level
above youth soccer and a step below the professional ranks. It is not cheap to play competitive
sports in America, according to survey research conducted by the Utah State University’s
Families Sports Lab the average cost per household to play competitive youth sports is $2,292.
4

LAUFA charges players around $900 a year to play, according to club officials. For players who
purely just want to play soccer, it’s not necessary to join a team that charges high fees to play –
but the likelihood of being scouted by a college or a professional team is slim. Coaches are not
looking at high school soccer for talent or at recreational leagues, according to experts such as
Martin Vasquez, who played professionally in the United States and Mexico for nearly two
decades. He later coached for the United States youth national team and coached for several
professional clubs such as Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake. The search for talent is
narrowed to players who play in the MLS Next League, Vasquez said.
5
A little over a dozen
teams in Southern California play in the competition. In the documentary, I decided to explore

3
2018. “Latinos in Soccer: What's the US Model so They're Not Left behind?” The Aspen Institute
4
2015. “The Impact of Family Financial Investment on Perceived Parent Pressure ...” Utah State University.
5
Martin Vasquez, interview by Randy Vazquez. FMR. United States and Mexico national team soccer player.
March 9, 2022.

3
this theme mostly through LAUFA. I wanted to avoid overwhelming the audience with too many
characters. By having too many teams and characters, I feared viewers would lose the emotional
connection to some of the individual stories. While I wanted to inform people through the
documentary, I didn’t want to risk losing the humanity of the story. The club provided
compelling individual stories that were universal beyond soccer: Stories of sacrifice, fear,
uncertainty, hope and triumph. LAUFA has teams that play in different age ranges. I chose to
follow the club’s under-17 team. This was a purposeful choice because the players were in a
unique time in their lives. For some, it is their last year of youth soccer and their senior year of
high school. For those interested in pursuing soccer in college or professionally, it could be their
last chance to be recognized.
One of these stories was of Jonathan Juarez and his mother Maricela Abad. The family
lives in an older apartment complex in North Hills, Calif., which is located in the San Fernando
Valley. Juarez is a defender on the LAUFA under-17 team. Each year, several players on
LAUFA leave for professional teams such as the Los Angeles Galaxy or Los Angeles Football
Club. Others get scouted by college programs and get offered scholarships. In the short term
these players’ futures are decided. I chose to make Juarez my main character because his future
was not yet set. When I met him, he did not know if this year would be the end of the line for
soccer. Juarez was in the process of applying to colleges when I started documenting him. In his
mind, this was his last shot of turning this sport he loves into an athletic scholarship. Being able
to go to college had a deeper significance to Juarez and his family. Juarez would be the first in
his family to go to a four-year university. I learned that his mother was pregnant with Juarez
during her first year of community college. I also found out that the family shared a single car,
which made getting Juarez to practice a struggle. Details like this provided subtle examples of

4
the kind of players LAUFA aims to help. There is no guarantee any of these players will become
professional or ever play beyond the club level, but what I learned is that it provides a glimmer
of hope for these players that didn’t exist in the past.
While this is a story told through a sport, it touches on bigger issues such as the economic
inequalities that exist in youth sports in the United States. One example of this is the pay-to-play
system in youth soccer. This is the process of paying fees to join a club.
6
The more competitive
the club the more expensive the sport becomes. According to a study conducted by the Sports
and Fitness Industry Association, most participants in competitive youth sports come from
households making more than $100,000 a year.
7
While experts like Martin Vasquez were able to
explain what the idea of pay-to-play is, experts like Hugo Salcedo gave this idea global
perspective. Salcedo worked in dozens of countries during his years as a FIFA representative and
provided examples of how youth soccer works in other countries. He also spoke on the
availability of some of these academies. While clubs like LAUFA exist in the Los Angeles area,
this is not the case in surrounding counties. This led me to speak with players who make long
commutes to practice, such as Damian Inzunza, a 17-year-old player who commutes from his
home in Hesperia to Downey four times a week. That’s a commute of more than 70 miles each
way.
I felt that telling this story in documentary format was the only way to explore this topic
with the intimacy I felt it deserved. With video, I was able to visually capture those underlying
themes that I felt couldn’t be captured in written format, such as: the thrill of victory and the
agony of defeat, the uncertainty of the future, and the triumph by someone who accomplishes a

6
2017. “MONEY MATTERS: AN INVESTIGATOIN OF THE EFFECTS OF PAY-TO-PLAY SYSTEMS ON
YOUTH SOCCER DIVERSITY.” George Mason University.
7
2018. “Soccer Participation in the United States.” Medium. Medium.

5
goal. While there are writers that can make people feel like they are in the scene, video takes
viewers there and reaches people’s visual and auditory senses. Video and audio help capture raw
emotion and is the most effective way to connect the audience to characters: To not only learn
about the subject matter, but to make them feel something and care about the people whose faces
they see in the documentary. While I didn’t base my whole story on game action, I think
showing some of the action and skillfulness from the players made the documentary more
interesting.
Through this documentary, I was able to give people an inside look at the world of youth
sports, specifically soccer, in the United States and the socioeconomic factors that can impact
players visibility, and ultimately their opportunities. I provided an intimate view of the process
and the sacrifice some players make to reach their soccer goals. I gave the audience a global
perspective on the subject matter through experts with extensive knowledge of youth soccer in
the United States and around the world. I was able to take viewers through one player’s journey
and hopefully reach them at an emotional level.
My original idea was to follow the LAUFA under-17 team through their entire season.
The intention was to add more stakes to the documentary by creating suspense around the team’s
hopes of winning a national championship. This became complicated because of the required
paperwork. Since the team I was covering was under-17, I needed release forms from both
parents in order for players to participate, which became troublesome to obtain. Some of the rival
teams were willing to participate but when it came to the paperwork, the releases were never
ready in time. After a few failed attempts, I chose to change the focus of the documentary and
put less emphasis on the actual season and placed more effort toward the players and coaches on

6
the LAUFA team. The timing of the season also didn’t work with my deadline. The season is not
scheduled to be over until July, so I would not be able to see the story through.
“Fútbol en America” attempts to give viewers an intimate view of a youth soccer club
that aids Latinos in Southern California. The aim was to give viewers an inside look at this club,
but what I found were deeply relatable stories that helped make connections with the audience.
The documentary educates people about the income inequalities in youth soccer that exist in the
United States and shines a light on some of the players who are most impacted. “Fútbol en
America” is intended to inform viewers but to also provide a story that people can connect with
on a human level by touching on themes such as uncertainty, triumph, loss, sacrifice and hope.
These themes go well beyond sport.

7
References
Mlssoccer. “MLS Next - Youth Soccer Reimagined.” mlssoccer. Accessed May 20, 2022.
https://www.mlssoccer.com/mlsnext/about.

Solomon, Jon. “Latinos in Soccer: What's the US Model so They're Not Left behind?” The
Aspen Institute, December 29, 2017. https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/latinos-soccer-
whats-us-model-theyre-not-left-behind/.

Young, C. Ryan, Travis E Dorsch, Michael Q King, and Kevin J Rothlisberger. “The Impact of
Family Financial Investment on Perceived Parent Pressure ...” Utah State University. Accessed
May 21, 2022. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/fare.12193.

Hartman, Brandon. “MONEY MATTERS: AN INVESTIGATOIN OF THE EFFECTS OF
PAY-TO-PLAY SYSTEMS ON YOUTH SOCCER DIVERSITY.” George Mason University,
2017. http://jbox.gmu.edu/bitstream/handle/1920/10914/Hartman_thesis_2017.pdf.

Schulman, Alli. “Soccer Participation in the United States.” Medium. Medium, June 15, 2018.
https://sfia.medium.com/soccer-participation-in-the-united-states-92f8393f6469.

8
Documentary Script

Prologue
00:00:00

FUTBOL EN AMERICA
NAT SOUND
00:01:01

L.A. United Futbol Academy coach Jose
Aguilar arrives at his teams practice and
unzips his jacket.

SOT Jose Aguilar, head coach of LAUFA
under 17 team.
00:01:29

His under 17 team warms up.

I started working with LAUFA back in
2013. That's when the club was initiated.
SOT Aguilar
00:01:36

Team keeps warming up.

The club was founded by Rocky
Delgadillo who had a vision to help
underprivileged kids.

SOT Aguilar
00:01:51
Jose kicks soccer balls onto the field.

We serve players from all walks of life.
The majority come from low-income
families.

9
SOT Aguilar
00:02:00

Aguilar speaks with director Martin
Vasquez. Players walk to a team huddle.
The majority of our players are Latinos.
Me, coming from that type of
environment, also, I wanted you put my
hands in there and help out.

VO TEXT
00:02:11

Players listen while coaches speak.

https://www.mlssoccer.com/mlsnext/

LOS ANGELES FUTBOL ACADEMY
(LAUFA) IS PART OF THE MLS NEXT
LEAGUE. THE TOP YOUTH SOCCER
LEAGUE IN THE COUNTRY.

VO TEXT
00:02:19

LAUFA PROVIDES AFFORDABLE
HIGH-LEVEL YOUTH SOCCER TO
KIDS IN THE L.A. AREA. MANY OF
THE PLAYERS THAT BENEFIT FROM
THIS ARE LATINOS.

SOT Martin Vasquez,
Fmr. Mexico and U.S. Men’s national team
player. Also a youth coach for 20 years.

00:02:31

Players huddles up.

College coaches, professional scouts,
they're not going to, to the Sunday
leagues, they're not going as much to
high school.
SOT Vasquez
00:02:41

Detailed shots of players listening.
Why? Because now they know that the
best talent they're playing in the MLS
next program, and that's where they're
recruiting.

10
NAT SOUND
00:02:50

Vasquez yells instructions. Players run
drills.

SOT Vasquez
00:03:04

Players get their different color pennies on.
The main goal of LAUFA is to be able to
get those kids those Latino kids from the
barrio, to provide those kids with an
opportunity to be scouted, to be
recruited, for college for the highest
level they can get to.
NAT SOUND
00:03:24

Players walk over to begin a drill

SOT Aguilar
00:03:30

Players start to take shots at goal

The fees for clubs that compete in the
same league that we do ranges from
$1,500 to $4,000 a year.

SOT Aguilar
00:03:41

Aguilar watches team take shots at goal.

Here at LAUFA we minimize the fees for
players they only pay for uniform cost
and then we'll do fundraising to cover the
rest of the stuff.
NAT SOUND
00:03:51

Aguilar walks over to an injured Jonathan
Juarez

11
NAT SOUND
00:04:10

Juarez tries to walk off the injury.

SOT Jonathan Juarez
Juarez plays for LAUFA’S under 17 team.

00:04:16

My first few months at LAUFA were
pretty rough because I was like an
outsider.
SOT Juarez
00:04:28

Juarez still grimacing from his injury.

I had to fit in I had to earn my spot.
SOT Juarez
00:04:41

Juarez moves his ankle gingerly.

I wanted to make something out of
soccer. So I had to look for an academy
and LAUFA was a local academy and
they had good rep about it so I wanted to
give it a shot.
NAT SOUND
00:04:53

Juarez gets ready to go back into practice.

SOT Vasquez
00:05:05

Jonathan juggling a ball.

I see a young man with dreams. I see a
young man committed. I see a young
man that is hungry.

12
SOT Vasquez
00:05:18

Jonathan runs back into practice.

He's got a quality to play at the next
level.
VO TEXT
00:05:26

Jonathan tries to block a shot.

JONATHAN GRADUATES FROM HIGH
SCHOOL THIS YEAR. HE HOPES TO
EARN A COLLEGE SOCCER
SCHOLARSHIP.
VO TEXT
00:05:34

Jonathan waits in line and talk to some
teammates.
HE HAS NOT RECEIVED A
SCHOLARSHIP OFFER YET.
SOT Juarez
00:05:40

Juarez joking with teammates.
I started easing up a little bit on myself
with the whole application process.
SOT Juarez
00:05:45

The application process was a little
tough for me, because I will be the first
generation to go into college for my
family.
SOT Juarez
00:05:53

Camera on Jonathan.

Soccer has always been my plan A I’ve
really never had a plan B.
NAT SOUND
00:05:53

Aguilar instructing his team to move the
goal post.

13
SOT Juarez
00:06:10

Juarez moves a goal post

Having that one college believe in me
and give me that scholarship, that
opportunity to play on the field and just
do what I love doing which is playing and
competing in the highest level.

NAT SOUND
00:06:21

Vasquez calls a team meeting.

SOT Vasquez
00:06:26

Vasquez talks to the team after practice.

“I want to make a couple of things clear.
We want to go to the playoffs and
compete for a national title. You have the
schedule, you have everything, Saturday
come ready to kick some ass.”

SOT Vasquez
00:06:45

Players and coaches listening to Martin.

“To win our first game and accomplish
our goal. Yes?

Thank you gentleman.”
NAT SOUND
00:06:51

Players leave home after practice

14
SOT Aguilar
0:07:11

Aguilar getting in his truck to end the night
at practice.

I coach because I love the sport. But I
also love to help out kids that have
obstacles to play a sport that they love.
SOT Aguilar
0:07:25

To open opportunities for them to give
them a different vision in life.
NAT SOUND
00:07:32

Aguilar arrives at the LAUFA clubhouse in
Cypress

SOT Aguilar
00:07:57

Aguilar unlocks the building and walks in.

I came to the States in 1983.
SOT Aguilar
00:08:03

Aguilar opens the door

The reason why we relocated from El
Salvador to the States, like every other
family, in El Salvador, we had a civil war
going on, it was very difficult to make a
living over there.

SOT Aguilar
00:08:17

Aguilar walks in the building

Soccer makes you feel at home, no
matter where you're at. Makes you feel
like you're back in your world in your
comfort zone.

15
SOT Aguilar
00:08:26

A look inside the LAUFA clubhouse.

So, it did help me. I think it helps a lot of
us that move from our country to the
States.
SOT Aguilar
00:08:26

Jose works out of the clubhouse.

My U-17 team, I've had this team for a
few years now, the roster has changed
tremendously.
SOT Aguilar
00:08:44

For a good reason. We lose players to
LA Galaxy, LAFC.

SOT Aguilar
00:08:52

Constantly looking for players to replace
those players that have moved on to the
professional academies.
SOT Aguilar
00:09:01

Him working to a cutaway of him on
camera.

We started losing all our games. We
struggle. But right now at the moment,
we're actually doing really good
SOT Aguilar
00:09:17

Closing the clubhouse.

We just came back from Arizona and we
tied against the first [place] team in the
league.

16
SOT Aguilar
00:09:17

Leaving clubhouse

And it just pumped a lot of positive
energy in everybody's system. So we're
ready to finish the league strong.
NAT SOUND
00:09:44

Maricela Abad, Jonathan’s mother, leaves
to pick him up from school.

SOT Maricela Abad
Abad, is Jonathan Juarez’s mother.

00:10:07

Abad turns on her car.

I've known soccer since I was in my
mom's belly. My dad's been playing
soccer for like the longest. So every
Sunday for us instead of going to church
we would go to the soccer game.

SOT Abad
00:10:21

Abad driving to pick up Jonathan

I got pregnant at a young age and it was
a very disappointing to my parents,
because I was going to be the first one to
go to college.
SOT Abad
00:10:27

And it totally went down the drain. I had
to work to support my son.

SOT Abad
00:10:27

Abad talking while driving to pick up
Jonathan.

To me he was just in elementary not so
long ago. Having him home and now
thinking that he's going to be going away
for college, It's starting to get real.

17

SOT Abad
00:10:53

Abad talking while driving.

And we're just waiting for that graduation
day. Or I'm not waiting for it. I could just
have him there for another year or two
but it's part of life. Our kids have to grow
up and be independent.

NAT SOUND
00:11:10

Abad picks up Juarez and ask him about
school.

SOT Abad & Juarez
00:11:31

The two have a conversation about his
graduation approaching. Abad teasing her
son.

Abad: “Are you nervous?”

Juarez: “About graduating? A little bit”

Abad: “I cried on my graduation day”

Juarez: “I don’t know, I usually never cry”

Abad: “Dude you are so going to cry”

Juarez: “Definitely not”
SOT Juarez
00:11:55

Juarez talking in front of his home.

My parents have always struggled so
much to maintain me.

18
SOT Juarez
00:11:55

Jonathan praying before having a meal.

I owe them so much that I don’t want to
hold them back. I want them to take a
breather and relax, knowing that I will
have their back and I will make them
proud.
NAT SOUND
00:12:25

Establishing shot in Inglewood.

SOT Hugo Salcedo
Fmr. FIFA director and U.S. Olympian in
1972

0:12:36

Salcedo working in his office.

Most of the Latino immigrants that came
to the United States, they came already
with some background in soccer. So as
kids they start playing soccer. And that's
basically the number one sport for them.
SOT Salcedo
00:12:53

It's more of a cultural element that we
have, you go to the park or the games
and you see the Latina players, very
skillful. I mean, it's innate.
SOT Salcedo
00:13:09

If you go to Mexico, if you go to
Argentina, or you go to Italy, when they
see a good player, they pull him out of
the community, and they put him in the
development programs.

19
SOT Salcedo
00:13:21

The term pay to play became very
famous in the United States. If you want
to play, you pay, most of the countries
you play, and you don't have to pay.
That's the big difference.

SOT Aguilar
00:13:35

Aguilar on camera

Pay to play is a model that you go, you
register for a club, and there's a yearly
fee. So, you're paying to play for an
academy or a club.

SOT Salcedo
00:13:45

On camera Salcedo

When you start playing as a six-year-old,
you start paying to play in clubs. The
higher you go, the more you pay.

SOT Aguilar
00:13:43

On camera Aguilar.

In our community, it’s hard for that model
to work.

SOT Salcedo
00:13:58

Hugo working in his office.
So that's a big disadvantage for some of
our kids that do not have the financial
means to play at the competitive level.
SOT Salcedo
00:14:07

Hugo on camera

If they do have the talent, they will be
recruited nowadays by LA Galaxy or by
LAFC then you don't pay to play there.
But it's only two clubs.

20
SOT Salcedo
00:14:20

Shot of Mount San Antonio from the high
dessert.

If you live 40 miles away from the city,
it's going to be difficult for those kids to
belong to Galaxy even though they have
the talent.

NAT SOUND
00:14:29

Establishing shot of Hesperia Calif.

SOT Salcedo
00:14:35

Reveal shot of Hesperia water tower.

Some parents do the sacrifice, they drive
an hour and a half, two hours, each way
to bring their kids to some of these
professional academies.
NAT SOUND
00:14:46

Damian Inzunza’s neighborhood in
Hesperia.

21
SOT Damian Inzunza
U-17 player at LAUFA

00:15:19

Inzunza gets ready for practice.

NAT SOUND
00:15:35
Damian gets his bag ready for practice.

I've been playing LAUFA for two years.
The reason why I chose LAUFA is
because it's an academy so there's more
opportunities.
SOT Christina Avila
Mother of Damian.

00:15:48

Damian walks over and puts his stuff in the
family car.

We live in the high desert area. Hesperia
is an hour and 35 minutes away from LA
with no traffic.
SOT Avila
00:16:10

Arrive in Downey for practice.

With traffic, it's close to two hours. It's
pretty far from our house that we have to
commute four times a week to get him to
his practice.
NAT SOUND
00:16:32

Establishing shot of the practice field.

22
SOT Avila
00:16:45

Ariel footage of the field and Damian at
practice.

Up here where we live here in Hesperia
is just clubs and leagues It's nothing like
an academy.
SOT Avila
00:17:15

Avila watches from the bleachers.

It is a big sacrifice because it's a long
drive but it's a good opportunity for him
right now where he at in LAUFA. That's
why we are making this sacrifice to take
him to his practices and his games.

NAT SOUND
00:17:30

Avila watches practice as it ends.

NAT SOUND
00:17:43

Establishing shot of LAUFA home field
during their game with Nomads, an
academy team from San Diego.

VO TEXT
00:17:43

HALTIME
LAUFA 1 -NOMADS 1

23
NAT SOUND
00:17:49

Jonathan wipes blood from his nose.

SOT Aguilar
00:18:08

Aguilar talks to his team at halftime.

Guys this game is yours man. Okay?
This game is yours but you can’t go in
there half-assed right now.
SOT Aguilar
00:18:17

If you have five minutes, 10 minutes in
your tank, give me 10 minutes. Okay?
but you gotta give me 100%.
NAT SOUND
00:18:23

Second half starts.

NAT SOUND
00:18:37

Nomads makes a goal making the score 2-
1 in their favor.

NAT SOUND
00:18:37
Frustrations starts to build in LAUFA.

24
NAT SOUND
00:19:06

LAUFA Ties the game 2-2.

NAT SOUND
00:19:53

LAUFA begins to take the game over.

NAT SOUND
00:20:03

LAUFA takes the lead 3-2.

NAT SOUND
00:20:22

LAUFA extends its lead 4-2

NAT SOUND
00:20:31

The referee blows the final whistle and
Aguilar congratulates his team.

SOT Aguilar
00:20:38

Aguilar high fiving his players

The thing that brings me the most joy is
when I see a kid enjoying the game.
When I see the parents enjoying
watching their kids play. That's the
reason why LAUFA was born. To spark a
dream.

25
SOT Vasquez
00:21:03

On camera

Coaching the [United States national]
youth program for many years, I will say
that there's no other club that supports
the Latino player as much as LAUFA
does.

NAT SOUND
00:21:17

Jonathan Juarez walks of the field

VO TEXT
00:21:27

Text over black.

JONATHAN WAS ACCEPTED TO
NOTRE DAME COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY
OF AKRON, UNIVERSITY OF
LOUISVILLE, INDIANA STATE
UNIVERSITY AND CAL STATE LOS
ANGELES.

NAT SOUND
00:21:35

Prom montage sequence

SOT JUAREZ
00:21:40

The unknown is what frightens me the
most. Because anything can happen. But
I am definitely prepared to take on this
new journey.
VO TEXT
00:21:53

Text over black.
JONATHAN WILL ATTEND CAL STATE
LOS ANGELES IN THE FALL. HE
PLANS TO TRY OUT FOR THE
SOCCER TEAM THERE.

26
SOT Vasquez
00:21:58

Slow motion montage sequence.

A few years ago, the best competition
you will have to pay to play in that
competition. Now it's different or LAUFA
is making it different.

Ending
00:22:18

Script Bibliography

Mlssoccer. (n.d.). MLS Next - Youth Soccer Reimagined. mlssoccer. Retrieved May 20, 2022,
from https://www.mlssoccer.com/mlsnext/

Aguilar, Jose, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2021. Los Angeles United Futbol Academy, coach
for under-17 team. (October 26).

Vasquez, Martin, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2022. FMR. United States and Mexico national
team soccer player. (March 9).

Juarez, Jonathan, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2021. Los Angeles United Futbol Academy,
player for the under-17 team. (October 30).

Abad, Maricela, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2021. Mother of Jonathan Juarez. (October 30).

Salcedo, Hugo, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2022. FMR. FIFA representative. (March 31).

Inzunza, Damian, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2022. Los Angeles United Futbol Academy,
player for the under-17 team. (April 10).

Avila, Christian, interview by Randy Vazquez. 2022. Mother of Damian Inzunza. (April 10).

Abstract (if available)

Abstract “Fútbol en America” is a documentary that examines youth soccer in the United States. The story focuses on Latino American soccer players and how the current structure of competitive youth soccer impacts them. Soccer clubs in the United States operate under the pay-to-play model. This is the process of paying money to join a team and later play for that club. This can create a financial obstacle for some who can’t afford to pay. The story is told through Los Angeles United Football Academy. An L.A. based youth soccer club who is trying to make soccer more accessible to Latinos in Southern California. This documentary also follows one player’s journey who is attempting to earn a soccer scholarship. He would be the first in his family to attend a four-year university. The story provides insight from experts and personal stories. This makes for a documentary that informs viewers and aims to create an emotional connection.

Linked assets

University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

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Asset Metadata

Creator Vazquez, Randy (author)

Core Title Fútbol en America

School Annenberg School for Communication

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Specialized Journalism

Degree Conferral Date 2022-08

Publication Date 07/20/2022

Defense Date 07/20/2022

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Latino,Latino-American,Los Angeles,OAI-PMH Harvest,pay-to-play system,Soccer,Sports

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Birman, Daniel (committee chair), Fellenzer, Jeff (committee member), Tolan, Sandy (committee member)

Creator Email randyvaz@usc.edu,randyvazquezmedia@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC111373254

Unique identifier UC111373254

Legacy Identifier etd-VazquezRan-10875

Document Type Thesis

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Vazquez, Randy

Type texts

Source 20220720-usctheses-batch-957 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the author, as the original true and official version of the work, but does not grant the reader permission to use the work if the desired use is covered by copyright. It is the author, as rights holder, who must provide use permission if such use is covered by copyright. The original signature page accompanying the original submission of the work to the USC Libraries is retained by the USC Libraries and a copy of it may be obtained by authorized requesters contacting the repository e-mail address given.

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA

Repository Email cisadmin@lib.usc.edu