USIndoor's Official Magazine is a quarterly publication, dedicated to owners, managers, program administrators and other professionals, startups and providers involved with indoor recreational sports facilities.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/68815
30 YEARS LATER Chicago Power of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) for six. In 1994 he was traded to the Milwaukee Wave. He played five seasons and was elected to the Milwaukee Wave Hall of Fame. A league championship with the Power and two with the Wave, along with other awards and much recognition, gave Soccer City a lot of publicity, as Michael ran summer programs there. From 1995 to 1998, Michael played outdoors for the Chicago Stingers of the United Soccer League (USL). Because the Richardson family was connected to the soccer community, other stellar players took part in programs at Soccer City as well. In 2000 he began working at the facility full-time. It is easy to see how the organization has grown and changed. In 1975, when the Richardsons moved to the United States from England, there was very little soccer. "My dad organized soccer in the Chicago area," says Michael, who was five when they moved. Not long after they were in the country, Peter Richardson started a community league with four teams. As they met other teams from other communities, they began traveling to play each other. Now, the Northern Illinois Soccer League has more than a thousand travel teams. As the indoor business grew and the outdoor league grew, Peter Richardson saw many excellent youth players, and the family formed a club team, the Soccer City Sockers, which, in the spring of 1986, became the Sockers FC program. At least one of the Sockers teams (U12 through U20) has been winning the Illinois State Cup for more than 20 years. Girls' teams were added in 1997. Since 2001, they have racked up their fair share of championship trophies as well. David Richardson, Michael's older brother, is President of the club program. Family members are involved in all of the soccer businesses that Peter Richardson began, which can, of course, make for SUMMER2012 some stressful birthday parties and holiday dinners, as work often intertwines with home life. Mostly, however, the experience is positive. Those employees who are not blood relatives are like family. Most of them have worked together a long time and are passionate about sports and the business. Michael finds that taking care of employees encourages them to go the extra mile when necessary. One way he takes care of employees is by promoting from within. Just as Michael began sweeping floors at the facility, the League Coordinator, Gaetano Traversa, Michael's right hand man, began as a janitor. According to Michael, the right person for the job is often someone already at the facility rather than an anonymous name in a pile of resumes. Employees trust Michael. He is not just the son of the owner; he's been brought up in the business. "I don't ask anybody to do something that I haven't done myself. That's the kind of people we want working here, too. Anybody can point fingers and tell you how to mop a floor, but if you haven't mopped it, how do you know? Some nights I'm the bartender, and nobody knows who I am; they think I'm just the bartender. I'm willing to get my hands dirty." Many years ago, before the soccer community had been established, Peter Richardson seized an opportunity. As a creative thinker, he was able to plant the seeds of a business, whose roots have since grown some quite long roots. "We're the second generation, taking it and trying to keep it going as long as we can," says Michael. "Soccer has evolved since the 80s. We've always been able to change when need be." Changing to an online system, for example, was a battle between Michael and his dad, typical of this particular generation gap. Facilities like Total Sports Experience that have opened during just the past ten years have probably always had one. Peter had created the system to register individual players and teams for leagues. Michael wanted to make the change to USIndoor Member Sports I.T. Peter resisted for quite a while. "It's so much easier for our customers to register for things. It's how people do things these days. They don't want to come in and register; they want to sit at their desk and click send and that's the end of it." Another major change has been during the summer. The family's extended business, Chicago Soccer, which includes the Northern Illinois Soccer League, Sockers FC Chicago, Soccer City Palatine, Lil' Kickers (Northwest Illinois franchise), the Illinois Socker Coaches Association and Chicago Soccer Tournaments, stays busy with outdoor play. Like most indoor soccer facilities, however, a bit of creativity is necessary for Soccer City to keep up the pace. Not long ago Michael was outside the facility, when he saw a bus pull up to the roller skating rink next door. When a load of kids got off, he thought, "Why can't we do that?" These days, in most households, both parents work, and they need their kids involved in activities when they aren't in school. Soccer City has partnered with the Department of Parks and Recreation as well as various daycare centers, which offer summer programs. A field trip to Soccer City for a day of exercise and activities that involve soccer, baseball and inflatables can be part of the program. "This is the first time we're implementing this program, and we already have more than 25 organizations booked," says Michael. Before long, Michael's own children will be working at Soccer City. His son will probably begin by sweeping the floors just as Michael did. Whatever job Michael assigns his children, they can rest assured it won't be anything their father, and perhaps even their grandfather, has not done himself. 15