Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association announced Thursday that Otto Horstmann will be inducted into the Eastern New York Hall of Fame.

The ceremony will take place at the Hall of Fame Lunch celebrating Eastern New York’s 50th Anniversary at Marina del Rey in the Bronx on Saturday, Nov. 5.

Horstmann never played soccer as a kid growing up in the Westerleigh section of Staten Island as most of the borough was all about baseball, basketball, stick ball and touch football before the youth soccer craze.

As an adult, Horstmann became involved with youth sports at Our Lady of Good Council, where his children attended school. He started coaching basketball, then became involved with the OLGC Sports Association and before he knew it, Horstmann became OLGC president in 1985. About that same time, the OLGC Soccer director resigned so Horstmann took over that position and attended Staten Island Youth Soccer League meetings.

OLGC had four travel teams with Horstmann’s children playing on three of them. Because of some parent/coach issues, one of the coaches quit and suddenly Otto went from soccer nothing to soccer club director and soccer coach, and shortly after that, SIYSL board member, being elected secretary starting in 1990.

Horstmann was elected and re-elected SIYSL president spanning a decade from 1995=2005. Education was high on his agenda so in collaboration with the club directors, they came up with “seminar” items (offside, advantage, etc.). Once the topics were selected, Horstmann worked with Tony Limone, then president of the Staten Island Soccer Referee Association, to have referees conduct the seminars. The only way that each coach or assistant coach could receive their team’s schedule for the season was to attend a rules seminar at the Staten Island Academy.

Horstmann also worked with Nick Zlatar and they ran numerous coach licensing courses.

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.