For the first time since 2019, the TOPSoccer Festival of the Long Island Junior Soccer League returns to its traditional spot on the first Saturday in June at the Peter Collins Soccer Park in Plainview, N.Y.
The festival was not held for the past three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rebranded as the TOPSoccer Friendship Cup, there will be games and a barbecue from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, June 3. TOPSoccer players from across the LIJSL will compete, receive T-shirts and medals.
TOPSoccer stands for The Outreach Program for Soccer. It provides a safe and fun environment plus an opportunity for the child who is different from the average kid in mental, physical or social characteristics and requires modified educational practices and services in order to develop to his or her potential.
The first program in the world started in the LIJSL when the Huntington Boys Club and Massapequa Soccer Club separately kicked off programs back in 1978 at a time when special children playing sports was not as readily accepted as it is today.
For more information about the TOPSoccer Friendship Cup or to inquire about your child participating in the LIJSL’s TOPSoccer Program, contact LIJSL TOPSoccer chairperson Ann Marie Toth at 516-694-3567 or kaltoth@yahoo.com.
