The Beadling Soccer Club not only offers its players competitive training and playing opportunities, but also a tradition of taking teams to Europe to compete at an international level. Typically teams at the U14 – U16 levels are offered this unique experience. This past spring break was no exception as the Beadling Boys U14 team participated in an international U15 Boys Soccer tournament held in Pordenone, Italy known as the Annual Memorial Franco Gallini tournament. With teams from Austria, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Luthuania, Nigeria, Romania, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland, the competition promised to be intense. Many of these teams are actually the training academies for various professional soccer teams such as Atalanta and Juventis. With this in mind, the Beadling team, along with parents, grandparents, siblings, and friends, journeyed to Italy in anticipation of not only experiencing the customs and sights of another part of our world, but the passion that is soccer.
 
Arriving on Palm Sunday, the group was able to visit several Italian cities (e.g., Milan, Verona, Lasize, and Venice to name a few), attend a professional Serie A game, and play two “friendly” games with teams from Italy and Slovenia before the tournament began on March 22nd. The Beadling U14 Boys played “up” in a U15 tournament and faced world-class competition from a multitude of European teams. At the end of 3 days of intense playing, including two games decided by penalty kicks, the Beadling team ended the tournament with 2 wins and 3 losses. Given the competition they faced, the team felt they faired pretty well as articulated by Zac Bowers, goal keeper for the U14 team:
 
I was fortunate enough to spend the last 10 days in Italy. I kept hearing my parents say "this is an opportunity of a lifetime". I didn't quite understand, nor do I think I get the magnitude of that expression, but I found myself in a foreign country where I didn't speak the language. I knew I would face teams that lived for the game.  I never imagined how good these teams would be. I thought my team was skilled, but these teams were unbelievable. I saw my team improve with each game we played. I think we were all surprised in the size of the players we faced and surprised how well they controlled the game, but once we realized they were here to play and here to win, we stepped it up and came together as a team. I saw my team become more determined, more serious, and more motivated to win. In international play our team record is 4-3. We came in 26th place out of 32 incredible teams from all over the world. My team and I learned a lot from this experience. We grew as players, we grew as teammates, but most importantly we grew as friends. I feel we have a lot to be proud of and would do it again.
 
Zac’s impression is representative of the entire Beadling group. We all saw amazing places, made new friends, and experienced an incredible level of soccer. Plus ate lots of pizza and pasta! Thanks to Beadling, it was truly an experience of a lifetime!