The Orlando City SC academy will receive an upgrade later this summer, funded by a new initiative by Audi to promote youth soccer in America.
Audi will unveil the first of its Audi Performance Centers in Orlando in late summer. The training facility will be funded by the Audi Goals Drive Progress campaign, which will aim to donate up to $1 million to development academies across MLS by the end of 2019.
The company kicked off the program at the MLS All-Star Game, pledging to donate $5,000 to the fund for every goal scored in the MLS All-Star Game. The pay-by-goal initiative will extend throughout the MLS season — Audi will donate $500 for every regular season goal, $2,000 for every playoff goal and $10,000 for every goal scored in the MLS Cup.
Access to the sport will be a focus of the campaign, and the funds will provide transportation and housing to players who can’t afford to commute or move to the city where their local academy trains. The Audi Performance Centers will also offer educational centers to support players’ success off the field.
“The only thing that matters is here,” said Luiz Muzzi, the Orlando City EVP of Soccer Operations, as he presented alongside several academy players on Wednesday. “These guys believe in what we’re doing here, not only in Orlando, but in the league, in everything that we’re doing to develop better players, better men and better athletes.”
Audi is also looking to engage fans through social media, and the company has pledged to donate funds based on fans’ responses on Twitter. Fans can use the hashtag for their team — for Orlando, #orlgoalpromotion — and tag @audi throughout the season; the team with the highest average of tweets per game at the end of the year will receive an additional $50,000 for their training facilities.