Soccer is the world’s most popular sport, so naturally, there was a great deal of enthusiasm when the Minnesota United FC team officially became a Major League Soccer team in 2017.

Building on that momentum, at the start of the 2019 season, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and the Minnesota United teamed up to spotlight the sport, as well as encourage healthy activities families can participate in together.

“Highlights of our partnership with Minnesota United include Soccer Night Out events in neighborhoods throughout the Twin Cities and sponsorship of the MN United Unified Team, which celebrates differently abled athletes in conjunction with the Special Olympics and even included a night out at Allianz Field,” says Sara Ramach, principal marketing consultant at Blue Cross.

Making soccer accessible to everyone

Minnesota United is dedicated to growing youth soccer throughout the state by making soccer accessible across all ages and competition levels. With that in mind, there have been several Soccer Night Out clinics throughout summer—at the Hmong Freedom Festival in St. Paul, on the Blue Cross campus youth soccer field in Eagan, at Allianz Field as part of the Night to Remember event, and at an upcoming event at the National Sports Center in Blaine on September 23.

Soccer Night Out events include skills clinics for kids ages four through eight, player autographs, food trucks, photos with MN United mascot PK and more.

“They’ve been a great way to connect with the communities,” Ramach says. “This is a great extension of our partnership and way to really directly connect with the communities we both serve.”

A Night to Remember

On August 14, Blue Cross sponsored A Night to Remember at Allianz Field with Soccer Night Out skills clinics and a MN Unified Team game, which included a medal ceremony following the MN United game against the Colorado Rapids.

Through their  partnership with the Special Olympics, each season the MN United develops a Unified team to give athletes the opportunity to train and compete in the same manner as the professional team. This year, Unified athletes were chosen through a tryout opportunity extended to the entire Special Olympics Minnesota network. After a full day of tryouts, 21 athletes were selected to be part of the team.

To celebrate these elite athletes selected for the team, Blue Cross and MN United hosted the athletes and their families for a formal signing day on May 20 at Allianz Field.

Celebrating soccer enthusiasm

The collaboration with the MN United continues to be a great success for Blue Cross.

“We are thrilled at the level of enthusiasm and activity around our partnership with MN United,” says Ramach. “We can’t wait to see the excitement and all the young soccer fans at our next Soccer Night Out in September.”