D.C. United partners up with PGCMLS with online content for families
By José Umaña/The Sports Pulse Contributor
WASHINGTON – Local Major League Soccer club D.C. United has joined forces with Prince George’s County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) to provide “engaging online content” to help residents stay fit and learn more about the sport during the current quarantine due to the coronavirus.
The partnership, considered the first of its kind in league history, will provide over 915,000 Prince George’s County residents access to the club’s video library as well as give soccer book recommendations and children’s content.
It will also provide health and educational content to its as well as “making soccer available to the large Spanish speaking community,” PGCMLS CEO Roberta Phillips said.
“The library [system] is grateful to D.C. United for their commitment to supporting all Prince Georgians with awesome workout content and opportunities for the community to connect with players from home,” Phillips said.
PGCMLS created a dedicated webpage for residents to gain access to the content. As part of the partnership, players will participate in a bi-monthly virtual read-aloud series and reading books in English and Spanish for children ages 2-8. Also available for children are printable activity sheets of different puzzles and coloring pages.
For young adults, the club’s On-Air Host Claudia Pagan host a three-part roundtable discussion with U-18/19 academy player Maddux Reece, University of Maryland forward Eric Matzelevich and United goalkeeper Chris Seitz on the transition from high school to college, called College Confidential: the Education Series.
The webpage also includes newer content United began uploading on its website and social media accounts since the start of the stay-at-home orders throughout the metropolitan region.
It provides workout videos for kids featuring United’s mascot Talon to previously recorded AMA video interviews with players. The club will alert county residents as well as all its fans about the next fan-participation content on their social media channels.
“Our friends in Prince George’s County have been wonderful supporters of our club for a long time, and their passionate community of soccer fans continues to grow,” Zachary Abaie, D.C. United’s head of communications said. “We’re excited about our partnership with the library system and hope through our shared love of soccer we can provide fun activities and exercises to the families who have supported us for many years.”
The library system will also promote its offering of soccer documentaries, eBooks, movies and training videos available through its streaming services, including Kanopy, Hoopla and Libby/Overdrive.
It is the second partnership between an area soccer organization and a local organization this month. On April 8, local women’s soccer team Washington Spirit announced a multi-year deal with D.C. Scores to become its official community partner. The city-based soccer program focuses on bringing soccer, poetry, and community service projects together to elementary and middle school children.
For more information and to access the content provided by D.C. United visit: www.pgcmls.info/DCUnited.
