Beats, Rhymes, & Life.
Why I decided to join the ownership of New York’s newest professional sports team, Queensboro FC.
Queens has always been there for me.
I was born in Flushing, Queens, and the most formative years of my childhood fan experience were spent going to Shea Stadium, and now I get to live that with my son at Citi Field.
Queens’ beats have been the soundtrack to my life. A Tribe Called Quest. Nas. LL Cool J. Pharoahe Monch. Mobb Deep. 3rd Bass. Onyx. Black Sheep. Rakim. Run DMC. The Ramones. Simon & Garfunkel. Louis Armstrong.
And the food. You haven’t eaten until you’ve tasted all that Queens has to offer. Heck, you can eat delicacies from every country in the world by walking on foot.
Queens is a borough of 2 million residents, 150 nationalities and 130 languages across more than 90 distinct neighborhoods and 100 square miles.
Queens truly is the world’s borough. I’ve long been in love with its resilience; its creative spirit; its international flavor; its sense of community and all of its communities. It’s beautiful. So why shouldn’t it be a home for the world’s most beautiful game?
My professional life has been about building bridges; bridges to new technology, to culture, to people, to values, to brands. To closing the gaps that keep us apart, or away from what we’re capable of becoming by working together.
It’s also been said that history doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes. I’ve spent my career trying to recognize patterns, and one pattern always seems to repeat: you can always count on New York City to build — and rebuild — the strongest communities. And from The Worlds Fair, to the World Series, to the US Open, when the world comes to New York, it comes to Queens.
Queens has always been there for me, and now it’s time for me to be there for Queens.
That’s why I’m incredibly proud to have joined the ownership team at Queensboro FC, which will start playing in the 2022 season of the USL Championship, the top tier of the United Soccer League (USL). Our club will also be an inaugural member of the newly-formed USL W League, the pre-professional women’s soccer league set to kick off play in 2022. I’m joining a brilliant ownership team that includes soccer legends Aly Wagner (USWNT Olympic Gold Medalist) & David Villa (Valencia, Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, NYCFC), and fellow entrepreneur, Jonathan Krane.
Here’s a peek at what we’re building, and why we’re building it:
We’ve already gotten off to an incredible start. This year, Queensboro FC’s USL Academy team (our youth team), in its very first season, won the USL-A Northeast Championship title.
Soccer is Queens’ most popular sport — and Queensboro FC will embrace and unite “the world’s borough” and honor the beautiful game in the streets, in the park, in the community — and soon, on our very own pitch. We’ve already broken ground on our temporary home at York College in Jamaica, Queens. It’s coming. Get hyped:
Queensboro FC is a club built with, by, and for Queens. It’s being built from the ground up for — and with — Queens’ communities.
Queensboro FC will be a cultural touchstone that celebrates all of the diversity and multiculturalism that makes Queens, well, Queens. But I’ll be contributing in every way I can to make sure that Queensboro FC is also an inclusive cultural cornerstone; where everyone, from the fans to the front office, is respectful, tolerant, and embraces all of the values that bring communities together, and make us proud to be fans together.
I’m so proud to have witnessed first-hand the efforts of the indefatigable front office, coaches, and players (and future players) to bring these teams, this brand, this community to life. They are working so hard every day to give back and fuel the growth and enrichment of Queens’ communities and the people who make them; it’s truly been an inspiration.
I’m also excited to be building at a time when we are within just a few years from FIFA’s World Cup being played in North America in 2026. The eyes of the world will be on stadiums across our continent, and of course, on the NY/NJ metropolitan area as we welcome the world to our home for some very important matches.
It’s been a tough few years for too many people; years that seemed to do everything they can to drive us apart. But we must find ways to celebrate big and little moments with one another. Together. If you’ve ever experienced NYC during a World Cup (no matter where it’s played), you’ll know what it’s like to see people spilling out of bars, onto the streets, while they cheer on their countries. It’s magic. I can’t wait for us to experience some of that magic, live and IRL (in-real-life), with the most international team in the USL.
It’s not every day that you can say you were a fan of something, a part of something, from day one. But if you love NYC, love Queens, or love soccer (or are just soccer-curious, and really enjoying Ted Lasso), join me as a supporter of Queensboro FC, and let’s go on this epically beautiful journey together.
¡VAMOS! See you on the 7 Train. See you in Queens!
#ForeverQueens
