This edition of Short Tails recounts our time in North Carolina in the summer of 2023. Whilst house sitting for 2.5 months we applied to spend a weekend volunteering at TST, one of the biggest soccer tournaments the country had ever seen.
TST – The Soccer Tournament
As an Englishman, it pains me to refer to football as ‘soccer’. However, for the purposes of this article and given the setting, I will begrudgingly do so. Before arriving, we had heard that a first-of-a-kind soccer tournament would be happening close to us in Cary, NC.
The 7-a-side exhibition attracted teams from all over the world, primarily because of the winner-take-all $1 million prize fund. Premier League clubs and professional outfits from around the world sent a squad to compete. West Ham United, Borussia Dortmund, and Ryan Reynolds‘ Wrexham AFC all entered.
The teams featured mostly recent retirees or youth players making their way through the ranks. It offered great exposure to clubs and players as the games were broadcast on Peacock, a massive US streaming platform.
Applying to be Volunteers
With the date firmly etched on our calendars, we kept an eye on tickets as the date approached. Soccer in the US has taken flight in recent years thanks to the influence of players like Beckham and Messi. So, prices were surprisingly high but we hoped to pick up a few re-sale lower-end options.
The week before kick-off, still no such luck. Ticket prices were even higher, and with parking passes to pay for, as well as drinks and snacks, the weekend was looking too rich for our blood. That’s when Hannah spotted a small section of the TST website looking for volunteers.
We both filled out a quick application and within a few minutes, we were taken on as volunteers. We’d get free access to all the games, parking, lunch, and some extra freebies thrown in. It was a great deal and we were happy to not only be going to the tournament but for free!
Volunteering at TST
The organizers must have struggled for applicants because they were offering a reduced 2-hour shift per day in exchange for a whole pass to the event. On arrival, we were given priority parking, handed lanyards, a free T-shirt, a pizza gift card, and a help-yourself sandwich and refreshment bar.
It was a pretty sweet deal, our job was simply to scan tickets as people came through the turnstiles. As a one-off event, nobody knew what they were doing and although it was far from a free-for-all, let’s just say security was…lapse. The scanners didn’t work, the WiFi was bad, and it was hot as hell.
A massive queue formed as a flood of spectators made their way through the turnstiles to watch the action. It was great to see so many English jerseys coming through, Wrexham was far and away the most prevalent. It’s still crazy to me that Wrexham are so big these days!
Global Controversy
TST was set over 4 days and would feature 63 matches. After our first 2-hours of scanning tickets and talking soccer, we headed to watch one of the first games, a match between West Ham United and Dallas FC.
The West Ham lineup featured several players from ‘my day’, including Jack Collison, Luis Boa-Morte, and Carlton Cole – all former international players. However, this game would end in global controversy shortly after we sat down in our seats as the West Ham team failed to line up for the second half.
It was evident there was some back-and-forth going on between the players of both sides but the crowd was confused. Pushing and shoving ensued but this was quickly calmed by the coaches and event security (thankfully not our job!). The game was eventually abandoned and we watched as West Ham left TST.
Making World News
Rumours were rife but it wasn’t until we got home that we learned what had happened. Racial slurs were being used by the Dallas team and West Ham rightly refused to continue playing. Without proof, it was one team’s word against another, and the referee could do little to officiate the process.
The news that evening broadcast the events that had unfolded and we found out the incident had gone viral. Our house sitting hosts, in France at the time, had even seen the news and messaged us about it. It was crazy to think we had been 20 feet from the incident.
The Dallas FC side withdrew from the tournament following the allegations. West Ham returned but unfortunately failed to progress to the next round.
Upgraded to the VIP Entrance
TST had an array of things I’d never seen at a soccer match before. Besides a different scoring system whereby after the allotted time, the winning team is still required to score one additional goal to win (still not sure I understand that either!), there were also pitch-side cabanas and cocktail waitresses.
The VIP area was serviced by its own entrance and after the slightly chaotic proceedings on day 1, Hannah and I were delighted to be told we were being moved to the much shadier VIP turnstile. The flow was much more manageable and we got to meet several celebrities we’d never heard of.
NBA icon Steve Nash was in attendance as a player and a fan. There was also another basketball player whose name I can’t recall. He was about 7-foot tall and didn’t stop to even offer a ticket so I presume he must be a big deal. I certainly wasn’t going to try and stop him!
Hannah’s Hometown Club?
Hannah’s family hail from Wrexham, and were fans of the club before Reynolds and McElhenney made them a global phenomenon. One of the big games we watched was an interesting group-stage match between Wrexham and the US women’s team.
Wrexham featured a player I admired growing up, Lee Trundle, a lower-league legend. Plus there was a superstar from my hometown team George Boyd. He is rightly regarded as a Peterborough United great and it was awesome to see him in action again.
Intrigued by how the game would go, it ended up being rather one-sided! The US women’s team took a thrashing 12-0, Trundle bagging 4 of them. Wrexham weren’t destined to get out of the group stage either and were eliminated in the next game.
Feeling Like a Million Bucks
TST was won by a semi-pro entrant, Newtown Pride FC, a team from Connecticut. They beat German giants Borussia Dortmund in their group and then Salt Lake City FC in the final. The team bagged a million bucks for their efforts and star player Kelvin Nunes was named TST MVP.
The 2024 tournament returned with even greater success and support. It also featured a separate women’s category with an equal $1 million prize fund. Sadly this time we were on the other side of the world so couldn’t attend! Let’s see what 2025 brings.
We enjoyed our weekend at the event. On top of saving $100s, we got lots of free swag, enjoyed several free lunches, and got to be part of the inaugural TST. For more stories about our volunteering on the road be sure to read my previous article – Volunteer Opportunities While Traveling – 5 Amazing Experiences.
Information About House Sitting
This adventure in North Carolina came about through a house sitting opportunity in Durham, NC. Our extended time in the city meant we were able to explore further afield and become part of the community through various volunteering roles, projects, and events.
There are thousands of listings waiting for applications globally right now! For more information about becoming a house sitter read – Everything You Need to Know About House Sitting.
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