Today we’d like to introduce you to Roger Sosa.
Hi Roger, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My name is Roger Sosa and have been doing Marketing and Promotions for over 25 years mainly in the Media Industry. I am currently a managing partner for the Gambit Group and happen to be the Tournament Director for Next Generation Cup.
In 2008 I was working for ESPN Deportes Radio in which I had to create an event for the Hispanic community. I decided to create a soccer tournament and named it Copa ESPN. The goal was to find undiscovered youth talent from the inner cities and grant them the chance to compete against DFWs best select teams. I ran that tournament for about 4 years until the company was sold to a private group and I went on to another company and the tournament was later dismantled.
In 2016 I reached out to an old coworker at ESPN who happens to be one of my close personal friends now if she would like to build another tournament from scratch but this time bigger and better. She said yes and for almost 2 years we put numbers together and looked for a partner to jump in with us. In 2018 we launched Next Generation Cup to focus on the Next Generation of kids and basically do the same thing but this time create scholarships and bring in teams from all over the country including from Mexico. We are officially going into our fourth year and considered to be one of the fastest-growing competitive youth soccer tournaments in the country. Next Generation Cup is currently ranked the #2 youth competitive soccer tournament in Texas and #5 in the Nation. We are currently bringing in about $1.5 million dollars to the local economy. This year we are going to double that with us hosting 200 teams that includes over 50 out-of-town teams coming to play at Next Generation Cup.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
The road to where we are now has had its challenges and continue to just like any other journey you take on. We had quite a bit of obstacles just for the fact that we didn’t align ourselves with the people that have been doing this for a long time. The youth soccer community here in NTX is brutal when it’s comes to things like that. I have never been a follower. I have always gone to the left and not right. Why do I have to ask for permission or “align” myself with the right people? So, after being called a thug and drug dealer for whatever reasons we didn’t let that stop us from getting our plan and mission going. We literally have had soccer complexes not want to work with us. They don’t even return emails or phone calls. Again, we didn’t and haven’t let that stop us from creating what we envisioned. So, with hard work, making new friends, and persistence we have been able to find soccer fields to host the tournament for the past 2 years. In North Texas soccer if it isn’t one thing then it’s the other.
With our persistence, we have gained the respect of some people that have and continue to support what we are doing to help us grow.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Well, my background is Marketing and Promotions, and this day and age I believe you need to have at least 2 or 3 lines of revenue. My specialty I would say is I see an opportunity and I am going to make something happen. I am mainly known for my DJ career here in the city as that has been one of my revenue lines since I was 20 years old. I have DJed at most of the popular clubs back in the day here in Dallas and have been on radio stations here in Dallas and at one point syndicated. I have also produced music that has made it around the world within the Dj community. The Dj side is what got me wanting to get into the marketing promotions world and haven’t stopped. I am really proud of all the opportunities I have had to get me to this point in where 8 years ago I left the corporate world and proud to say that I’m a Managing Partner for a marketing agency and the tournament.
What sets me apart from others is that I am very passionate and let’s say that I do not like to play in the same sandbox as others or do what they are doing. Everything is meant to be tweaked out to make it your own. If you don’t stay innovative or ten steps ahead then you will lose. You can’t stay context or get too comfortable because people are always coming into the space. Don’t be afraid to be or think different.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
That I pray every single day to give me the strength and courage to go out and make it happen. To make me better than I was yesterday.
Contact Info:
- Email: nextgenerationtournament@gmail.com
- Website: https://nxtgensoccercup.com/
- Instagram: @nxtgensoccercup
- Facebook: @nxtgensoccercup
