City of Pasco, Seattle Sounders hold eastern WA soccer celebration

The city of Pasco and the Seattle Sounders will host the All-Pasco Soccer Celebration on Sunday. The event celebrates the opening of two new soccer mini-pitches in the Tri-Cities area.

Community members can attend the All-Pasco Soccer Celebration at Kurtzman Park on Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m.

The event is presented in partnership with Seattle Sounders FC, the RAVE Foundation and American Family Insurance. It is meant to highlight the opening of the new mini-pitches at Kurtzman and Highland Parks, both in Pasco. 

The mini-pitches were brought to the area by the 26 Fields by 2026 initiative. 

The RAVE Foundation is the Seattle Sounders’ charitable arm. The Sounders partnered on the initiative to develop soccer fields statewide for underserved youth in Washington.

Ashley Fosberg is the Sounders’ vice president of Social Impact and the executive director of the RAVE Foundation. 

“We didn’t know the uniqueness of Pasco and the desire and the soccer-centric community you have. Once we started to learn that it was a magical and perfect fit,” Fosberg said. 

Fosberg explained that the 26 by 2026 initiative started from believing Seattle might be a stop on the 2026 World Cup tour.

“We felt that we’ve had a responsibility to play a role in bringing soccer to communities,” she said.

The mini-pitches at Kurtzman and Highland Parks are the final two, 25 and 26, in meeting the initial  goal.

Fosberg said the RAVE Foundation recently announced its intention to double that, building 26 more soccer mini-fields for a total of 52 new fields.

Sounders coaches will lead soccer skills training during the event on Sunday in Pasco. The first participants to arrive can also get free soccer balls and autographs from former Sounders and U.S. National Team player Brad Evans.

The organizations recently opened the first mini-pitch in the Spokane area at Spokane Valley’s Balfour Park. Four are also in Yakima, and two more are planned to be built in Moses Lake.