Video: FC Virginia and JFA Academy - for the good of the game

[Full disclosure - I am one of the coaches of this team and also Assistant DoC for FC Virginia]

Disclosure out of the way, I want to share with you the beautiful thing that happened this past Sunday after the Disney Showcase Final was won by our team over the Japanese team called JFA Academy.

After the official awards ceremony put on by the Disney staff, and after both teams had their pictures taken with Mickey, the players could have easily just went to the cars and back to their hotels without a word - especially with the language barrier. However, that\'s not what happened. Instead, the two teams spontaneously arranged a group photo, then immediately broke down into a blob of typical teenage girl socialization that warmed everyone\'s hearts on a really cold day by Orlando standards.

There\'s a sample in the video below, but though the video shows barely a minute of the socializing, it actually went on for about an hour. This scene really made the biggest impact for me from our experience - more so than winning a medal to hang on a wall! The way these girls shared and enjoyed their experience is the reason kids are supposed to play. They\'re supposed to "leave it all on the field", and when off the field, everyone involved in the sport is supposed to be in it together, "for the good of the game".

I think we need more of this in our sport, and hope this inspires anyone who watches/reads about it to remember to leave it all on the field, and to realize we\'re all in this together off the field.

Have any of your teams ever socialized in this way after a tournament awards ceremony? Why do you think it doesn\'t happen more? Use our new commenting system below the video to share your thoughts.