The KICS Cup – sponsored by Air Emirates, Chicago Park District, Mamba Ball and GEMS World Academy – returned to Chicago for the third year in a row this summer sporting a new group of both domestic and international youth soccer teams. The goal was to promote and empower global unity via the world’s most influential sport, all while helping revitalize parts of the city’s South Side neighborhood. The KICS Cup, co-founded in 2013 by Dr. Scott Hanlon and Matt Miller, brought together 60 domestic teams and more than 20 teams from countries spanning the globe, including Ghana, Ethiopia, Pakistan, Colombia, Barbados, Canada and many more. Sporting teams of both boys and girls ages 8-16, KICS Cup aims to promote the powerful message that “soccer is opportunity”, as the youth athletes participating will not only compete against each other, but they will also have the ability to learn about other cultures and international lifestyles. By 2020, the KICS Cup – anchored by the philosophy to change the lives of children through sport – aims to become one of the most recognized and highly participated International soccer competition for youth athletes worldwide. For more information about the KICS Cup or its other initiatives, please visit www.kicscup.org.