Grand View University men’s soccer team is made up of athletes from many different cultures.

Head men’s soccer coach Blair Reid is in his 31st season at Grand View University. Reid’s main goal as head coach is to put together a successful team, and this year that team happens to have 19 international athletes. Student-athletes from all over the world come to Grand View for the opportunity to continue competing in the sport they love. Coach Reid’s first form of recruitment was from a website out of Scotland called First Point. Once the players finished their journey at Grand View, they went back to their countries and started their own recruiting businesses. These businesses boomed, and eventually Coach Reid was receiving emails from all over the world with prospective international athletes. A team representing many different cultures might sound scary, but in reality it’s not much different than having a complete domestic group of men.

“When it’s all said and done, differences aren’t that big between everybody,” Reid said. “It’s the love of the game, and we all want the same things: A good education, playing on a good team, and building relationships.”

Ross Lennie came from Scotland to play on the men’s soccer team. Reid saw Lennie’s profile on the First Point website and reached out to him to come play for Grand View.  Lennie has been forced to adjust to the different culture from his home in Scotland, but he really enjoys the nice, fun people. Through soccer and school, Lennie has built relationships with a lot of people from different cultures. Lennie is unsure of his future plans at this point.

“I’m undecided as of now, but if everything is right and I can coach, I will definitely stay here,” Lennie said.

Bruno Henrique came to Grand View from his hometown of Sao Paulo, Brazil. He was recruited for the men’s soccer team by a company that got in contact with Grand View and was directed to Coach Reid from there. Bruno said that Coach Reid was nice to him and helped out with his English before coming to the United States. A challenge that Bruno faces while working with such a diverse team is that he is not used to the lack of sportsmanship from other players. For example, he refrains from swearing when he is on the field, while some of the British players choose to curse. For Bruno, his favorite part about playing with an extremely diverse team is that he gets many different perspectives from different cultures.

From an Iowan’s perspective, Zach Shelton said that his experience with a diverse team has been spectacular. He has been able to make many different friends from all over the world and said he “will always have a place to stay.”
The cultural diversity on Grand View’s men’s soccer team brings people from all around the world together. The players’ and Coach Reid’s favorite game of the season is the game played on Grand View’s campus under the lights. That is the game that brings the biggest crowd and shows the most appreciation for the sport.