Passion is a Double-Edged Sword

For eight-year-old Samir Romero, soccer was life as a resident of Cali, Colombia. His talents landed him playing for his hometown Deportivo Cali, a 10-time winner of the Categoria Primera A, on their minor league squad until he was around 15 years old. “Obviously soccer is lived differently over there,” Romero said. He humbly explained in his youth struggling to restrain his emotion on the pitch at times. He recounted a moment in training in which a teammate physically showed their displeasure with Romero’s abilities resulting in a shoving match. The confrontation reached a point the pair were dismissed from the club. “My heart got broken as a player and I stepped away from soccer as a player,” he said.

Romero eventually returned to the game a few years later and, at 21, moved to the U.S. travelling around the Colorado area as he continued his playing career for the Fort Carson Army Soccer team. Romero bounced around from one amateur league to another, playing for multiple clubs along eventually running into future Dekalb County United President, John Hall.

When he was 23, Romeo welcomed his son into the world. A few years later as he watched his son through the early years of his soccer journey, his desire to be a coach and give him the best opportunity, led to coaching certifications. “His argument was always the same: You’re not my coach so I can’t listen to what you’re saying. So, I said let me become a coach and let’s change the subject from I am dad, to I am a coach,” Romero joked. The coaching certifications led to club coaching with the Rockford Raptors and eventually an assistant coach at Rockford Christian High School where Romero helped lead the program to back to-back regional and sectional titles.

Romero continued to hone his craft in the high school landscape by melding soccer, football, and cross-country athletes into a team that reached the Illinois regional playoff round. After the graduation of his son the thought of a professional team began to wind its way through his mind. “I had noticed the city needed something different,” he explained. “So that was always in the back of my mind.” But his dedication to fatherhood designated that idea in the “TBD” folder.

From Nuts & Bolts

From that point Romero reached into his own wallet and began the steps in the creation of Rockford FC. Hall mentioned he knew of some people who were looking to get involved in a club’s operations, which led to Romero joining forces with Rockford FC Co-Founder Brendan Noble. “It was because of Brendan that we actually were able to accomplish a lot of things,” Romero said. “He gave me a different view of this whole thing. My specialty was on the field coaching, Brendan brought this knowledge of the computer side, the paperwork side.” Romero also lauded Noble’s excitement and ability to keep the administration aspects in perfect workingorder.

The Rockford area has no shortage of infrastructure pertaining to soccer thanks to the Rockford Raptors FC, who boast indoor and outdoor facilities. He approached the President of the Raptors and explained his vision and was met with “Samir, put it together and I got you.” Romero said the main hurdle was funding. No financial reports, a coaching staff or a team did not deter him as he began pounding the pavement and using his reputation as a successful coach and dedicated member of the community to secure sponsorship. “It is one thing I do not let get tarnished,” Romero stated. As Romero and Noble continued building the foundation for the club, Romero reached out to anyone he could think of trying to land enough dollars to give the fledgling outfit life. He was met with the same round of speculation at each stop, requestingproof that this soccer club exists. The only problem is…it didn’t.

In the end Romero’s reputation won out as Rockford FC debuted in the Midwest Premier League in 2021 competing in the Western Division. “Most of our sponsors from year one are still with us,” Romero said. It is the personal connection Romero has to these sponsors that has ensured Rockford FC remains a staple in the area. The owners of industrial distributor Quest 7 had a son that was under Romero’s tutelage at Rockford Christian and Romero was a frequent customer of tool resellers ReTool of Rockford, Il during his time as a mechanic. These are just a few of the several relationships Romero has cultivated within the Rockford area.

Rolling Off the Production Line

Once Romero and Noble put the word out the Rockford FC was looking for board members to steward the club, the reaction was not exactly what the pair were hoping for. Eventually they acquired enough people to move on to the branding. The Rockford community was turned to once again to assist in creating a visual representation it could be proud of. Numerous designers participated, with the winner being awarded a free season ticket for the inaugural season. Jaci Martinez, whose young son is being coached by Romero and happens to be a close friend, is the women behind the Rockford FC badge you see today. The season ticket was ultimately given to a young boy who submitted close to 20 entries. “All the submissions he did truly were great logos,” Romero said.

Since the mid-19th century, nestled along the Rock River, Rockford, Illinois has been known for its industrial might, primarily for heavy machinery production. Self-titled the “Screw Capital of the World”, a bustling city with just under 180,000 residents is home to Samir Romero’s Rockford FC. A black gear wrapping the entire roundel and a silver sleeve accenting the prominently placed “R” proudly stating an industrial mentality. The original submission from Martinez contained red ribbon and after discussions among the board, the decision was made to replace it with a color more closely resembling a cobalt blue paying homage to the river that played a prominent role in the industrial development of the city and ultimately the country. “It is a motif of what we do and who we are,” Romero said proudly.

From a player pool perspective, Romero explained the Rockford area has enough quality within public-school programs and the Raptors, fielding a team that understood the history of the community was not a concern. “We want them to be resilient and we want them to be hard workers,” Romero said. “We want them to be humble to community and proud fighters.” Romero elaborated. He admitted his club has received its fair share of red cards since their tenure began in the MWPL, none have been for fighting.

Time to Export

Romero referenced the crosstown rivalry between his Deportivo Cali and América de Cali he experienced during early years in Colombia. It is the story of many cities across the globe, split between eternally feuding colors. Romero wanted to bring that passion to Northern Illinois and speaking with Hall, he mentioned that his goal was to create their own battle for supremacy. “It made sense for us to play in the same league because I wanted that cross-town rivalry,” Romero said. “We didn’t have another team in the city, DeKalb was the closest and they are only 30 minutes away.”

Competition on the field was not the sole reason for Rockford FC joining the MWPL. As with clubs that file for expansion every offseason, the responsible growth that the league maintains and the adherence to fostering inseparable bonds within their respective communities made the decision easy for Romero and the board. “They had a project that wasn’t a one or two year, but many years down the road,” he expanded. “We could have signed up for the NPSL or any other lower leagues, but the Midwest Premier League made a lot of sense because of that.”

The luxury of having a development program the size of the Raptors, and the infrastructure it possesses, so close by cannot be understated. Romero also talked about a youth soccer tournament that he recalled last had around 800 teams competing. Economic disparity in the U.S. is a very real problem and one that Rockford FC takes notice of. Offering free programs for the communities underserved. “We could charge and kids from all over would pay, that’s not news to us,” Romero explained. “We feel there are other kids who cannot afford to pay for a soccer program or a chance to learn from players of a high caliber.”

Just Let it Run for a Minute

Romero and Noble have seen their dream finally become reality, the only problem is they were hoping to share it with more people. A classic case of “If a screw falls and there’s no one in the warehouse to hear it, does it make a sound?” With the amount of passion, the duo poured into this multiyear endeavor, Romero’s enthusiasm convinced him it would be an open goal right out of the gate. Noble tempered his expectation, explaining that the lower league club will be something that will take time to grow and in time it will become what they have envisioned.

Despite this letdown of sorts, Romero and Noble accomplished their goal of putting a team on the pitch and creating an entity that after some time, the youth of the city excitedly began walking through the door. “We opened the doors, and they came,” said Romero. The second year showed more promise of what he was expecting in their inaugural season, notably the attendance of 410 to watch his club face off against Hall’s DKCU. “At that point we realized this thing can, and will work,” he said.

- Rich Schenck