Putting the "Social" into Panna Leagues

There are a lot of different reasons for joining a sports league, and as an adult, a major motivation is to meet new people. The reason we are called Panna Social Leagues is to help that happen. This blog post is a long time coming, and will document how I went from being a stranger in a new city (Philadelphia) to having a crew and friends outside of work through Panna.

When you leave college and start work, the number of opportunities to forge genuine friendships drops. If you’re lucky, your work friends are cool and will have similar interests, and it’s possible to grab the occasional beer or meal with them. For most people, colleagues and family are the only people they interact with for a long time. The familiarity makes things easy, but eventually there’s definitely a desire to meet new people and form new bonds.

The best way to make those friendships, of course, is to play a team sport, and to go out to a social event. Fortunately, Panna makes both really easy.

The Philly Phutsal league actually started off as a work group. It was initially fastest to find coworkers to join the league, and since there’s a strong happy hour culture at work, it wasn’t a stretch to grab a beer after playing. Because we were playing on weeknights, people had already planned to stay a little later for happy hour. However, this became a replacement for our happy hours, so it was a quick game after work then people went home.

As we reached critical mass, we started recruiting friends from outside of work, and that allowed us to play on the weekend. We started grabbing beers and food after our Sunday games because again it matched up with a typical meal time: brunch. People were already used to congregating for mimosas on Sundays, so it wasn’t long before we actually convinced ourselves to start an hour early for the game, then stay another half hour to get some food. That led to beers and full on brunch. Having bars nearby that broadcast soccer matches was another factor; we ended up going to Ten Stone and Grace Tavern which were 10 minutes from the court.

Having a Sunday game before noon was also key. It gave us enough time to sober up from any Saturday night festivities, but also gave us enough time to enjoy the rest of the afternoon even after a brunch.

Once the post-game beer culture had been established, that led easily into weekend social events that were not always precipitated by games. Various core social groups formed around differing interests. Mine were loosely based on drinking, watching sports, and playing other sports like ping pong and bowling, and we had several outings where either all the group, or most of the group, were able to participate. The boundary between social league and social group BECAME hard to distinguish.

The most important factor is still the bonds formed in league games. Philly Phutsal has been in one league and will be participating in a second in the spring, and the bonds formed as teammates makes the time spent together outside of the games sweeter as well. We had a tough season and going out for beer helped dampen the sense of loss, but also reinforced that forming friendships was more important than winning. In fact, I would argue that losing (well played games) is better for forming these bonds than winning every game.

Now, whenever I meet a new player in the league, I almost always expect to hear “I just moved to the city”. The reason they sought us out was because they wanted to play soccer. But I know that the reason they’ll stay is for the beer and friendship.

Happy Organizing!

Written by Bobby Ren - cofounder of Panna Social Leagues and organizer of PhillyPhutsal

The Balizinha Way, Our Special Sauce

Hello, 

I haven't really had a chance to talk specifics and what kind of setup I have for Balizinha. When setting up a tournament, I like to think about before the event, during the event, and after the game. 

Before the Event: 

• Announce your tournament at least 10 days in advance

• Send an email every day, once per day, to make people aware of the event

• Make sure that the description of the game mentions parking, what to wear, the type of surface you're playing on and where exactly to find the group.

• For Balizinha, I recommend announcing teams before the event, increasing anticipation.

• Go scout the location the day before, so there are no surprises with the venue. Do not host an event at a site, sight unseen

• Make sure that pinnies are washed and grouped together, so you are not scrambling the day of the game. Note: try to use a detergent that is neutral regarding smell. You may find that some players are sensitive to certain smells.

• Time your travel, so you can arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the event.

• When you arrive at the venue be sure to sweep or remove objects that may interfere with play.

• Have a predetermined schedule. I can share with you a sample of our in-game program in a later post.

• Have the right equipment. For Balizinha, I recommend these goals, two of these balls, these pinnies and as a bonus, this portable speaker. Other things to consider: a mesh bag to carry the balls and pinnies, a first aid kit with plenty of ice packs.

During the Event: 

• Be sure to greet people and learn names.

• Give the players 10 minutes to warm up. This will give players enough time to get to the venue. I am going to start experimenting with a group warm up this winter season; check in on a later post to get a report.

• Have a "team captain" (a long-time member) from each team hand out the pinnies to save time.

• Have your phone with you in case there is a last minute cancellation, or someone is running late. You will also need your phone to keep track of time. At Balizinha, we run 8-minute games with a 1 minute transition time so maintaining time is essential.

• If you are playing music, set it up before the game. Make sure that devices are fully charged or be sure to pack the chargers for each device. At Balizinha, we have a laptop or an iPad for real-time stats and a speaker, so we have to remember to pack chargers. We also film the finals on Facebook live for our closed group, so we want to make sure to have a phone charger.

• Have the dividers down at the beginning. We use two courts for Balizinha, so the venue that we rent has a divider that comes down and prevents the ball from going into the adjacent court.

• At the 10 minute mark, assemble the group in a circle and explain the rules. Remember that all great speeches start with a "thank you." Use this time to welcome new players and explain the rules.

• Once the first games start, you'll have some time to breathe. You are going to need someone hitting stop and start on the clock when you are out playing. Or have the timer connected to the speaker so you can hear when the session ends.

• Be one step ahead. After a game, the next match is quickly announced to limit downtime. Make sure to collect scores after to update the stats.

 
After the Event: 

• Clean up. Leave the venue cleaner than you found it

• Announce the next event immediately after the game

• Reach out to members who attended and thank them

• Wash pinnies

• Reflect on the event. As an organizer, I have learned to look for clues. I receive one hint (something that could become a more significant issue if ignored) every event and I must address the problem no matter how small before the next tournament. This prevents a perfect storm of mishaps.

Now that you have all of the steps...just rinse and repeat. Was this helpful? What are some things that you do for your events? Did I miss anything? Comment down below. 

Happy Organizing! 

Written by Fredson Gomes - cofounder of Panna Social Leagues and organizer of BalizinhaFC 

Terrible with remembering names?

Hello, 

My business partner Bobby asked me, "how are you so good at remembering names?" This forced me to examine the way that I approach name recollection. I heard somewhere that the key to remembering names is saying it three (3) times and three seems to be my magic number, so I agree with the rule. The interaction goes something like this: 

Me: Hi, my name is Fredson. What is your name? 

Player: My name is Paulo

Me: Hi Paulo (1x), meet Tim.  Tim is a long time Balizinha player. 

Player: Hi Tim

Me: Paulo (2x), is this your first time playing with us? 

Player: Yes, I have been meaning to play but couldn't find the time. 

Me (during the game): Nice goal, Paulo (3x)! 

As you can see, most of the hard work was done during the initial conversation; the challenge is doing it the third time as the event progresses. Don't do it three times in a row because you will sound disingenuous. At the next game, you are the first one to greet Paulo!

The Panna Social Leagues app helps organizers recall players, but it is contingent on players using their real name and adding a clear profile picture. Why is it important to remember names? First, there is nothing sweeter to the ear than a person's name. Second, players whether they realize it or not, rely on you to introduce them to other players. As an organizer, your job is to be a connector; to bring people together. Community starts with you! 

I co-founded a martial arts program in 2009, and we are celebrating our 10th year in business this year. Running the program I've had to learn over 500 student names and faces. I was able to do it using the method I detailed above. Try it and let me know how it works. 

Happy organizing!

Written by Fredson Gomes - cofounder of Panna Social Leagues and organizer of BalizinhaFC 

Charging money...

Hello, 

Yes, you read that right...I said the dirty word as it relates to organizing, money. Charging is the hardest thing to do when you are an organizer. You have a special gift of bringing people together, and it comes very naturally to you. Because you are a people person and sort of a people pleaser, you often reject charging people. I was of the same mindset, but I changed my perspective on charging.  Here are 5 reasons to start charging for your event: 

Value. Sadly, people do not value something unless there are paying for it. With any generalization, there are always exceptions but for the most part, when I didn't charge I had a higher number of no-shows, people blowing off the event. I knew I was heading in the right direction when a player approached me and said, "thank you for charging, it makes sure that people show up to the events." It made me realize that the players value time over money. They have a two (2) hour window to get their workout in, and they want to have as much control as possible. If they can be confident of a predictable outcome/ the desired result, they will gladly pay for it. 

Cost. There are costs associated with organizing events. I have spent money on pinnies, balls, goals, permits, speakers...you name it. I am never going to be able to recoup the money and time, but that is not the point. The fulfillment comes from having a successful event. 

Emotional labor. This is something that you don't think about when you start organizing but drains you so much. You are dealing with people. Organizing people comes with all sorts of challenges. A player of yours is having a bad day or going through a tough situation, you want to hear them out. You worry that a player is sick because they missed a couple of weeks. Checking up on players from time to time. You have to make sure to have spaces reserved well ahead of time. Making sure that you get everything ready before you leave for work in the morning and timing things just right so that your wife gets home from work to watch your daughter so you can get there 30 minutes before the event start time (or is this just me?). All of these little things take a toll, and it becomes harder and harder to justify organizing if you don't see progress with your events. I suspect that this is the final straw and why organizers choose to quit. It is just not worth it to them. 

Longevity. There is nothing I hate more than being wasteful. What is more wasteful than building something and it disappears as soon as you decide to step down? Making an organization self-sustainable/self-sufficient is the greatest gift. If you figure out the money piece and the organization continues to support itself, it will keep living on, and you will continue to improve lives well into the future. 

You. Yes, you are the biggest reason to charge. When you charge for your event, you also value the game a lot more because you'd hate to let your players down. My players will tell you that I have given full refunds if we've had to change venues last minute or if the event was not up to my standards. This attention to quality has the events going strong, and it is because the bar was raised when I decided to charge. 

Happy Organizing! 

Written by Fredson Gomes - cofounder of Panna Social Leagues and organizer of BalizinhaFC 

Are you an organizer?

Hello, 

Have you ever asked yourself, "why doesn't this exist already?" I asked myself this very question right before launching Balizinha. I wanted to play soccer and wanted to play in a specific style, and I wanted to do it at a time that I had available. I also didn't want to deal with any of the toxicity that is often associated with ad hoc games, poor organization, and bad players and being on a terrible team because I was the new guy. Launching the group gave me more control. 

I searched everywhere, and that's when I stumbled across meetup.com. Although the game times that I could make were not available, it gave me a way to create my own event. When I launched the group, meetup.com was sending a lot of players to Balizinha, but they were the non-committal type. For my first game, I had 11 people registered, but only 4 people showed up which was infuriating to me (on a later post, I will highlight how Panna Social Leagues is working to resolve this problem). 

One day I threw an event, and no one showed up (no one, zero, zilch, nada). This was definitely my lowest point in organizing, I had this terrible feeling in my stomach. I took "no one showing up" as rejection, and it made me physically ill. At that moment, I knew that I WAS an organizer. I didn't feel like giving up, I felt like going harder. How did I turn it around? Well, make sure to subscribe to my blog to get...just kidding, I wouldn't do that to you :)

When I fail at something, I always say to myself, "okay, this is a moment where I could call it quits. If I stopped right now, this thing would seize to exist. This logic helps me move forward with no fear." From that moment, with no players, I came up with the player cap idea. My first capped event was 18, and although I didn't hit the cap, I was surprisingly close.  Which gave me the insight that restrictions are where beautiful things happen. I started restricting other stuff like if you reserved a spot and did not show up, it would be cause for a week ban.  I also didn't open registration until 10 days before a game, so players would have a better idea of their schedule. The capped games and the smaller window created scarcity, and that really spiked the demand. 

Happy organizing! 

Written by Fredson Gomes - cofounder of Panna Social Leagues and organizer of BalizinhaFC