How Tomi Wahlstrom Helps Soccer Players Unlock Their Full Potential

[00:00:00] Hector: Hello, and welcome to another episode of the How to Scale a Business Podcast. My name is Hector Sania Steon, and I'm your host for today. We are here with Dr to Walstrom, and his background is in higher education, but he's working with, I'm gonna have him explain it in a little bit because he is doing something awesome with athletes and helping to really change up the game and, providing a, a new way for them to both advance their career and also, further their education.

[00:00:27] Hector: So, Dr. Tomi, welcome to the show. Thanks for hanging out with us

[00:00:30] Tony: Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for having me.

[00:00:32] Hector: So tell us a little bit about what you guys do, because you were explaining it before the recording, but, there's a lot of moving pieces and I think that you guys are doing some cool stuff. So why don't you share a little bit about that.

[00:00:42] Tony: Yeah. Yeah. We are, we are very unique organization and really, you know, Today's, you know, sports, situation is, especially athletic sports, changing a lot because of the pandemic. So we are really in the right place at the right time right now. And so, yeah, we are pre-professional soccer academy.

[00:00:59] Tony: That's what I kind of wanna call it in a nutshell. But what we do is something very unique. We offer, Preprofessional players, and I call them pre-professional. These are soccer players who have been playing soccer ever since they were little kids. You know, they're really, really good at this level. and they dream of becoming, professional soccer players.

[00:01:16] Tony: and, of course, you know, there's a lot of money to be made. You know, in soccer, it's, world's largest sport with 8 billion followers out there, two 50 players out there. As I was explaining earlier, United States has the second largest number of, soccer players. I mean, every neighborhood out there, every suburban neighborhood has recreational soccer.

[00:01:37] Tony: and, some of those kids, they wanna become pros. And, also we have major league soccer in United States and lot of peoples professional soccer, matches. there's really no player development program, that really works. I mean, only 0.8%. Both college athletes playing soccer in, division one, schools, only 8% below, percent get offered professional contracts.

[00:02:01] Tony: So, we, that alternative for those players to realistically get a professional soccer contract. And of course, Most of the soccer in the world happens in Europe. I mean,in United States, soccer is not a huge sport in, in the way it's in Latin America or Europe or really, you know, any other part of the world.

[00:02:22] Tony: And so in order for, somebody to get that professional contract, they have to be exposed to Europe, they have to play in Europe, they have to have that opportunity to get scouted. And so we keep them the opportunity. We, take him on the road. We,take him to England, to, Spain, Italy. Our squad is in Italy right now.

[00:02:40] Tony: second Squad is starting, day season on August. So, they are in rotation constantly, throughout Europe and, 25% of our players get professional contracts within first year. they get contracts all around the world. We, we've sent our call Keep, just went to, Dubai and a professional team a couple of months ago.

[00:03:00] Tony: we sent somebody to Croatia, Brazil. And all of our coaches are former mls. Scott is an English Premier League, players and coaches. So, you know, we are really the professional standard. And what's cool about what we do is that our players go to college same time. So that they don't have to sacrifice, because what happens often in professional sports is that you have to make a choice.

[00:03:24] Tony: You have to choose whether you're gonna, you know, wanna become a professional or, you wanna go to school. And back in the day, it was really that single, but now with online education, you don't have to make a choice. You can stay on class, on cor, on, on university courses, while you are traveling Europe, as long as you have an internet connection.

[00:03:43] Tony: So we have partnered with six universities. Purdue University Global, for example, which everybody, Purdue University, St. Leo University, Columbia Southern University, and these arrangements with them so our players can, while.

[00:04:02] Hector: This is awesome. it seems like you guys really honed in on the problem, there's a challenge and need here. I'd imagine that. Things didn't already, you know, work out a hundred percent until the end, right. There was, there was kind of a, a stumbling block or some things that you had to figure out or, or work through, right?

[00:04:19] Hector: Maybe it was, you know, b you know, bringing soccer in, in a environment where, you know, soccer is not what it is in other places, or maybe it's the fact that. I don't know. I'm, I'm curious, you know, there, it, it's such a, a kind of a different model that, where were some challenges early on that you found yourself having to overcome?

[00:04:39] Tony: Well, that's a really good question. I mean, obviously the big challenge was the.

[00:04:58] Tony: Is to call to play, you know, aim for that division one spot in a division one college, university team. And then you know, some, you know, in some miracle way, MLS will come and scout you. And so for them to have a wake up call to realize that that really isn't happening. there, there was a reason I think HBO documentary called Student Athlete and it, it, you know, shed some into, even in, in American football and, and, basketball, which are the two sports in United States, only about 3% collectively between, you know, those two combined.

[00:05:32] Tony: Only about 3% of players actually get contracts in NFL and nba. So, in soccer that's significantly lower because it's not, you know, popular sport in us in the same way. So if you really wanna, you know, get that opportunity, the traditional route just doesn't work. So we have to be the educating parents because really the kid wants to do it.

[00:05:51] Tony: You know, they, they have dreamed about being professional soccer players their entire lives, so they wanna do it. It's a matter of convincing the parent that. Yeah, you need to let your kid to, come to Europe with us. And then of course, from our side, the challenge was to create those connections in Europe.

[00:06:08] Tony: And, luckily our owner, Matt Driver, ceo, founder, he's owned 12 professional clubs himself. He, has been playing in Punes league, English Premier League, and and was ans coach. So he's cultivated all these connections, his career. And so we have created connections with European teams and, essentially secured spots in teams like Villa Yoa s and Manto, in Italy and Spain, which we have current spots for our players.

[00:06:37] Tony: So obviously you have to convince the clients that there is this opportunity and then you had to make sure that you can deliver. and of course all of this had to be done in a price can afford. And that's something that we are constantly struggling. We have a foundation. we raise money for scholarships and we make, tuition discount arrangements with colleges to make it affordable otherwise would afford.

[00:07:03] Hector: So how do you juggle all of the different. Let's call 'em stakeholders or, or even just relationships. You've got your clients, who are the players? You've got the parents who are, you know, these influencers on, on the players. Then you've got the teams, you've got the school, you've got the colleges, you've got all these things.

[00:07:22] Hector: how do you, how do you juggle all those relationships?

[00:07:25] Tony: Very carefully. It's, it's a constant juggling act.you know, these players are like family members to us. it's kinda cliches, you know, cause families are sometimes dysfunctional, but we really, really care about our players and, you know, we have very strict rules to make sure that everything goes right.

[00:07:41] Tony: if the players start drinking, they're out. If they start smoking, they're out. You know, trucks, they're out. I mean, they have to follow street rules. They have to realize that when they're with us, they're representing their own brand. We are developing them as professionals as well, because they never know when they're playing in a practice.

[00:08:00] Tony: If there's an adult in a sideline, they can never really know, if it's gonna be a scout or manager or somebody, you know, looking at them. So it's more than just teaching and how to, how to play soccer. It's really developing them as an individual, you know, the entire character. And, we involve the parents in a process.

[00:08:19] Tony: Because it's only if the parents are fully behind them and understand that it's still a small chance, even with the best, what we can do, it's still a very, very small chance for them to hit like the, the Stars, you know, the English League, something like that. So we have to set realistic expectations. We have to be honest and transparent.

[00:08:39] Tony: we have to constantly look into better partners to make sure that all of the locations are safe. you know, all the women board, all the arrangements, travel is being done in a, in a efficient and effective manner. So, it's, it's really difficult, you know, to, to balance everything. But, we have an excellent team.

[00:08:55] Tony: We have great coaches, and we are 24 7 doing this, to make sure that these kids, become successful. So there's no one single. Thing that makes everything miracle we call Okay. Outta than communication. And, obviously, today's technology, we spent our days in video conferences just a couple of hours ago.

[00:09:16] Tony: We had all of our players, you know, on a call and we were talking about, and we had calls with them every week. You know, the core, what went well this week and what would they need, and we stay in touch with everybody all the time. So it's, it takes a lot of effort and communication to keep everything.

[00:09:32] Hector: Tony, when we get back from break, I want to ask you, I'm gonna give you the question now, so you can think about it a little bit, but it might look like you are in the soccer training business, right? But you as the c o, you probably know that no, you're actually in the. You know, it might be the people business or you're in logistics or whatever it is.

[00:09:51] Hector: And so I'm curious, because I think that's the, soon as we get back from break,

[00:09:55] Tony:

[00:09:59] Hector: Hey y'all. Today's episode is brought to you by Amplify Media and we are a group of genius makers. Well, we're a podcast and content production company, so if you have a mission, a message, a passion, a purpose, something that you wanna get out to the world but don't have the time or the tech skills to be able to do it, we can help.

[00:10:15] Hector: Go to amplify media.com. That's amp l a fyed.com. You can also check the show notes for the link. And with that, let's get back to today's interview. Okay, Tomi. So before we went to break, I asked you, you know, if. Like what business you actually were in, because on the outside it looks like a soccer training academy.

[00:10:39] Hector: But during the break, you shared with me some interesting things about your background that, you know, just you as the CEO and you br you know, being the operator. I, I, you seem to come at it from a different perspective. So why don't you share a little bit about that and then, you know, maybe what you think the answer to that question of what business you're actually in is.

[00:10:58] Tony: Yeah, I mean, well first of all, you know, that's the, the most important question that any business operative should ask is that what business are you in anyway? And, for me, I didn't come to this with soccer background. I, you know, I, I was a boxer, so I was,you know, amateur athlete. You know, I had an opportunity to, to consider professional career, but I had to make a choice.

[00:11:18] Tony: Am I gonna call the university? Or I'm gonna, you know, try to become a professional boxer. And I'm glad that I didn't because professional boxer's life is really, really hard. And so I decided to go to university instead. And I got my bachelor's, two masters and a doctoral degree. And since then I worked at 22 different universities and colleges.

[00:11:37] Tony: Most recently I was a provost of United States Sports Academy, which is the only independent sports university in United States. So I really got exposed to. The challenges and needs of, athletes out there. And, I'm just fascinated by, you know, people's continuously to themselves and, and how difficult it's, and challenging it's for athletes to, to make it to the top out there.

[00:12:02] Tony: So I really wanted to make a, make a difference. And so I come to this from education perspective. I'm an educator and I think that, the most noble thing to, to do in, in your life, the noble thing is to, to educate somebody. And everybody needs higher education, I think, to, to secure a career. And athletic careers are really short.

[00:12:22] Tony: Even if somebody makes it to the top, they're gonna retire, you know, in mid thirties or something. And so at that point they may wanna start, you know, second career. They may wanna start a business, they may wanna. You know, look for a corporate shop or something like that. Or they may wanna become operators of their own circle club.

[00:12:40] Tony: code C general managers, CEOs, CEOs like myself. but for that they need education. So, I came at this from, dual pathway perspective, that there has to be an alternative to current NCAA NAIA college sports model, which traditionally, It's the only model that has been out there. and, and, and really to us the future, I think that is, is not really the, the best model.

[00:13:05] Tony: And, and so I come at this as an educator, but also as a, as a desire to really help because I mean, you know, they are dreamers out there and these soccer players are dreamers. They're about a career that, until we come in the picture, you know, really isn't attainable to them. And so we keep them an opportunity to do something that.

[00:13:25] Tony: And, and just to see that satisfaction in these young people, for them to be able to, get on that road and see that it's possible and the cultural exposure. I mean, even if they don't, if they spend a couple of years, couple of seasons in our program, and even if they don't get that professional contract, I mean, they've got an exposure to opportunity to meet hundreds of people, you know, to play against professional clubs in Europe, to travel around Europe.

[00:13:51] Tony: You know, to, to learn different languages, to learn different people and cultures and everything. And I'm a European myself from Helsinki, Finland, and I think that everybody should have that opportunity. So there's much more about this than, than just making money. It isn't about that at all. For us, it's more about just making a difference in the world of sports and really educating young people.

[00:14:12] Tony: So ultimately, we are a people business. We are in making a difference in people's lives. We're in the business of educating people. And and that's what keeps us going.

[00:14:22] Hector: Yeah. Yeah, I think that that's when you're, especially when you're dealing with all the logistics and travel and, and all that, you know, you can get, it can get lost if you don't bring it back to, you know, to the people, as well. I'm curious, when you look back on, on your, your journey, especially as a, as a coo and, and I'm, I'm asking also selfishly because you know, Operations and, and integration and, you know, managing and working with and through a team has always been something that I've, I've looked to others and leaned on others and realized that I, I have a lot of room to grow in.

[00:15:00] Hector: So are there any things that you do within your organization that. You're like, we, we couldn't live without this. You know, we, this is something and can be big or small, but is there something that you guys do that you feel is really maybe critical or, you know, when you don't do it, things, things tend to go off.

[00:15:22] Hector: Like, is there something like that, that comes to mind?

[00:15:25] Tony: Humor. Yeah. yeah, actually they are. And, and really, I mean, I think that one of the reasons that I got involved in this operation is that it felt like fun and, you know, work should be fun and, going to school should be fun. You know, training to become a professional soccer player should be fun. So we do a lot of fun things to make it a real experience.

[00:15:47] Tony: Every new player has to, you know, has to record a song. They have to sing for the rest of the team as an initiation ritual and things like that. you know, so there's a lot of fun. There's a lot of laughing, there's a lot of humor around. and I think that that keeps people. you know, relaxed. they, our players are very competitive, but they don't compete against each other, so they really, really, truly are a tight knit team.

[00:16:13] Tony: And so teamwork is really important. We are a team. We pack each other, we take care of each other. And, and so that's how we keep this kind of rolling. And so, And, being real. I mean, I, I think that what we emphasize is authenticity is one of our values. We talk about teamwork, we talk about honesty, we talk about authenticity.

[00:16:32] Tony: It's really about being truly yourself. And, because what happens is when you get exposed to, unusual environments, foreign, you know, countries, food accommodations, everything. You know, you get to know each other in a, in a, in a way. get to know yourself and your teammates in a way like you, you know, wouldn't normally get to know them because you're a road together.

[00:16:52] Tony: And, and sometimes there's conflicts. Sometimes, people have to get a little real with each other. And so, you know, we like to keep, you know, humor up all the time. We like to emphasize teamwork. We like to, like I said, keep it real, keep it authentic, and, And, that has worked so far. we have remarkable young men in our, in, in our team and, and so, yeah, it's fun.

[00:17:12] Tony: I mean, we are foreigners. Matt Driver is Scottish, you know, so he has a Scottish accent and I have a accent. I ze and, you know, Michael, you know, player recruitment vp. He's, from Philadelphia. So he is our American guy. And, our head coach is from South Africa, so, you know, we have, we have a chairman, head, call keep coach.

[00:17:35] Tony: and so we are very international diverse group and so we are learning from each other. And I think that open communication, that kind of fun atmosphere is really something that is important.

[00:17:47] Hector: Yeah, this is brilliant. If, if people want to go and either get more connected with you to, or, you know, the academy, where, where can people go and get more information?

[00:17:57] Tony: Oh, they can cisco universities.com. you know, it's easy to find us on the internet, and, you know, in our website, you know, covers everything about what we do and, has all the contact information for people. You can also, you know, find us on Facebook, on LinkedIn, you know, the social media. the way we recruit people is that we, we, get, lists of talented soccer players to a variety of,portals that, that, these soccer players register themselves to, and we reach out to them and offer them this opportunity, and then they send a video to us, we screen them.

[00:18:31] Tony: And, so we don't just take anybody, you know, we, they, they have to prove themselves. They have to show video that they can play. And, we interviewed them. They go through a process and so, but yeah, we are easily found soccer universities. reason why the name is University Peace is because there are six universities involved.

[00:18:50] Tony: and so, yeah, it's very easy to find us.

[00:18:54] Hector: Wonderful. I love what the mission and, the ideation and the evolution of what you guys are doing. My last question for you, Tony, is, in your opinion, what's the secret, or key to scaling a business?

[00:19:08] Tony: if I would have that ultimate secret, yeah, I mean, that's what everybody, it's just a holy cil, right? Everybody's trying to find what that ultimate secret source is. and I think that the secret really is in scaling a business is not to get ahead of yourself. It's not to get into the fever of, being too impressed with your own program, your own plans, your own ideas.

[00:19:32] Tony: Because I think sometimes business owners, they fall in lo love with their own business so much because they have to do. You know, marketing, they have to pitch their story. They have to be positive about it. They have to sell it to people. So after you do that day after day after day, you start believing in your own pitch.

[00:19:50] Tony: And that's great because you should be believing in your own pitch. But on the other hand, you know, you also have to keep an eye on your rear mural and make sure that, you know, because sometimes the worst possible thing to to happen is to, for your dreams to actually come through. You know, if things start happening too fast for you, then you can't keep up and you can, you know, find the quality staff, you know, and you start getting sloppy.

[00:20:14] Tony: You start making compromises, and ultimately if your quality starts, suffering, then everything goes down. So you can't make those compromises just because you wanna get there fast. So you gotta, you know, the, I think it's like a shiny saying, say, you know, a warm, hard, cool head. So you literally have to have a warm heart and cool head all the time, and you have to constantly critique and criticize your own model and ask yourself and have honest conversations with your teammates.

[00:20:42] Tony: I like to, ask my colleagues, you know, higher educational leaders that I know, sports industry leaders that I know, and I like to call around and, and, introduce my business to them and ask them feedback. Feedback. I. Somebody needs to help me to stay leveled. And you know, that's the discussion and me and my driver have all the time because he's a visionary guy.

[00:21:06] Tony: You know, he wants to change everything overnight and he wants to do great things and it's fantastic. We are where we are because of him, but at the same time, somebody has to bring him down from the clouds periodically and saying, now we have to focus on concrete things. So it's, it's really that to me, it's also like keeping a healthy perspective about it and not taking yourself too seriously, but focusing on those concrete operational details rather than just, you know, building whole bunch of blue sky out there.

[00:21:35] Tony: If you start lying to your investors, that's a current way of, you know, not, not succeeding. So, you have to keep your projections realistic and that's, that's a secret sauce.

[00:21:46] Hector: Well said. Well said. I wanna thank all of you for sticking with us and being here. A part of the how to scale a business community. I would encourage you guys to go and get connected with Tony, and if there's someone out there that needs to hear this episode, send it to 'em and, you know, let's,

[00:22:03] Tony: Indeed.

[00:22:04] Hector: a, a soccer player's dreams or, or, a coach or something who, you know, there's, there's always a, a possibility.

[00:22:09] Hector: So thanks as always for being here. We'll see you on the next one,

[00:22:12] Hector: Larry. Y'all.