LOS ANGELES — In the cool Saturday morning breeze, ThinkWatts soccer coach Rodolfo Lopez’s positive affirmations warmed players on the field.
Lopez, smiling with every step, kept spirits high as he worked through a series of footwork drills.
“In our neighborhood, unfortunately, [there is] a lot of negativity,” Lopez said. “Positive influence could change someone’s mindset.”
Kids bantered back and forth between drills on an age-old debate of Real Madrid versus Barcelona. Not giving up on their side, the kids brought the competitive juices to the field.
The day wrapped with each channeling their inner Cristiano Ronaldo as they competed in a penalty shootout contest. But at the end, in the group huddle, Lopez reaffirmed to all, win or loss, the importance of getting better every day.
“A lot of them have the passion of soccer and want to become pro,” Lopez said. “So if I’m just a little grain of salt in that process, that’s a win for me.”
Landlocked in a neighborhood of Watts, Los Angeles, California sits Drew Middle School, the homeplace of ThinkWatts Foundation’s soccer program.
The ThinkWatts Foundation was founded by Brandon “Stix” Saleem Bailey in 2018. The Watts native started the foundation to create opportunities for people with little to no access.
Access is not a thing that’s free. Access is a thing that you have to be able to afford and pay for, especially regarding quality sports programming,” Stix said.
The organization is centered in providing underserved communities in and around Watts, California, opportunities and resources through a variety of programming.
Going on its fourth year, ThinkWatts’ collaboration with Los Angeles FC offers a free 12-week clinic for boys and girls, ages four to 13, to learn and develop their soccer skills, while learning valuable life lessons.
The climate of club soccer in Los Angeles has become a money grab. The average cost of a youth club team per year is estimated between $3,000 to $5,000, not including other costs.
Lopez, who also works for Inglewood United FC, said that ThinkWatts is trying to eliminate the pay-to-play system.
“It’s always been a big soccer community here, but the biggest thing that I’ve noticed is just not a club influence,” Lopez said.
“Access is not a thing that’s free. Access is a thing that you have to be able to afford and pay for, especially regarding quality sports programming,” Stix said.
Stix drew inspiration from the late great Watts community leader Ted Watkins — USC star basketball player JuJu Watkins’ great grandfather. While Stix was too young ever to meet him, Stix’s parents worked for Watkins’ Watts Labor Community Action Committee.
Watkins was instrumental in building back Watts after the riots in 1965. He organized youth groups to clean up deteriorating vacant lots by planting grass and flowers and turning them into vest-pocket parks. In addition, Watkins organized the construction of multiple apartment complexes, parks, Martin Luther King Jr. Medical Center and more.
“His impact is forever … I can still see the fruits of his labor,” Stix said.
Three years after ThinkWatts’ inception, Stix started the soccer program. He wanted to create quality sports programming that was accessible for all.
ThinkWatts had the resources, but they needed a location. Stix wanted to stay local, and connected with then-Drew Middle School principal, Maisha McIntosh. With the help of Stix’s friend and King/Drew High School principal Reginald “Ra” Brookens, the two of them began to brainstorm.
“I’ll bring the resources and relationships, they provide the space,” Stix said.
Stix’s biggest resource was his relationship with LAFC. He first collaborated with the soccer club in 2019, when he released the first-ever hip-hop theme song for an MLS club, called “MY HOME.” The song blossomed into a relationship, and eventually a partnership.
When Stix came to the table with his idea of a soccer program two years later, LAFC didn’t hesitate to support.
“[LAFC] was very instrumental with understanding the vision,” Stix said.
The club showed its support by donating an LAFC-themed futsal court to Drew Middle School. The futsal court launch padded the soccer program to begin operation. ThinkWatts started by hosting under-five and -seven-children leagues on the court.
Eventually, the foundation moved to inviting other teams from around the community in for Saturday scrimmages.
“Small but very impactful,” Angelica Urquidez, ThinkWatts’ Chief of Programming and Community Engagement, said of the program. “The vision was to create a league in our community.”
In partnership with LAFC, ThinkWatts can source professional trainers for their sessions. A mixture of LAFC, Nike and Sports Academy trainers make occasional visits to Drew Middle School, helping to train the next generation of soccer players.
But, ThinkWatts has had to evolve the program since its start in 2021. With the growing attendance, sessions moved from the futsal court to Drew Middle School’s grass field and the training curriculum has had to change.
At the end of every year, ThinkWatts puts on a community tournament for all the local teams in the area.
“The only complaints we hear [from parents] is that they wish we did more days, versus just Saturdays,” Stix said.
In 2025, the foundation is spreading its wings. For the first time, ThinkWatts will foster a travel team of under-11 boys who have been around the program since its birth. ThinkWatts FC will compete in the Compton League starting this month.
For a handful of children on the roster, ThinkWatts’ soccer program was their introduction to the game. They have built their confidence on the pitch through playing scrimmages and local tournament games.
“It was more like a culture shock for them [at first] … Now that they’re familiar with how tournaments go and how games are, they’re more comfortable going out to games and going out to tournaments,” Urquidez said.
Sitting in the Drew Middle School basketball court — renovated by the Los Angeles Clippers — surrounded by members of the community, Stix never imagined the heights that ThinkWatts would reach today back in 2018.
He said he never plans any of it, just lets the ideas come to him. In the end, the lives that have been changed for the better matter the most to Stix as ThinkWatts’ lasting impact.
“That part is special to me, creating experiences, creating moments in time that people never forget,” Stix said.