SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Cal North is excited to lead IFFEM, Iniciativa Fútbol Femenil En Mexico, an initiative offering opportunities for Mexican-American female players to experience soccer in Mexico.
Cal North has partnered with two prominent female leaders in California: Mayra Gomez from Salinas, California and Jaqui Ortega from Sacramento, California. Both are passionate about creating opportunities not only for women but also for soccer players.
Gomez is a native of Salinas, CA who grew up playing the game both locally and throughout the state of California. She continued her higher education and playing career at Wesleyan University, eventually graduating with a Bachelors in Business Administration with a double minor in marketing and communications. She also has a Sports Journalism Certification and Digital Sports Journalism Certification from Instituto JRF, Mexico City.
Mayra formerly worked for Orlegi Sports, a multi-faceted holding company that owns and manages stadiums, facilities, clubs, events and other properties across global football, including professional clubs in Mexico such as Club Santos Laguna and Atlas FC, as well as in Spain with Real Sporting de Gijón.
"As a latina and a woman who grew up benefiting from the opportunity to play soccer away from home, being a part of this initiative is an honor and a goal. An honor to be able to provide the next generation with life changing opportunities, and through it, accomplish a goal of mine, to expose them to the benefits of multicultural experiences through the game we all love while creating lifelong memories," said Gomez.
"I firmly believe that this program in collaboration with various groups will benefit the growth of women's soccer and continue to expand the competitiveness of the game while empowering our girls. This is only the beginning of a global initiative that will positively impact the next generation of girls, and I look forward to being a part of it as we kickstart this program."
Gomez' role at Orlegi Sports was to lead expansion in the United States focusing on the development of opportunities for youth programs. Throughout her time with Orlegi Sports, she facilitated training sessions for girls in northern California in both Guadalajara, Jalisco and Torreón, Coahuila. She's looking to continue to expand these opportunities with Cal North and provide the highest level of competition for girls within programs that strengthen the game and the global soccer community.
Jaqui is a coach at Sacramento United, a notable club established in 1977 dedicated to creating a family-friendly environment while nurturing players’ technical, tactical, physical, and psychological growth to help them achieve their utmost potential. Sac United aims to deliver the highest standard of competitive play within the region and nation, with a track record of successfully developing players that have gone on to excel at collegiate and professional levels.
Ortega grew grew up in Sacramento, with her life revolving around soccer since the age of 4 from recreational to competitive to continuing her education and soccer career in at Folsom Lake college.
"Education was something my parents pushed on heavily because my parents were first generation Mexican-Americans and were given the opportunity to go to college, so that was always very important for me and them," she said.
Jaqui continued her education after receiving her Associate of Arts in Kinesiology from Folsom Lake College, to receiving her Bachelors in Sport Psychology from Long Beach State University.
"I want to be an inspiration and role model not only to my daughter, but to other women and girls who look to for guidance and support as they go through the amazing opportunity to play soccer. Given the opportunity to be a part of IFFEM with Cal North, there was no hesitation that I could help and be that coach for players to look to for transparency and guidance through their journey to get to play," added Ortega.
Both Mayra Gomez and Jaqui Ortega are dedicated to providing resources and tools to empower women.
Their efforts begin with educating female players in their home country, Mexico and extend to facilitating the process of obtaining a Mexican passport through the four consulates in Northern California. A Mexican passport can open doors for players to study or play soccer in their country of heritage.
Cal North plays a pivotal role in supporting these players by fostering relationships with the Mexican consulates in Northern California. This initiative builds on a collaboration established during the 2021 Cinco de Mayo celebration, where four Mexican consulates committed to supporting the soccer community including Fresno, Sacramento, San Jose and San Francisco.
To streamline this effort, Cal North has created an intake form to collect information from players interested in pursuing these opportunities.
If you are interested, please fill out the form HERE.
Formulario también disponible en español AQUÍ.
About Cal North Soccer Association
Cal North is the original youth soccer organization in Northern California, who has served generations of players, coaches, leagues, and clubs with storied histories. Cal North is a member of a much larger soccer community, and as a member, you are also a member of this world community. Players register to play with one of the more than 200 clubs or leagues formed by Cal North. Through affiliation, our leagues and clubs are also members of US Youth Soccer, US Soccer, and US Futsal. US Soccer, along with over 197 other national soccer organizations, are members of FIFA, the Federation Internationale de Football Association. FIFA serves as the international governing body for soccer and US Soccer has been a member since 1913. Together, local, national and international organizations form a family of support for the young soccer players of Cal North.
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