TOCA Naperville
Technology-enabled soccer experience company, TOCA Football, has opened its first center in Illinois right here in Naperville.
The California-based company took over the 95,000 square foot space previously known as Players Indoor at 1740 Quincy Ave.
“Chicago is an amazing soccer market and we wanted to play a part in it,” said Hammond Moore, president of TOCA Football.
They knew about Naperville after getting to know the previous owner of Players Indoor, Maxine Appenbrink.
“We extend our deepest gratitude to the community for its support throughout the years, as we transfer our facility over to TOCA Football and innovate for the future of the sport,” said Appenbrink in a news release.
TOCA Naperville is currently open only for youth and adult leagues. The center also features two indoor soccer fields and three futsal fields which will host leagues and sports events year round.
TOCA Touch Trainer, Toca Football
More to Come
By late March or early April, the company plans to have all the the tech components ready to go. These include 18 state-of-the-art TOCA training studios powered by TOCA Touch Trainers, TOCA Smart Targets, and the TOCA Pathway Player Development Program.
Smart Target, TOCA Football
“TOCA Touch Trainer delivers a smaller sized ball to a player and allows them to get that 300 to 400 touches and to maximize repetition. The second is the Smart Target decision making component. If you imagine a [soccer] goal, we now have Smart Targets instead and that allows us to drive decision making which helps provide a real-life, game-like situation to the players to help them develop,” said Hammond. “The third component is what we call our Player Pathways. That’s the curriculum side [of it].”
The center offers training for kids as young as one year old all the way to professional athletes. You can come in to train on your own or with a staff member, which helps build a mentorship and provide a positive influence said Hammond.
Kids in Sports, TOCA Football
“What’s most important is we can bring relationships,” said Hammond. “Our people are amazing and I think their personal touch they’ll bring to this community will build deep bonds in our community, and combine that with technology I think it’s a win for the community and a win for TOCA.”
Later in the year, the center will launch Kids in Sports which is an early childhood, multi-sport athletic program designed to promote confidence and love for physical play in children.
TOCA Football was founded by former U.S. national professional soccer player Eddie Lewis. TOCA Naperville is the company’s largest center from all of their branches across the U.S. and Canada.
Naperville News 17’s Aysha Ashley Househ reports.
photo credit: TOCA Football
