Brando Babini on Breaking Down Youth Soccer's Pay-to-Play Barriers

His Youth 4 Youth initiative creates opportunities at scale and recently partnered with Nike

Brando is a 21-year-old student at Brown University. At age 16, he founded Youth 4 Youth FC after experiencing firsthand how the U.S. youth soccer system locks out talented players through pay-to-play barriers.

In the past year, Youth 4 Youth FC has grown into one of the fastest-rising player-led soccer development networks in the country. Highlights include 294 percent year-over-year revenue growth; the participation of 650 elite players across 8 states; 30 million organic social content views; working with Nike to host the largest free college soccer showcase in U.S. history.

We spent two minutes with Brando to learn more about his background, his creative inspirations and recent work he’s admired. 

Brando, tell us…

Where you were born and where you went to school.

I was born and raised in Manhattan. My mom grew up Orthodox Jewish in Brooklyn, and my dad is Italian and moved to the U.S. later in life. So I was exposed to paradoxical perspectives early on. I now attend Brown University, where I’m studying film. The mix of sports and storytelling has shaped how I think about building Youth 4 Youth.

How you got into sports.

Through soccer. At four years old, I played in the East Village with some Italian family friends. It started very organically, just playing on blacktops, but it quickly took over my entire life. I played at a high level growing up and was in a competitive environment, with a lot of players around me turning pro. I also played basketball for a bit. But soccer was always the center of everything.

How Youth 4 Youth got started.

Youth 4 Youth came from a moment of honest reflection when I was 16. I saw a lot of my peers take the next step into professional environments, and I realized that path wasn’t going to be mine. I looked inward and asked myself what was missing from my journey. The answer was mentorship. I needed someone, like a big brother, who had lived this journey. What started as a school project built around closing that gap has since evolved into a much larger platform focused on mentorship, access and opportunity.

What services do you offer? How can people or brands get involved?

Youth 4 Youth is about guiding players through every stage of their development: training, mentorship, showcases and networking. All led by current pro and college players. We don’t rely on traditional scouting. We use content to let players come to us, creating a more open and equitable pipeline. On the brand side, partners play a critical role in helping subsidize the experience, which allows us to reduce or eliminate costs for players. That’s central to our mission of addressing the pay-to-play barrier.

What’s your biggest success so far?

One of our biggest milestones was a free showcase we hosted with Nike. We brought in 52 college coaches to watch 65 players selected from over 700 applicants. And that led to 51 college offers. It was proof that if you build the right platform and remove financial barriers, you can create real, life-changing opportunities at scale. 

What’s the company’s plan for the future?

In the short term, we’re focused on building a network wherever there are pro and college players who can mentor the next generation. Looking further out, we want to create a full ecosystem that supports players all the way through the professional level, including helping them navigate contracts and representation. The long-term vision is to make the entire model free for players, funded through brand partnerships.

What are your favorite sports?

AC Milan has always been my team—it’s tied to family. I suffered through the banter era my whole childhood. I’m also a big Knicks and Yankees fan. But I’m a diehard Milanista. 

What sports media do you consume?

Hoop Dreams stands out for me. It completely changed the landscape for sports stories and documentary filmmaking. I also enjoy Copa90’s Derby Days series. And creatively, Nike’s 2014 World Cup campaign shaped how I think about storytelling in sports to this day. 

If you weren’t doing this, what else would you do?

I’d be focused on filmmaking. I’m studying film now, and storytelling is something I’m deeply passionate about. I already get to do that every day through Youth 4 Youth. Everything we build has a narrative behind it.