University of North Carolina Athletics
GoHeels Exclusive: Pinto's Whirlwind Summer
August 6, 2018 | Women's Soccer, Featured Writers
Incoming freshman served as U.S. delegate to FIFA Congress
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
When North Carolina freshman midfielder Brianna Pinto took the field Monday for the U.S. Under-20 Women's National Team's opening match at the 2018 FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup, it marked another milestone in her already impressive career.
But it likely wasn't the highlight of her summer.
Almost two months earlier, on June 13, Pinto spoke before the FIFA Congress in Moscow as part of the joint North American bid to land the 2026 World Cup. For about a minute, she detailed soccer's importance to her and how it binds people from different cultures together. And in the end, FIFA voted in favor of the bid, partly thanks to Pinto.
Attending the FIFA Congress forced Pinto to miss her graduation from Charles E. Jordan High School in Durham. But the experience proved unforgettable.
"My parents were excited for me, and they were behind it," said Pinto, whose father and mother, Hassan and Meleata, played soccer and softball at UNC, respectively. "I was excited for the opportunity. It was once-in-a-lifetime, and it was something I'll remember for the rest of my life."
Pinto became aware of the opportunity earlier this year, when a member of the U.S. Soccer communications department contacted her about applying. Applicants submitted short videos explaining what soccer means to them. And in hers, Pinto relied on her international experience.
Specifically, Pinto talked about playing against Iran in a youth tournament last fall. On the field, the Americans and Iranians were fierce competitors, she said. Off it, they bonded and eliminated any stereotypes about each other.
Pinto ultimately shared that same story at the FIFA Congress. But before then, she spent time crafting her story into a speech, along with the assistance of Terence Szuplat.
Szuplat, the former foreign policy speechwriter for President Barack Obama and deputy director of White House speech writing, helped Pinto prioritize what the North American bid hoped to convey. In the process, they tied Pinto's speech with those given by Alphonso Davies and Diego Lainez, the youth representatives for Canada and Mexico, respectively.
"It wasn't everybody needed to be 100 percent perfect, without any mistakes," Pinto said. "But we worked so that we'd get as close as possible. It was eye-opening because I'd never really given a speech before."
In the week leading up to the FIFA Congress, Pinto played in the U.S.'s first two matches of the U-20 Tournoi Maurice Revello Sud Ladies Cup in France before flying to England to rehearse her speech. She then returned to France, where she helped the U.S. claim the tournament title before traveling to Russia for final rehearsals.
Pinto rehearsed her speech at Moscow's Expocentre, the site of the FIFA Congress, the day before the event. That allowed her to understand the venue's size. Still, she felt somewhat nervous when she finally delivered her speech the next day.
"When people were actually in there the following day, I was like, 'Oh, my God, don't throw up,'" Pinto said. "But it was kind of cool. I was going off adrenaline, and after so many times (rehearsing), it was like second nature."
Pinto's confidence was evident. And shortly after her speech, the North American bid beat out Morocco's campaign by 70 votes, bringing soccer's largest event back to North America.
The U.S. last hosted the men's tournament in 1994. It also hosted the women's tournaments in 1999 and 2003. But unlike those tournaments, played exclusively on American soil, Canada and Mexico are slated to hold 10 matches each in 2026, allowing Davies and Lainez to potentially play World Cup matches in their native countries.
For Pinto, that added even more significance to the North American bid being selected.
"Over the course of the event, we became really close, so it was just touching for me because they will be able to play in a World Cup in their hometowns," Pinto said. "It's something I'll travel to go see because together we all achieved that and made it happen."
When North Carolina freshman midfielder Brianna Pinto took the field Monday for the U.S. Under-20 Women's National Team's opening match at the 2018 FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup, it marked another milestone in her already impressive career.
But it likely wasn't the highlight of her summer.
Almost two months earlier, on June 13, Pinto spoke before the FIFA Congress in Moscow as part of the joint North American bid to land the 2026 World Cup. For about a minute, she detailed soccer's importance to her and how it binds people from different cultures together. And in the end, FIFA voted in favor of the bid, partly thanks to Pinto.
Attending the FIFA Congress forced Pinto to miss her graduation from Charles E. Jordan High School in Durham. But the experience proved unforgettable.
"My parents were excited for me, and they were behind it," said Pinto, whose father and mother, Hassan and Meleata, played soccer and softball at UNC, respectively. "I was excited for the opportunity. It was once-in-a-lifetime, and it was something I'll remember for the rest of my life."
Pinto became aware of the opportunity earlier this year, when a member of the U.S. Soccer communications department contacted her about applying. Applicants submitted short videos explaining what soccer means to them. And in hers, Pinto relied on her international experience.
Specifically, Pinto talked about playing against Iran in a youth tournament last fall. On the field, the Americans and Iranians were fierce competitors, she said. Off it, they bonded and eliminated any stereotypes about each other.
Pinto ultimately shared that same story at the FIFA Congress. But before then, she spent time crafting her story into a speech, along with the assistance of Terence Szuplat.
Szuplat, the former foreign policy speechwriter for President Barack Obama and deputy director of White House speech writing, helped Pinto prioritize what the North American bid hoped to convey. In the process, they tied Pinto's speech with those given by Alphonso Davies and Diego Lainez, the youth representatives for Canada and Mexico, respectively.
"It wasn't everybody needed to be 100 percent perfect, without any mistakes," Pinto said. "But we worked so that we'd get as close as possible. It was eye-opening because I'd never really given a speech before."
In the week leading up to the FIFA Congress, Pinto played in the U.S.'s first two matches of the U-20 Tournoi Maurice Revello Sud Ladies Cup in France before flying to England to rehearse her speech. She then returned to France, where she helped the U.S. claim the tournament title before traveling to Russia for final rehearsals.
Pinto rehearsed her speech at Moscow's Expocentre, the site of the FIFA Congress, the day before the event. That allowed her to understand the venue's size. Still, she felt somewhat nervous when she finally delivered her speech the next day.
"When people were actually in there the following day, I was like, 'Oh, my God, don't throw up,'" Pinto said. "But it was kind of cool. I was going off adrenaline, and after so many times (rehearsing), it was like second nature."
Pinto's confidence was evident. And shortly after her speech, the North American bid beat out Morocco's campaign by 70 votes, bringing soccer's largest event back to North America.
The U.S. last hosted the men's tournament in 1994. It also hosted the women's tournaments in 1999 and 2003. But unlike those tournaments, played exclusively on American soil, Canada and Mexico are slated to hold 10 matches each in 2026, allowing Davies and Lainez to potentially play World Cup matches in their native countries.
For Pinto, that added even more significance to the North American bid being selected.
"Over the course of the event, we became really close, so it was just touching for me because they will be able to play in a World Cup in their hometowns," Pinto said. "It's something I'll travel to go see because together we all achieved that and made it happen."
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