This Is American Soccer, US Soccer, MNT, WNT, and MLS - Tackling the subject of Soccer in the US, and worldwide.

A group of ambassadors to the United Nations, including Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon of South Korea, played a little pick-up soccer at my home field of Pier 40 in New York over the weekend. Balls found the back of the net, but the real goals were to raise money for Play 31, a relief program in Sierra Leone, and awareness around the power or soccer to unify people after conflict.

The New York Times Goal Blog ran a preview of the so-called DiploMatch, and I figured someone would give this some post-game coverage–but after years of covering soccer in America maybe I should have known better.

I found a good vantage point above the action that I hope through photography allows for not just a celebration of sport, but the unusual location as well.

Pier 40 juts out into the Hudson River on Manhattan’s lower West side.

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Diplomats under the watchful eye of the Empire State Building

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the giant parking deck rings a large courtyard laid with artificial turf and is home to a number of sports, including soccer, baseball, and American football.

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not exactly a green roof

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not exactly packed, but still the most spectators I’ve seen at Pier 40.

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