When John Salvatore started playing soccer at the age of twelve, he never imagined it would change his life and determine his future. A highly recruited high school athlete, John elected to attend the University of Connecticut, where he played goalkeeper for the nationally ranked UCONN Huskies. John carried his talent and motivation from the field of play to the field of business during his senior year when he established Soccer Extreme in the summer of 1992. His objective was to educate youth in the game he loved. John graduated from UCONN with a business degree in 1993.

By the early 1990s, John Salvatore had established a successful retail store for soccer equipment and apparel. He had also begun forming an outstanding staff of both nationally and internationally licensed coaches. Soccer Extreme‘s camps were growing, but so was Johns desire to play competitive soccer once again. During this time, he began a five-year stint in the professional ranks as a goalkeeper for the Connecticut Wolves. While playing professionally, John continued running Soccer Extreme. During this period, he also accepted an offer to coach at the collegiate level. He began by coaching at the University of Hartford in 1993, and then moved on to coach at Yale University in 1994.

In 1999, John felt that Socc‘er Extreme was not reaching its fullest potential because of his other soccer commitments. He decided to leave professional soccer and collegiate coaching and focus all of his efforts on taking Soccer Extreme to the next level. That same year he hired South African Craig Horne, who played at Lander University, as Vice President and together they worked to double the size of the business. Custom training, an innovative curriculum and outstanding coaches have been the reason for this phenomenal growth. Beyond its retail store, community and residential camps, Soccer Extreme has also provided youth with wonderful opportunities to travel abroad, experience different cultures, and compete against teams from other nations in the world’s game.

In 2000, John Barata joined the organization as Executive Director. An All New England selection in both high school and college, John will be expanding Soccer Extreme into the Greater Boston Area in the spring of 2004. Today, Soccer Extreme employs a staff of 45 coaches. These coaches are not only good mentors, but also excellent teachers of the game. With twelve years of experience and the passion to be the best at what we do, Soccer Extreme is at the forefront of youth soccer in New England.