Today we’d like to introduce you to Britt Hildebrand.
Hi Britt, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My story begins in rec soccer as an eight year old, wondering why our team name was “The Lady Bugs”. I’ve always been one of the tiniest players on the field, standing a proud 4’11, but I knew I wanted to make a BIG impact in the game. I found an admiration of the sport as it was an escape from my troubles and the more complex parts of life. I spent much of my time on the field with a soccer ball. As an adult, my relationship with the sport was somewhat frustrating and amazing all at the same time. Throughout my time playing competitively within the WPSL, I ultimately suffered from major injuries on my ankle and knee that would involve six orthopedic surgeries. With the help of growing up in the sport and suffering through those obstacles, I developed a grit, respect, and love for Soccer in more ways that I can count.
It is no surprise that I would find myself working as a full-time soccer coach and more recently a Co-Founder of The Sports Bridge in Southern California.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
As I stated, Soccer has given me a love and hate relationship. With the most amazing highs involving sisterhood, scoring goals, traveling, and more. The lows have been extremely low – requiring me to reach deep within and build a muscle I never knew I had – stoicism. Though it was daunting -going through 6 surgeries (4 ankles and two knees) and recovering with an underdog mentality each time gave me the perspective and ability to grow physically and mentally stronger each time.
Without those experiences, I would have never been able to appreciate and value what the game has to offer our youth.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am one of the Co-Founders of The Sports Bridge. The Sports Bridge is an online marketplace that is built for:
1) Parents to find coaches using filters (coach gender, flight, location, etc.) – for FREE.
2) Coaches to find players and gain exposure without the use of social media flyers and the old/ dated ways of online recruiting.
Sports Bridge was designed and built by coaches for coaches. We know the difficulty of recruiting and knew it could be simplified. We offer a better way for parents to connect with coaches to find the right fit for what they are looking for.
Our aim is for every coach to have access and the knowledge of The Sports Bridge to use within their recruiting/ coaching toolkit.
We are proud of our ability to connect parents and coaches, bringing the Soccer community closer together.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was always involved in a sport. From horseback riding to cheerleading, I always found a way to use competition as a pastime. Soccer was my true passion – that’s the one that never left my side.
I loved learning about psychology and human behavior. I loved learning about sports psychology and the mental aspects of the game.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thesportsbridge.com
- Instagram: @thesportsbridge
- Facebook: facebook.com/sportsbridge
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCH3aFdChECmfGHpnu4Jrpw/
Image Credits:
Ben Knights
