L ifestyle /C ulture
Team Israel Competitive in Philadelphia Unity Cup
S P ORTS
SASHA ROGELBERG | JE STAFF
“Ted Lasso,” the AppleTV show
about a titular fish-out-of-water
soccer coach from Kansas
coaching the Associated
Football Club Richmond in
England, was nominated for
20 Emmys last year and is well
into its second season.

It’s also one of Tyler Weiss’
favorite shows. That’s not
surprising, considering their
similarities. Weiss is the new
coach of Team Israel, the recre-
ational soccer team competing
in the fifth annual Philadelphia
International Unity Cup.

The intrepid first-year coach
has worked to rebuild the team
as it looks to win the tournament
and represents the country.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim
Kenney created the Unity
Cup, a World Cup-style soccer
tournament, in 2016 with the
Mayor’s Fund for Philadelphia,
the goal being to celebrate
the city’s “diverse immigrant
communities t hrough
soccer.” Israeli and Jewish
Philadelphians are permitted
to play for Team Israel; 19
of the team’s 22 players are
Jewish. Now heading into its third
game, Team Israel has a 1-1
record. It lost to Poland 2-1 on
Aug. 28, but beat Team Haiti
5-1 on Sept. 12. Their next
game, on Sept. 19, will deter-
mine if the team continues into
the tournament’s knockout
rounds for the cup title.

Tamir Levy, the Israeli
captain and original member
of Team Israel, wants to win
the tournament, but believes
the team has an even greater
responsibility to his Jewish-
Israeli community.

“It’s very important to show
a very good side of the Israeli
and Jewish community among
all the communities around
the city,” Levy said.

Weiss agrees.

JEWISHEXPONENT.COM Coach Tyler Weiss believes this year’s Team Israel is younger and more competitive than in previous years.

Courtesy of Tyler Weiss
“People need to see a good
representation of Israel,” Weiss
said. “It’s preventative of
antisemitism, as well.”
Weiss began recruiting
members of Team Israel in late
May, on the tail of the most
recent Israel-Hamas conflict
when antisemitism in the U.S.,
and around the world, was
surging. It was particularly
important for Weiss to have
a strong team for community
members and players to feel
Israeli pride.

In Rochester, New York,
where Weiss grew up, there
weren’t many Jews; he remem-
bers going to school with only
two others. Weiss moved from
Harrisburg to Philadelphia
in December to find a Jewish
community he felt like he
never had.

“I moved to Philadelphia for
the Jewish community, 100%,”
Weiss said. “There’s no other
reason.” A commercial appraiser
by day, Weiss coaches Team
Israel in addition to coaching
a high school soccer team. The
coach’s competitive nature —
and that of his father, who was
a member of the Australian
Olympic weightlifting team —
fueled his desire for a strong
squad. Having played soccer in
high school and college, Weiss
always loved the sport.

“Pushing myself to be the
best has always been something
in my mentality, something that
my parents really embodied in
me,” Weiss said.

Weiss takes the team
seriously; he wears suits to
every game, and he’s working
on turning the Unity Cup team
into a year-round intramural
contest, having recruited more
than 15 new members to Team
Israel this year.

Many new players are from
Maccabi USA teams. In early
summer, Weiss scoured rosters,
Instagram and Facebook
groups, messaging 30-40 area
athletes who might be inter-
ested in joining the team.

It was on Instagram that
Tyler Weiss connected with
Daniel Weiss (no relation), a
Maccabi athlete since he was
13. Daniel Weiss previously
played in the Unity Cup for
Team USA, and his brother
played for Team Germany. This
year, they are both playing for
Team Israel, feeling a deep
connection to the Israeli badge
on their jersey, Daniel Weiss
having been born in Israel.

“This is not just another
soccer tournament,” Daniel
Weiss said. “I’m representing
my country.”
However, the ambitious
nature of the team is what
convinced Daniel Weiss to
join. Though the camaraderie
JEWISH EXPONENT
clicked in terms of teamwork,
Levy said, as they’ve only been
able to practice once or twice
a week.

“We’ve got better players,”
Levy said. “But we’re still
trying to get it together.”
With one win in the bag, the
team is optimistic about the
tournament. “It felt like a relief to finally
represent Israel as the country
deserves to be represented,”
Tyler Weiss said. “Each player
put in a shift and did their
job with full concentration,
playing for the badge.”
Team Israel plays Team
Cameroon on Sept. 19 at noon
at the Germantown Supersite
at 1199 E. Sedgwick St.

Admission is free. l
and Jewish pride have always
been a part of the team culture,
according to Levy, this is the
first year where the team’s
roster is competitive.

Despite getting along off srogelberg@jewishexponent.com;
the pitch, the team still hasn’t 215-832-0741
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 MANHATTAN | LAKEWOOD | PHILADELPHIA
B R O O K L Y N | HACKENSACK | C H E R R Y H I L L
SEPTEMBER 16, 2021
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