By Randy Vogt, Director of Public Relations, Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association
May 7, 2025-America’s oldest youth soccer league, the Cosmopolitan Junior Soccer League (CJSL), is pleased to announce that Ron Restrepo has become the CJSL Director of League Club Development. This brand-new role was created to support, guide and elevate every CJSL club and Ron is ready to make an impact from player development to club growth and community connection. Ron explained that “my goal is to ensure every club feels supported, heard and equipped to grow, on and off the field.”
The 46-year-old Jackson Heights resident first became involved with soccer back in 1996 as a teenage coach, working as an after-school soccer coach with the Sports & Art Foundation Program under the umbrella of the New York City Board of Education. In 2001, he took the reins coaching a Boys-Under-11 team in the Brooklyn Patriots Soccer Club and the men’s team of the Borough of Manhattan Community College. The next year, he coached the Manhattan Kickers women’s team in the New York Metropolitan Women’s Soccer League.
2002 was a pivotal year as Ron founded the Chelsea Piers Soccer Club and it joined the CJSL two years later.
“I currently work with many of our Chelsea Piers Soccer Club boys and girls travel teams, and I continue to enjoy being on the field and staying connected with the player development side of the game,” he stated. One of the players that Ron coached at Chelsea Piers was New York City FC midfielder Justin Haak.
And if all this coaching was not enough, Ron started volunteering as the CJSL Games Chairperson in 2010 and worked his way up that ladder. He volunteered as CJSL President from 2018 to 2024 and highlights during his presidency include:
• Expanding league membership and improving club development standards
• Successfully navigating the league through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic
• Launching initiatives to support coaching education and referee recruitment
• Enhancing the league’s relationship with GotSport to streamline operations and communication
• Organizing competitive, well-structured tournaments that continue to grow every year
The first CJSL President, Erwin Klaus, reigned for 27 years, which was the longest Presidency, from the league’s founding in 1933 to 1960. Paul Kontonis is the current and 17th CJSL President and placed Ron in this vital new role.
With over 100,000 youth soccer players––both boys and girls––and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) stretches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with 10 leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old, and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees and administrators. All levels of soccer are offered––from intramural, travel team and premier players as well as Children With Special Needs. No child who wants to play soccer is turned away. ENYYSA is a proud member of the United States Soccer Federation and US Youth Soccer. For more information, please log on to http://www.enysoccer.com/