It started with several men in a coffee shop, three minds mapping out an idea. In 2019, Van Roberts came to Edvaldo Pedro with a plan. He wanted to start a soccer academy, one that would support Pedro’s emerging north Texas club team, Allegiance FC.

Pedro jumped at the idea.

They steadily got to work. Facilities were bought, deals were made and by January 2022, Allegiance FC — now part of ECNL side DKSC — had opened a fully functioning, accredited soccer school, a fusion of academic enrichment and soccer excellence. And as the school enters year two, Pedro, Roberts and the whole club envision a model that can take the organization and its players to new heights.

“It is really a powerful concept. And we're really pleased with it,” Roberts said.

Allegiance had always been a competitive side. Pedro, inspired by coaching staffs for La Liga teams and the Spanish national team, developed a club that competed both in North Texas and on a national level. Allegiance typically dominated the ball, out-passing and out-moving its opponents. But in Dallas, a hotbed for youth soccer, it’s hard to find an advantage. Allegiance was constantly fighting to snag top talent, competing with clubs such as Solar, FC Dallas and Texans to bring in the best players. Pedro realized that his club needed something a little different.

That’s when Roberts arrived. His twin sons had played for Pedro’s team, operating in some key sides and developing rapidly as a result. Roberts had made money as a restaurateur and car salesman and was looking for a way to spend it. His suggestion, then, was to model a club based on the European academies. He wanted to flesh out a whole school, a place that could combine excellent academics and some of the nation’s best coaching.

Pedro agreed, and they mapped out the specifics for an entirely unique club set up in the state. They envisioned intense practices, private chefs and high-level academics. They wanted new fields, physical therapists and weight rooms. It’s a model that echoes some of the top clubs in Europe, one that steals ideas and plans from academies such as Barcelona’s famous La Masia facility. Roberts had already laid some of the ground work. The club held its practices in a church’s recreational fields in Euless, Texas. Roberts donated handsomely, helping fund fields and lights for practice. This proposition, though, was far more demanding.

For all of north Texas’ metropolitan areas — Dallas, Fort Worth, Frisco — there are miles of barren countryside and endless farmland. Harsh weather makes building both expensive and difficult. The logic for Roberts, then, was to find something closer to home and invest in the suburban areas where most of the players came from. At first, he identified a plot of land, a barren patch that could be molded in his vision. But that deal fell through, so he turned to a preexisting soccer and volleyball facility that was up for sale. It took $5 million to purchase and renovate the facility, and Roberts gladly paid up.

“I said ‘this is going to be perfect’,” Roberts said. “I got my architect and my contractor. And we built it.”

Things didn’t quite fall into place — at least, not immediately. The contractors aimed to hit a deadline of August 2021, with the whole facility available right as the school year started. But that proved to be too ambitious of a goal and by August the school remained unfinished. It was no small issue for an organization that had promised its students and parents a fresh facility — and planned on charging them $8,000 for it. Instead, the church where the teams regularly practiced offered its Sunday school rooms.

“[The students] had to make a little bit of sacrifice,” Roberts said. “I think it was a great experience, being in that tight quarters and not having everything that they needed.”

The school officially opened its doors in January 2022, dubbed Allegiance Academy. And it was worth the wait. The 50 attendees walked into a truly complete facility, the manifestation of a plan scrawled on legal paper nearly three years before.

Allegiance Academy has mapped out the day in great detail, with different schedules for the older and younger kids. But there are some constants. Every attendee plays soccer for five hours every day and receives five hours of educational instruction. Lunch is catered by a private chef, with an emphasis on nutrition and a diet tailored to the needs of teenage athletes. If needed, attendees can also receive treatment from the on-site physical therapist or use the academy gym.

The academic focus is strong, too. Every student has to take music lessons and can pick between a handful of instruments. There are seven teachers, instructing on subjects ranging from Computer Science to Portuguese.

Pedro pieced the schedule together by drawing upon his roots. A native of Angola, the director of coaching recalled the days where he would return from school and play pickup soccer late into the night.

“We never really got tired or there was no such thing as a burnout because of the balance between being competitive and having fun,” Pedro said.

He wanted to bring that same excitement to the school, so he designed the training program to emphasize more entertaining sessions. The coaches are teaching expression on the pitch, like rainbow flicks, stepovers — the extra flashes of flair that keep the day going and also make for a team with an extra edge

And the results have come, too. Pedro coached the DKSC U15 team to an ECNL national championship this summer, playing in a style familiar to his Spanish mentors. DKSC dictated the tempo of games, keeping the ball and moving it quickly, tiring out its opponents in the Dallas heat. It’s a setup that requires a deep understanding between players, one that Pedro said the school helped foster.

“Those kids are now together over 12 hours every single day,” Pedro said. “It just elevated and changed everything. The chemistry is amazing.”

For Pedro and Roberts, growth is key. They want to bring in more players, and they hope to enroll the whole DKSC roster at the academy. They're also putting together girls locker rooms, and aim to make the school open to the nearby community — regardless of club affiliation. Meanwhile, the facilities will continue to improve. There will be an on-site nutritionist this fall, and the school is working on catching the eye of college scouts.

On the soccer side, Allegiance and DKSC coaches are constantly fine-tuning their style, drawing on methods used by World Cup winning managers. Some organizations have already taken notice. Two squad members are currently training in Spanish academies, with more likely on the way thanks to Pedro’s extensive network in the high levels of European soccer. There are friendlies with top teams in place, including a contest with Real Madrid later this summer — another chance for the players to prove their mettle, show their potential to play in the professional game.

And even if the attendees don’t reach that level, Allegiance is still trying to set them up for success.

“We realize that not everyone that goes to the academy is going to be a pro player,” Roberts said. “But everybody that goes to the academy is going to get a quality education and they're gonna learn the lesson of hard work equals success.”