Santa Barbara’s Never-Ending Love of Soccer

The origins of the Huff and Puff Coed Soccer League (HAPCO) go back to 1985, when Joel Schwartz approached David Stone at the end-of-season banquet of another adult soccer league. Both players loved the game but were fed up with the intensity, physicality, and machismo of the men’s league. There had to be a place where people who loved the game could go to practice their skills, get exercise, and enjoy the camaraderie of team sports.

There wasn’t. So the two men decided to do something about it — thus, HAPCO was born.

Schwartz and Stone wanted an alternative, less aggressive version of the game, and in order to dilute the testosterone that sometimes dominated the men’s games, they decided to include women and men on the same teams. In order to make it so that the women were not put off by the physicality of the men, a novel tweak was made to the rules. In each of the two 45-minute halves of the game, the women alternated between attacking and defending, and the same would hold true for the men. So the women on the Blue Team would defend in the first half while the women on the Red Team attacked, and at halftime the roles were reversed. During the half when the Blue Team’s women were attacking, the Blue men were not allowed inside the 18-yard box around the goal so that the women had more opportunities to take shots. In every game, players would have equal opportunity to work on both attacking and defending skills.

Other rules and customs were modified. To encourage safe, non-aggressive play, slide tackling was banned. Scores were not tallied. Teams were not given names apart from the colors of the team shirts. To apply to play in the league, men had to be at least 30 years old, women had to be 27, and couples were given priority over singles. There was no upper age limit.

These modifications remain in effect to the present day and are highly successful. The only change over the years is that now the minimum age is 27 for both sexes. New players coming into the league quickly learn the different rules and are gently reminded if they forget.

In the early internet days of 1986, the existence of the new league was spread largely through word of mouth. Schwartz was the first league director, and when he stepped down, Stone took his place. Joel Kaufman was also one of the league’s founding fathers, and today his daughter Jody has taken the baton and is one of the team captains.

During the formative seasons of HAPCO, games were played on the gopher-infested field at Mountain View Elementary. Then Stone spoke to a teacher acquaintance at Crane School, inquiring about the availability of its pristine soccer pitch. Somehow, permission was granted, and so began the Golden Age of HAPCO. The Crane field and the HAPCO league had a glorious run of more 30 years together. Unfortunately, when COVID struck, the league went into a short remission and hasn’t been able to get back onto the Crane field since then. Games are currently played on the lower field at San Marcos High School.

One of the many beautiful aspects of HAPCO is that, apart from the times of COVID restrictions and when games are rained out, there has rarely been a week when games have not been played. There are four seasons annually, and when one season ends, the next begins the following week. To keep teams fresh and as even as possible, players are rotated to different teams on a regular basis.

I have played HAPCO Soccer since 1988. One of the great things about the league is that it attracts people from all over the world. Inexperienced players are encouraged and mentored, and more seasoned players are drawn to the cooperative, low-key atmosphere of the league. When I started playing, there were four teams. This has now expanded to six teams. At one time, there was a waiting list of up to three years to join HAPCO, but now the league is actively seeking new players, especially women and couples. If you have an interest in playing, check out the HAPCO website at hapcosoccer.com.

I hope to see you on the pitch!