Beyond the World Cup: Georgia Women Helping Shape Soccer’s Future

By: Emyah Fortenberry

As the FIFA World Cup captures the attention of fans around the world, the spotlight often falls on the players competing on soccer’s biggest stage. But behind the scenes, countless people are helping grow the game every single day. Across Georgia, women are making an impact as referees, coaches, organizers, and mentors, creating opportunities for the next generation of athletes. Their work is shaping the future of soccer both on and off the field.

One of those women is Elena Miller, a referee whose journey into officiating began after a difficult experience as a player. Originally from Lima, Peru, Miller grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, before eventually settling in Atlanta.

After suffering a serious injury during a youth soccer tournament, Miller felt the referee had failed to protect her. The injury not only affected her physically but also changed the way she approached the game. Instead of leaving the sport behind, she chose to become part of the solution by becoming a referee, determined to help protect players and prevent others from facing the same experience.

“I decided I wanted to become a referee because I didn’t want to see anybody else get hurt the way I did,” Miller said. “I didn’t want anyone else’s young career to end because they were afraid to go into tackles because someone didn’t protect them.”

Miller became a referee at 16 years old and has spent years working her way through a profession where women, especially women of color, remain underrepresented.

“Being the only brown girl in the room in a sea of tall white men has been hard,” Miller said. “It’s definitely been a journey to break through.”

Despite facing challenges, Miller remains committed to creating a more welcoming environment within the sport. She believes soccer’s diversity is one of its greatest strengths and hopes the World Cup inspires more young people to get involved, not only as players but also as referees.

“If you don’t have a referee, you don’t have a game,” Miller said. “We’re all here because we love soccer.”

Miller also believes growing the game starts at the local level. She encourages communities to support women’s teams throughout Georgia and create opportunities for young athletes to see what is possible.

That impact is already being felt by players like 12-year-old Robynn Brown.

Robynn recently started playing soccer after attending a local soccer camp. Although she has only been involved in the sport for a short time, she has quickly discovered what she enjoys most about the game.

“What I really like is the team effort,” Brown said. “My team has shown me that I can work with different people from different backgrounds that I didn’t know was possible until now.”

Brown said her older sisters inspired her to give soccer a chance. While she is still learning about the sport, she already understands the importance of seeing women represented in the game.

“It makes me very happy,” Brown said. “I feel like it’s more popular to see men play sports in general than women. So when I see a woman play a sport and not only are they good at it, but it becomes more popular, it makes me a lot happier.”

As Atlanta hosts some of the world’s biggest football events, stories like Miller’s and Brown’s show that the growth of the game extends far beyond the World Cup. Whether through officiating, mentoring, coaching, or simply stepping onto the field for the first time, women across Georgia are helping shape the future of the sport and inspiring the next generation to dream bigger.

For Miller, that future is bright. With women’s sports continuing to gain momentum across the country, she believes the game is entering a new era of opportunity and visibility.

“We literally are just on the cusp of what I see as a girls sport revolution,” Miller said.

From experienced referees breaking barriers to young players discovering the game for the first time, that revolution is already taking shape across Georgia. It is happening one match, one mentor, and one athlete at a time.