Philmland’s George Phillips: Bringing Community Together Through Soccer

When Girls Soccer Network first came across coach-trainer, George Phillips on the popular Instagram @Philmland, the first thing we noticed were the quality of the videos and the insane talent of the players he was featuring. There was energy, movement and excitement in everything he posted. We started to repost him and the GSN community loved what they were seeing. So George and GSN began a mutually beneficial relationship that’s filled with respect, admiration and support. It’s kind of a digital lovefest, soccer style.

Here’s what we know. George goes the extra mile in everything he does. From his Instagram Live freestyle battles called Phaceoff, which attract players from all over the world, to his lively training sessions, George is stoking the fire in youth soccer. And it’s spreading. His passion is infectious and feels more like a calling than actual work. Still, on paper, he’s definitely qualified.

George is a former Collegiate Division 1 player who played for Robert Morris University in the early 2000’s.  In addition, he trained in London, England with Chelsea FC, and played in a match v Fulham FC with the Chelsea FC academy.  For multiple years, Coach George has trained and mentored numerous youth soccer players in the Maryland area. And, if that isn’t enough to spell DRIVEN, George currently holds the USSF National D Coaching License. His day job, you ask? George works as an Infrastructure Systems Engineer in Information Technology. But his heart and soul is all about soccer.

The events he puts on through Philmland are focused on shining a light on youth athletes and building them up. Phaceoff is a stellar example of pulling community together in a competitive, fun way which is why players from different cultures and ages throw themselves into it. He’s also done specific ones for girls, as well as people of color, to bring attention to players who may not get as much attention. What makes the competitions so special is George’s energy as well as bringing in DJ’s that the players compete to. It’s all about Freestyle, Rucker Park style.

This past weekend he put on The Howard County (HOCO) Big Board event. “Players didn’t have the opportunity to play for the state titles and awards due to COVID this season. I wanted to show them the  love and respect they deserve and give them the chance to show their stuff,” Coach Phillips said. The players were selected based on the Top Performers in Howard County and also DMV players outside of the county that performed at a high level over the year. They tracked this by statistics, going to matches and general word of mouth. The PhilmLand team, Ethan Fox (girls correspondent) and Hamzah Elhabashy (boys correspondent) showed up to random games and rated the players. Partnered with Capelli sport on the uniforms.

Here are the challenges in the event:

George has surrounded himself with great people. Sam Staab (Washington Spirit defender) and local Oguchi Onyewu (former USMNT star) attended the event. These are players who support the local youth talent because not too long ago, they were one of them. The see the value in what George is doing because mentorship is important.

Claudia Pagán, reporter and producer from DC United was the host/emcee for the event.  Sebi Salazar of ESPN is a regular guest host at many Philmland happenings. Creating events like this takes hard work and vision and the local soccer stars are supporting George in his mission. The players all benefit from having a platform on which to play, compete and be part of a soccer community outside their club. Whether digitally of in real life, George is definitely creating something special and bringing people together in a beautiful way, through the beautiful game.

FUN FACT: Why the Name PhilmLand?

Coach George believes that videotape analysis is a vital component in enhancing the performance of each player.  It also gives a more detailed approach to review and plan the next training sessions.  In addition, it’s a great tool for sending videos to other teams and coaches to support or promote a player.  Since his last name is Phillips, he took the word “Film” and changed it to “Philm.”  So, with filming and analysis being a big part of the training, the name PhilmLand was born.