For Gabriel Almada, soccer has never been limited to the sidelines or the stands. Over more than 25 years of coaching competitive soccer in Ontario, Almada has built a reputation as a passionate developer of players, a meticulous student of the game, and a communicator capable of bringing the sport to life for athletes and supporters alike.

In 2017, alongside his son Santiago Almada, he helped launch FC Berlin; a community-driven project built on opportunity, innovation, and the belief that local players deserved new pathways to high-level competition. Like Santiago, Gabriel experienced firsthand the challenges that come with building something new. During the club’s early years, Berlin often faced skepticism and even outright opposition from parts of the local soccer landscape. Administrative hurdles and structural resistance were common. Yet the Almadas persisted, gradually transforming that early skepticism into recognition and, eventually, acceptance as the club established itself as a respected presence in the region.

From the start, Gabriel’s role within the organization has been multifaceted. Over the years he has served as general manager, overseen grassroots and youth development programs, and acted as a liaison between FC Berlin and the many leagues and districts the club interacts with. Behind the scenes, he has also become known as “the man with the data.” Almada’s passion for statistics and historical records has turned Berlin into a club rich in information and storytelling; whether tracking player milestones, researching opponents, or highlighting achievements that might otherwise go unnoticed.

That passion for information extends directly into the club’s live broadcasts, where Almada serves as the energetic voice behind FC Berlin’s matches. His commentary blends play-by-play excitement with deep statistical insight, often adding trivia about Berlin players, opposing teams, league history, and even broader soccer culture. The result is a broadcast style that is as informative as it is entertaining; one that reflects both his love for the game and his commitment to promoting the athletes on the field.

Beyond the club, Almada has also contributed to the broader soccer community through his work with the Ontario Premier League, where he has served in different capacities including play-by-play commentator and cohost of the league’s YouTube programming.

At the heart of Almada’s work is a clear philosophy: player development comes first. A focused, passionate, and dedicated mentor, he places tremendous value on treating players, parents, and staff with respect and integrity. His coaching approach emphasizes strong technical fundamentals, game intelligence, and confidence, ensuring that players not only improve but also develop a genuine understanding of the sport.

Over the course of his coaching career, many of the athletes he has guided at the youth and minor levels have gone on to play university and college soccer in both Canada and the United States. Several have achieved significant honours along the way, including conference all-star selections, USCAA All-American recognition, and Academic All-American awards.

For Almada, those accomplishments represent the true measure of success: helping players grow, pursue opportunities, and reach levels they once dreamed about.

You’ve been involved in competitive soccer in Ontario for more than 25 years. What first inspired you to start coaching, and what has kept you motivated all these years?
I first got involved in coaching as a way to be part of my kids’ activities, like many parents do. Soccer has always been a big part of my life, so it felt like a natural fit. It didn’t take long before I was completely hooked. What started with coaching my son Santiago at the recreational level quickly grew into coaching all four of my kids, then moving into the competitive (Rep) level, and eventually contributing to our semi-professional teams, even if in a substitute or jack-of-all-trades role.

Even before founding our club, I was always looking for ways to do things differently. At tournaments, I would bring a binder with individual profiles for each player: biographical details, graduation years, and game statistics. I kept asking why there seemed to be so little focus on players after high school, and the common response was that most wouldn’t go on to play NCAA Division I or professionally. My mindset was simple: why not?

That question led me to start taking players to college combines, giving them exposure to university coaches across Canada and the United States. That’s how Santiago, for example, ended up playing in Michigan. I’ve never taken credit for those outcomes. I’ve always believed my role was not to open doors, but to bring players to them and point the way; the rest was entirely up to their talent, commitment, and work ethic.

What continues to drive me is seeing players I’ve worked with for years grow; not just into strong athletes, but into individuals who achieve opportunities they may not have imagined for themselves. Watching someone I’ve coached since childhood reach the Division I level or break records has been an incredibly rewarding experience.

Founding FC Berlin in 2017 alongside your son Santiago was a bold step. What was the moment when you realized the club could become something special?
It happened almost immediately. We started small, with an Under-15 boys team coached by Santiago, alongside a men’s team that I coached, where Santiago also played. Just a few months after launching Berlin, we took that U15 team to a tournament near Rochester, New York, and they came back with the trophy. That moment made it clear we were building something special.

The next step was transitioning from an academy into a full club, and that proved to be far more challenging than we initially expected.

The early years of the club came with skepticism and challenges. What were some of the biggest obstacles you and Santiago had to overcome?
Our arrival was undeniably disruptive. We entered a landscape where many associations and districts operated like closed circles, systems that were often resistant to newcomers, and in some cases, still are. From early on, we faced significant pushback. We were accused of recruiting players unfairly, discredited, and, at times, openly disrespected. There were even instances where individuals went out of their way to spread false narratives about who we were and what we stood for.

Some of those moments were almost surreal. I remember one particular incident when Santiago and I received an email from a local club accusing us of attending one of their events to recruit their U15 girls players, essentially a “cease and desist” warning. The accusation was puzzling on multiple levels. Not only had we not yet even planned to form a girls team (that came the following year), but more importantly, we weren’t anywhere near the event. At the time, we were in Porto Alegre, Brazil, attending Copa América.

It was a bizarre situation, but also a telling one. It highlighted just how disruptive our presence had become.



Over the years, many of the individuals and organizations that initially viewed us with skepticism—or even as a threat—came to understand our true intentions. They saw that we were here to contribute, not to take; to promote players and grow the sport in our region, not to undermine anyone’s reputation.


Today, we are proud to work alongside many of these same clubs in a truly collaborative environment. It’s incredibly rewarding to see how those relationships have evolved, and to know that we’ve earned their trust and respect.

You’ve held many roles within FC Berlin, from general manager to youth development leader and league liaison. Which part of that work has been the most rewarding for you?
As I mentioned earlier, my greatest motivation has always been helping players grow, not just as student-athletes, but as individuals. I’ve always gone the extra mile for them, sometimes doing things others might have considered over the top. I would take road trips to watch my players compete for their university teams, and seeing their faces light up when they spotted me walking onto the field, whether we were in West Virginia, Oklahoma, or Northern Ontario, was priceless.

I typically coached our development teams, and from Day 1, I was very clear with my players: my goal was that I wouldn’t see them the next season, because they would have moved up to the higher squad coached by my son. I never aimed to be remembered as the best coach they’d ever had; instead, I would challenge them to find someone who would work harder for them than me.

You’re known around the club as the “statistics guy.” Where did your passion for soccer data and historical records come from?
I’m not entirely sure how it started, but I’ve always loved keeping detailed records. I have complete stats for each of my four children: the number of games played, goals scored, and more, even from their days in recreational teams. Over the years, and especially once we launched Berlin, I expanded this approach to track everything: goals, assists, substitutions, shutouts, whether we were competing in UPSL playoffs or playing a casual co-ed recreational league at home.

Your match broadcasts have become a signature part of the FC Berlin experience. How do you prepare for a broadcast, and how do you find those interesting pieces of trivia during games?

Oh, I love doing my homework! I take pride in giving our listeners not just a sense of what’s happening on the field, but also insight into the players, the clubs, and even the facilities or cities where the games take place. I spend several hours each week researching opponents: where they’re from, what schools they attended, whether they’ve played outside North America, and gathering context about the league, standings, and other matches happening at the same time.

I also enjoy sprinkling in some harmless “dad jokes” or funny comments during my broadcasts. I won’t say two players are insulting each other, I might say they’re exchanging interesting details about their family trees. I might share a story about the 1954 World Cup match between Germany and Hungary, or the starting lineup for Argentina in the 1930 final in Uruguay. Most of the time, I don’t know exactly what I’m going to come up with, and it amuses me to imagine that viewers might be enjoying the unpredictability just as much as I am.

You’ve also worked with the Ontario Premier League as a commentator and show host. What has that experience been like, and how does it differ from calling games for your own club?
I’ve enjoyed both roles tremendously. On the commentary side, I take a more formal approach than I do with my own club, but I absolutely love it. The same goes for the YouTube show: I take great pride in editing the videos and making sure viewers come away with more than just what they can see on the screen.

Many of the players you coached have gone on to play college and university soccer. What does it mean to you when you see former players succeed at that level?

I’ve mentioned this before, but here’s a good example: there was a girl who played alongside my oldest daughter at the recreational level, on a team I wasn’t even coaching. I could see she had real talent, so I spoke to her parents and said, “You should have your daughter try out for the city team! She’s very good.” She was interested, so she did and she made the team; over time, she became one of the top players, eventually playing at the college level. Every time I saw her play, two things would happen that made me feel like a million bucks: she would come over to give me a hug, and her parents would jokingly point at me and say, “We blame you for this.” It's been years since I have seen them; I hope they could read this and know how great they made me feel back then.

I also loved encouraging talented players who were struggling for whatever reason (skills, confidence, mindset). Three years ago, I told a very skilled, focused 16-year-old, “One day I’ll have to pay to watch you play.” That’s becoming increasingly true these days.

There’s an incredible sense of accomplishment in seeing “my kids” reach college or succeed at higher levels. Knowing that I may have played even a small role in their success means the world to me.

From grassroots soccer to national competitions like the MASL-W Nationals, you’ve seen FC Berlin grow tremendously. What moment in the club’s history makes you the proudest?
That’s true—I’ve seen our club achieve incredible things, but we’ve also faced significant challenges. We’ve won leagues at the provincial level with a perfect record, and we’ve also been taken advantage of by people we were trying to help, costing us thousands of dollars and impacting our credibility.

Winning the Ontario Cup with our U17 girls team in 2023 was a major milestone, allowing us to represent the province at the Nationals in New Brunswick. Making the UPSL playoffs was another highlight, and joining UWS to compete against established clubs like FC Buffalo and Steel City FC was an important step for our growth.

But I think that today marks the most glorious period in our history. We’ve joined a highly prestigious league as the first Canadian squad to do so—and in our very first season, we reached the Nationals. That achievement reflects our vision, hard work, and determination. Regardless of how this coming weekend unfolds, I feel like we’ve truly “made it.” We are now a respected organization, recognized and considered by some of the region’s most important clubs, and that is an incredibly gratifying feeling.

Looking ahead, what is your vision for the future of FC Berlin and the next generation of players coming through the program?
I hope we can continue to solidify our status as the “go-to” team in this region for arena soccer. I also have ambitions to bring back our men’s squad in the near future—there’s definitely a sense of “unfinished business” there.

In the mid-term, I would love to return to youth soccer, coaching U17 and U18 teams. Whether that will happen is uncertain—not only because some districts may still be reluctant to cooperate, but also because… I’m getting older. Maybe it makes more sense to focus on managing the club and overseeing our broadcasts. I love both roles, and they already demand plenty of my time!