Pelé and Raúl To Make NSCAA Appearance In Philly

Honorary New York Cosmos president  Pelé  and striker  Raúl  will be making a joint appearance at the 2015 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Convention on Thursday, January 15.

Pelé and Raúl will participate in a Q&A session for convention attendees at 3 p.m. ET in Room 304 of the Convention Center. The session will be moderated by Cosmos goalkeeping great Shep Messing and admission will be on a first come, first serve basis.

2015 marks the 40th anniversary of Pelé’s Cosmos debut and the Cosmos will be active participants in the NSCAA Convention, which runs from Wednesday, January 14 though Sunday, January 18 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center and Marriott Hotel in downtown Philadelphia.

Raúl will sign autographs at the Cosmos booth (1069) within the Convention Center at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. On Friday at 10:30 a.m., Messing will be on hand to sign autographs as well.

The Cosmos booth will offer Raúl jersey tees for sale, an NSCAA Convention exclusive.  Four jerseys will also be raffled off on Friday courtesy of One World Sports, including a Pelé throwback jersey.The Cosmos will have tickets and merchandise specially priced for NSCAA attendees. A "$47 Convention Special" ticket package for the upcoming season - including six Flex Tickets (good for any 2015 Cosmos Regular Season home match) and a first edition Raúl Scarf - will be available at a $68 discount to commemorate the 68th year of the convention. Raúl makes his Cosmos home debut  on Saturday, April 18 against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

In addition to attending a number of convention events, Pelé is also appearing on behalf of G-Form, a Rhode Island-based company that has revolutionized protective gear. The company will be officially introducing its new shin guard technology to the U.S. market the week of the convention.

New York Cosmos Training and Development  staff will be in attendance answering questions regarding Cosmos TDP and the Cosmos Academy. Cosmos TDP is looking for coaches; attendees will be able to check the convention job board for additional information.

The NSCAA Convention draws approximately 4,000 coaches from its 30,000-plus members annually. More than 10,000 attend the convention for live field demonstration and lecture sessions, networking socials, coaching diplomas and more. For additional information, visit the convention’s  official website  and follow the hashtag  #NSCAAPhilly  on Twitter.