Freestyle Soccer
California’s Caitlyn Schrepfer is putting freestyle football on the map in the USA and putting the USA on the radar of freestyle fans globally.
“There’s something special about Red Bull Street Style. The best of the best are gathered from around the world,” says Schrepfer, 25. “You have to keep topping rounds in order to even make it to the stage to have a shot.”
The 2021 Red Bull Street Style World Final in Valencia, Spain, on November 20 will be Schrepfer’s fourth, and the event itself goes back to 2008. But so far, not a single US freestyler, female or male, has managed to claim the crown. Schrepfer would love to see a change in that statistic in the future.
From the looks of her trajectory through the sport, the future could be now. A traditional football player in her teens, the athlete discovered freestyle during a period when she was sidelined with an injury, and she was quickly hooked.
“I came across some freestylers at a soccer expo – that was where I first saw freestyle in person. It was just absolutely captivating,” Schrepfer remembers.
She continues, “One of my favourite things about freestyle is that there are no limits. You really see how far you can personally push yourself. There’s always more that you can learn and do, and I love it.”
To compete at the highest level, the Californian trains from three to six hours a day, every day, and it seems to be paying off. Schrepfer’s smooth skills were undefeated in the Battle Pool rounds that determined this year’s eight Red Bull Street Style women’s finalists. This marked her as a favourite, along with the likes of Dutch powerhouse Jasmijn Janssen, 2018 World Champion Aguska Mnich of Poland and even four-time (and reigning) titleholder Mélody Donchet of France.
No matter where she places in the World Final at Valencia’s Palau de la Música, Schrepfer will be bringing her best and inspiring other American hopefuls. She says there are plenty out there working to make their mark on the sport.
“To represent the United States on an international level is just astonishing,” Schrepfer says. “It really means a lot, and it shows that there’s a lot of talent in the US that has been under the radar so far. We’re going to put it on the map.”