Soccer Sculptures Kick Off Highly-Anticipated Bay FC Match

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — San Francisco’s got nine new sculptures in its parks and plazas, and they’re all soccer-related.

Specifically, Bay FC-related.

The Bay Area’s women’s professional soccer team, Bay FC, is playing a much-anticipated match against the Washington Spirit at Oracle Park Saturday, and the sculptures are a means to draw attention to and celebrate the event. The match marks the first-ever women’s professional soccer game at the venue, where SF Giants games are typically held.

“These site activations mark another historic moment for Bay FC as we prepare for our match at Oracle Park,” said Emily Raimondi, Bay FC Vice President of Brand Marketing.

The temporary, large-scale installations, set up at San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department sites, are a nod to the nine Bay Area counties that Bay FC represents.

“[T]his partnership with San Francisco Recreation and Parks highlights not just our commitment to advancing soccer, but also our dedication to activating public space across the Bay Area,” Raimondi said. “We believe soccer, both on and off the pitch, can bring people together, and these activations – which represent the diversity of the nine counties we proudly serve—are another example of that.”

Each sculpture features a soccer ball atop a stand, hand-painted by Bay Area artists such as Malik Seneferu, Jonathan Brumfield, Joseph Lopez and Danielle Tinsley.

“I had recently finished a mural and a couple of other projects, and I got a magic phone call,” Tinsley told Patch.

“They had seen my work and wanted to see if I was available,” said Tinsley, a resident of the North Bay.

She and Lopez had met each other while working on a previous project, where they were doing separate murals at the same location. They had each other’s contact information and connected from there for their three soccer sculptures.

“She called me, and we decided to get together and collaborate to make them all cohesive,” said Lopez, who lives in San Leandro.

One sculpture, at Civic Center, has a rose featured on it, he said. Another, at the Crocker Amazon soccer fields, has a grape; and the third, located in Duboce Park, has a large orange poppy. All are references to Bay Area counties.

“We got to sit around and dive into the history of each county and find all these different, cool avenues to decide what we wanted to paint,” Lopez said.

Each of their sculptures has a wraparound design and different colors and themes. When the sculptures are situated side by side, Tinsley said, one can see their cohesiveness, including their depiction of morning, day and evening scenes.

Both are excited to have their artwork featured in the city to promote the Bay FC match.

"It’s a cool project where people can travel around [to see the installations], leading up to the big day,” she said.

Check out the nine sculptures at these San Francisco locations:

• Alamo Square
• Beach Chalet
• Civic Center Plaza
• Coit Tower
• Crocker Amazon Soccer Fields
• Dolores Park
• Duboce Park
• Embarcadero Plaza
• Marina Green

“These striking sculptures celebrate the intersection of sports and creativity,” said Phil Ginsburg, SF Recreation and Parks General Manager.

“From youth soccer programs to dynamic stadium matches to free World Cup viewing parties, soccer is woven into the fabric of our city,” he added. “We invite everyone to visit our parks, experience the installations, and join us in celebrating this landmark moment for Bay FC—and for San Francisco.”

Will Tinsley and Lopez be at Bay FC's "landmark moment" this Saturday? They wouldn't miss it for the world, they said.

Nor would many Bay FC fans, as over 35,000 tickets to the match have already been sold.

Kickoff is at 1 p.m. To purchase tickets, go here.

Oracle Park is located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza, San Francisco.