My name is Cooper Corleto.

I am a competitive soccer player, high-school student, and photographer born and raised in New York City. I have dreamed of becoming a professional soccer player since I could walk. I started playing with a youth nonprofit, Manhattan Kickers FC, and later developed through the MLS Next Academy system. Playing at a high level has given me opportunities that many young players with the same dreams don’t have—including access to coaching, facilities, and exposure.

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Yet across NYC, I’ve seen players use whatever spaces and objects they can find to play the game they love. That inspired me to create The Concrete Pitch, a photography project documenting street soccer across all five boroughs. Through these images, I explore how players transform sidewalks, parks, courts, and other urban spaces into places of competition, creativity, and community—and reveal the inequalities that shape who has access to the beautiful game.