Meet Me on the Pitch: Developing and Testing a Community-Based Sports and Behavioral Health Intervention for Youth
MMotP
2 other identifiers
interventional
480
1 country
2
Brief Summary
This study evaluates Meet Me on the Pitch (MMotP), a community-based intervention that integrates sports, schools, and behavioral health with the goal of improving the behavioral health, well-being and academic performance of youth. MMotP is a novel approach that builds on evidence-based practices by using sports as a means to foster social-emotional development and address barriers to academic, health, and social services. The study assesses feasibility, acceptability, and short-term outcomes through a randomized controlled trial comparing MMotP to standard sports programming. The intervention will be implemented by the non-profit organization Soccer Without Borders and evaluated by the University of California, San Francisco.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P75+ for not_applicable
Started Feb 2026
Typical duration for not_applicable
2 active sites
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
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Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
January 12, 2026
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
January 14, 2026
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
February 1, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
December 31, 2028
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
December 31, 2028
March 3, 2026
February 1, 2026
2.9 years
January 12, 2026
February 27, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (3)
Psychological Flexibility
Self-reported response to the Avoidance \& Fusion Questionnaire (AFQ-Y8), using 8-item version adapted for youth. Each item is scored on a 4-point Likert scale from 1 (Not at All True) to 4 (Very Much True). Responses are summed for a total score.
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
Self-Efficacy
Self-reported response to the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE), using 10-item version adapted for youth. Each item is scored on a 5-point Likert scale from 1 (Never) to 5 (Very Often). Responses are summed for a total score.
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
Help-seeking for Academic Needs
Self-reported response to four UCSF-developed items: awareness of adult at school for academic support (Yes/No/Not Sure), need for academic support in past month (Yes/No/Not Sure), sought academic support in past month (Yes/No), and willingness to seek academic support in future (Definitely No/Probably No/Probably Yes/Definitely Yes).
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
Secondary Outcomes (3)
Social Connection
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
School Engagement
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
Help-seeking for Health and Social Service Needs
Baseline, 3-month follow-up, 6-month follow-up
Study Arms (2)
Control Group (Standard Programming)
NO INTERVENTIONParticipants will continue regular Soccer Without Borders programming, including soccer practices and team-building activities with their coach.
Intervention Group (MMotP Program + Standard Programming)
EXPERIMENTALIn addition to standard Soccer Without Borders programming, participants will receive MMotP, a six-session behavioral health intervention. MMotP sessions will be delivered weekly by their trained coach outside of soccer practices.
Interventions
Meet Me on the Pitch is a six-session behavioral health intervention delivered by trained Soccer Without Borders coaches to small groups of youth, ages 14-21. Sessions are held weekly at school sites, typically after school. The six one-hour sessions follow a consistent structure that includes a brief preview of the day's session and a review of the prior session; three learning goals; and worksheets and play-based activities to facilitate learning and reinforce key concepts. In Session 1, participants explore identities and identify values to help guide action in future sessions. In Session 2, participants establish a personal or academic goal, identify barriers and facilitators, and set an actionable step to support their goal by the following session. In Session 3, coaches introduce the DNA-V model and help participants develop psychological skills to reach their goals. In Session 4- 6, participants use the DNA-V Discussion Tool and plan additional short-term actionable steps to con
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Youth ages 14-21 participating in Soccer Without Borders programming
- Regular attendance at team soccer practice
- Ability to speak English or Spanish
You may not qualify if:
- Youth who do not participate in Soccer Without Borders activities
- Youth who do not attend soccer practice regularly
- Youth who do not speak English or Spanish
- Youth who have already received the MMotP program
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- Soccer Without Borderscollaborator
- University of California, San Franciscolead
- National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)collaborator
Study Sites (2)
Soccer Without Borders - Bay Area
Oakland, California, 94609, United States
Soccer Without Borders - Colorado
Denver, Colorado, 80205, United States
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Officials
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Mara Decker, DrPH
University of California, San Francisco
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- SINGLE
- Who Masked
- OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
- Masking Details
- The youth participants and coaches enrolling participants will not know of study assignment until after completing recruitment, consent and the baseline survey. At that point, the UCSF study team will use a random number generator to assign each participant to the intervention or control condition. The researcher conducting the outcomes analysis will not know the group assignment.
- Purpose
- PREVENTION
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- SPONSOR
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
January 12, 2026
First Posted
January 14, 2026
Study Start
February 1, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
December 31, 2028
Study Completion (Estimated)
December 31, 2028
Last Updated
March 3, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-02
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will share
- Shared Documents
- STUDY PROTOCOL, ICF, CSR
- Time Frame
- Data will be available on or before December 2029.
- Access Criteria
- Sharing access criteria are under development.
De-identified individual participant survey data will be made available for secondary analyses. Given the study's focus on a particularly vulnerable population (i.e., minors), we limit data sharing to scientists approved by the UCSF research team and Institutional Review Board. Because of the nature of the data and potential risks to research participants, our datasets will not be placed in a data repository. Data will be shared in compliance with UCSF IRB-approved protocols and NIH data-sharing requirements.