Costa Rica Soccer Tours is the most experienced company for soccer organizations interested in tours to Costa Rica. We have organized over 1,000 international soccer matches in Costa Rica for boys’ & girls’ club, high school, ODP, and college soccer teams since 1995.
Our Mission
We create opportunities for people to connect internationally through soccer.
Our Vision
We believe sharing cultural experiences can help us understand each other better.
What Makes Us Different?
- We have organized soccer tours exclusively to Costa Rica since 1995. We live and work here. We know soccer in Costa Rica.
- We offer a family-friendly atmosphere within our tours. We like to call it our Costa Rica Soccer Tour family. And we take care of family.
- We are able to offer high quality soccer tours at about half the cost of tours to Europe.
- We offer the opportunity for your team to give back by participating in a community service project during your soccer tour to Costa Rica.
Our History – 25 Years of Soccer Tours to Costa Rica
Like many Costa Ricans, company founder Randall Araya Pochet grew up playing soccer. When a representative from the US Youth Soccer Region IV Olympic Development team traveled to Costa Rica in 1995 looking for a partner to help set up international soccer matches, Randall offered his help.
After assisting with the first few soccer tours and working at the Boys Region IV summer camp in Nevada in 1996, other coaches began to ask about bringing their teams to Costa Rica – and Costa Rica Soccer Tours was born.
Company founders Randall Araya Pochet and his wife, Shanthi Kooiker, are avid soccer fans and has been dedicated to creating a high quality international experience for teams ever since. Over the last 25 years, the company has hosted over 500 high school, ODP, and college soccer teams exclusively in Costa Rica.
Leadership
RANDALL ARAYA POCHET
Owner
Founder and CEO Randall grew up playing soccer in Costa Rica and the United States. After getting his B.A. in Business Administration he was introduced to the US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program by a friend and began assisting them in bringing teams to Costa Rica for friendly match play.
Randall worked for several years at soccer camps in the United States during the summers. The coaches he met began to ask about the possibility of bringing their teams to Costa Rica and Costa Rica Soccer Tours was born. He later completed an M.B.A. in San Diego. Randall now manages the direction of the company and strategic relationships.
SHANTHI KOOIKER
Founder and Marketing Director
Shanthi, who is originally from San Diego, California, met Randall when she traveled to Costa Rica to study Spanish while attending Claremont McKenna College. Upon completing her B.A. she began focusing on marketing and web site design.
She and Randall founded the company together after coaches Randall knew began asking for their services to manage the logistics of their soccer tours. Randall and Shanthi lived in Boulder, Colorado for five years before moving to Costa Rica in 2005. They have lived and worked in Costa Rica ever since and love it!
LILLIANA ARAYA
General Manager, Costa Rica
Lilliana received her degree in Business Administration from the University of Costa Rica and began hosting soccer teams in 2006. She started off as a tour guide, managing all the day-to-day details of each soccer team’s tour. She then led our operations team for several years during which she managed the logistics for hundreds of soccer teams who came to Costa Rica.
Lilliana graduated with her Master’s degree from the University of Costa Rica in international commerce and now leads our team that plans and creates the custom tour for their team’s once-in-a-lifetime trip to Costa Rica. From the initial conversation through the planning process she and her team take into consideration the client’s goals and competitive level to create the ideal experience for them.
GUISELLE POCHET
Sports Relations Manager, Costa Rica
Guiselle has over 20 years of experience in sports tourism in Costa Rica. With a degree in English from the University of Costa Rica and combined expertise in the field of education, Guiselle’s specialty is matching our client soccer teams appropriately with the Costa Rican competition.
Guiselle has her finger on the pulse of all soccer competition going on in Costa Rica: the soccer leagues, tournaments, and championships. She manages our relationships with all club directors and soccer coaches. As busy as she is, what she most enjoys is sitting down with our client teams once they are in Costa Rica to share a bit of her beloved Costa Rica with them.
DAN ROTHERT
Client Development Advisor
As a soccer coach, Dan traveled with his soccer teams SEVEN times to Costa Rica with us! So he can answer all the questions you have about our soccer tours! 🙂
For 24 years Dan coached Loras College’s men’s and women’s soccer teams. He was named National Coach of the Year and made it to the Final Four of the NCAA Championship five times. Since leaving Loras, he has founded Top Student Athlete Recruiting to help students choose the best college opportunity that allows them to play the sport they love. He is now working with us to build strategic relationships with soccer programs interested in international competition for their teams.
