The Robbie International Tournament celebrated its 50th anniversary this past weekend. 

When you say something has been around for 50 years, it certainly sounds like a long time. But you have to put it into context, against other world events, to really begin to grasp the size, scale and impact this event has had on the Ontario soccer landscape. 

Fifty years ago, when the Robbie was founded to promote soccer and raise funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Canada, the Toronto Maple Leafs hadn’t yet won their 13th and last Stanley Cup. 

Fifty years ago, when the Robbie was just beginning to build its reputation as one of the finest youth soccer events anywhere in the world, construction on the CN Tower hadn’t even begun. 

Fifty years ago, before the Robbie would become one of the must-attend tournaments for teams across North America, Canada was just turning 100 years old. 

As an OSA-recognized Charitable Tournament, everybody in Ontario soccer knows somebody who has been touched by the Robbie. 

And for Mike Ellis, the Robbie tournament chair, the people they’ve reached are as important as the $1.7 million the tournament has raised for Cystic Fibrosis research. 

“We run into people constantly who say ‘I played in the Robbie, it was great and I want my kids to have the same experience,’” Ellis said. “This year we found a family of third-generation Robbie players. A grandfather played, his two daughters played and now the grandson is playing.”

Dwayne DeRosario, the Robbie honourary tournament chair and host of their Celebrity tournament, is another third gen Robbie player.  

Just as the lineage on the field runs deep, the thread that binds those who help put on the event is thick. 

This year, nearly 400 people volunteered their time to help ensure this sprawling tournament and festival was a success. Over 20,000 volunteers are estimated to have pitched in over the years. Many of those, Ellis notes, are the match officials. 

“A big reason why we have been able to raise the kind of money we do each year, is that our match officials waive their fees and call our games for free,” Ellis said. “I don’t recall how that came about but the community here is so tight-knit that when we began I imagine it seemed like the natural thing to do.” 

And it’s those generious acts, people going beyond expectations, that makes the Robbie stand out.

Ellis recalls with fondness the time when a player from Bolton, who had just won their tournament, turned and gave his trophy to one of the volunteers. The volunteer, a young boy with Cystic Fibrosis himself, was stunned by the gesture. 

“The player wasn’t put up to it by his coaches. It was a genuine act by this young man. And as you can imagine, for everyone in attendance, it was very moving,” Ellis said.

These moments are plentiful. Some small, others bring perspective. 

“I’m not blowing smoke when I tell you that one of the most rewarding things is that we have got to see Long Term Player Development in action. And it’s clearly working. The kids today are miles ahead of where their brothers and sisters were 10 years ago,” Ellis said. 

When looking back on 50 years, it would be easy to be nostalgic.  

When asked what he would like to see for the tournament down the line though, Ellis didn’t respond with any clichés about wanting it to be around for another 50 years, or making it bigger and better in the next. 

His answer was plain and simple and it captured what the Robbie Tournament is all about. 

“We’d like to see a cure for Cystic Fibrosis.” 

By the end of the day Sunday, another $50,000 had been raised by the Robbie in hopes of seeing that dream become a reality. 

Those who won and lost this year will be remembered for a brief time. Visit the Robbie.ca if you’re interested in knowing who won what.  

But it is the Robbie’s legacy of community, development of our athletes and giving back for a bigger cause that will be remembered long after any of the trophies have found their way on to the shelf.