Founder Story
In 2026, Eugene Hicks and his son LJ sat down and faced a truth they’d been circling for years. LJ played soccer from the age of four. He had talent. He had the coachable, self-critical work ethic that coaches look for. He had a family that showed up — every practice, every tournament, every long weekend drive.
What he didn’t have was the playbook.
Which coaches do you email first. What a real highlight reel looks like, and what one looks like that embarrasses you. When the actual recruiting conversations start — because it’s not junior year, and nobody tells you that. Which showcases matter and which ones are noise. What ‘interest’ from a college program actually means. The whole system runs on insider knowledge, and the premium recruiting services are priced and packaged for families who already have that knowledge going in.
Eugene had spent years in operations and strategy roles inside the business world. He saw, up close and from the bleachers, how information asymmetry works. How the system is designed so that the people who know the rules keep winning, and the people who don’t keep losing.
Main Stage Athletics is for every family exactly where we were. A talented kid. A club they trust. A dream of playing in college. And no idea how any of this actually works.
We’re here to close that gap.
