Volkswagen and U.S. Soccer raise awareness around Autism Spectrum Disorder

• During Autism Awareness Month this April, Volkswagen leverages partnership with U.S. Soccer to make two young soccer fans' dreams come true

•VW to make monetary donation to The Autism Society of Greater Orlando

Herndon, VA — Volkswagen is proud to support the advocacy efforts, research and education around Autism Spectrum Disorder in partnership with Christian Pulisic, one of the stars of the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team. To help raise awareness around autism, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is making a donation to The Autism Society of Greater Orlando and Pulisic is matching the donation.

Volkswagen was inspired by the Smith brothers—Elijah, 13 years old, and Jeremiah, 11 years old—who were diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. While many children diagnosed with autism feel overwhelmed when exposed to many stimulating senses, Elijah and Jeremiah find comfort in soccer. Elijah loves to be on the field, chasing after the ball while Jeremiah prefers to watch his older brother and the professionals play.

Though he's a global superstar, known the world over for his role at Chelsea F.C. in the English Premier League, and before that, Borussia Dortmund in the German Bundesliga, Christian Pulisic is an activist for people diagnosed with autism, having grown up with a sibling who received a late diagnosis. Pulisic's older brother, Chase, was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism, at the age of 13, when Christian was just 3 years old.

Pulisic has always been committed to using his influence to help bring awareness to Autism Spectrum Disorder. As a result, when Volkswagen told him about a family with two autistic sons who are huge soccer fans, he teamed up with Volkswagen to surprise the Smith family with an invitation to attend the U.S. Soccer Men's National team World Cup Qualifying match vs. Panama on March 27th at Orlando's Exploria Stadium. The boys received a personalized invitation from Pulisic through VW CHAMP, the VW custom telepresence robot, to attend the match, watch the team train the day before the match, and tour the team's locker room via VW CHAMP. On match day, the boys watched as Pulisic scored three goals in leading the USA to a huge 5-1 victory.

'I had butterflies in my stomach thinking about how this was going to affect them, and it was truly a special day,' said Margie Smith, Elijah and Jeremiah's mother. 'They will remember this for the rest of their lives.'

Volkswagen has been using VW CHAMP since 2021 to provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences with the U.S. Men's and Women's National Soccer Teams for young soccer fans with health challenges that may prevent them from attending sporting events in person, as well as providing exclusive opportunities to be closer to the team.

Photo credit: Volkswagen
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