Two Dedham Residents Join New England Revolution Unified Soccer Team

Eighteen Special Olympics athletes and partners, including two Dedham natives,  signed their contracts at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Monday, May 6, to join the New England Revolution's 2026 Special Olympics Unified Soccer Team, as part of the club's "Soccer for All" platform. 

The Unified Soccer Team includes players both with and without intellectual or developmental disabilities, reinforcing a message that Major League Soccer seeks to be welcoming to all players, fans, and partners, regardless of disability, race, religion, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation or socioeconomic status. The team is made up of players from Massachusetts and one player from Rhode Island.

Dedham native Amanda Ferhani is a Unified partner who has been on the Revolution Unified team for three years. Ms. Ferhani has credited her experience as being perspective-shifting, and she brought a fundraiser to Dedham High School after her experience on the Unified team. Due to her efforts, the high school hosted its first Polar Plunge fundraiser for Special Olympics, says a spokesperson for the New England Revolution Foundation.

Allison Finkel is a first-year Unified team player, and like Ms. Ferhani, is also from Dedham. Along with her skills, she stands out for her openness to connecting with other Unified partners and Special Olympics partners, says the foundation spokesperson.

This year's Play Unified season includes a home-and-away series against Toronto FC's Unified team, and an international matchup between teams from two of the three Unified hosts of this summer's FIFA World Cup. The Revolution Unified Team will host Toronto at Gillette Stadium on July 22, after which it will travel to Canada on August 15. 

Table courtesy of the New England Revolution. The roster for the Revolution Unified Soccer Team includes two Dedham residents.

Thanks to the New England Revolution for sharing this news with Westwood Minute.