SARAH PELLETIER

What’s it to Ya?

Photos: Ararsa Kitaba

Football can manifest itself in many ways. For some, it remains a constant presence, while for others, it re-emerges unexpectedly. This was the case for Sarah Pelletier, a multidisciplinary designer from Montreal. After playing in her youth, football returned to her life later on, ultimately leading her to the Ringleaders community.

Creatives have a hard time describing themselves with a one line title. In your own words, Sarah, how would you describe what you do?

I definitely fall into that category of creatives who have a hard time! Multidisciplinary designer is that all-encompassing term that we use to create an air of mystery. My background is in Fine Arts, Design and Interiors and I still get to do pretty much all of it!

What does football mean to you in your life?

When I was about four or five, my mother, who was a runner, coached my park league team. It was PURE chaos. Everyone was basically on the same team and no one really touched the ball… But we were all outside! Eating oranges! Running around! I don’t think my feelings towards football have changed all that much. Being outside, running around and eating oranges (snacks, pizza, beer, etc.) are definitely a priority. To this day, the post-match beer in the Catalogna Soccerplex bar was always a highlight.

In your professional career, how have you managed to link football to your creativity?

My day job is not necessarily football adjacent, but I always make sure I have time to take on personal projects so that I can kind of stay connected to different communities. I’m a bit of a jack of all trades, so often people ask me to help with projects that they can’t quite find the right person for, and I can usually make it happen.

When someone asks you about Ringleaders FC, how do you describe it?

The Ringleaders are definitely a lot of things! Community, collective, club, platform, brand etc. I think for me it’s a space that has brought a lot of people together that might not otherwise have had the opportunity and facilitated the building of really interesting relationships; On and off the field you can ask anyone for help or advice, and you’ll get more than you ask for.

It’s also kind of a breathing space? If you need an activity (or a distraction) away from day to day life you can just play football and hang with some friends. You can talk about work, or not, get feedback and joke around. When you bring together people with different backgrounds, jobs and interests outside of football, it creates an environment ripe for learning new things and opportunities for collaboration.

For Montrealers or anyone looking to visit the city, what are your top wine bars and restaurants? I know it’s a hard choice but entertain us…

Gotta plug myself in first, but Fleur et Cadeaux and Sans Soleil (the bar in the basement) are two of my favorite spots and I am completely biased about it :) Impressive sake list and music programming by one of the partners who also runs La Rama Records.

These days I’m more of a neighbourhood dweller, and tend to seek out easygoing classics where I know what to expect; La Buvette Chez Simone, l’Express, Pumpui. I should probably get out more and try some of the new kids on the block though!

Do you watch a lot of football?

I am surprisingly not a watcher of football—at least on TV. I often feel like the odd one out whenever I end up in a coffee shop with any other RFC players. I do love a World Cup though! And while my football allegiances historically veer towards Germany, I am really happy to finally support a Canadian team on the men’s side. My allegiance has always been to Canada on the women’s side though! I made my way to Reims in France to watch Canada play the Netherlands during the 2019 Women’s World Cup. (Shout-out to Yvan Delia-Lavictoire for the company from Paris to Champagne!)

Each of the kits you’re wearing connect to a moment shaped by football. Can you give us a breakdown of each one and the memories they’re tied to?

2014 Germany World Cup Champions Jersey: I actually met Angelo for the first time one summer when I was living in Berlin in the early 2010s. My Visa was coming to an end, and I mentioned I was moving back to Montreal in the fall, and he invited me to come play pick-up on Tuesdays. It was my first time playing since I had made the switch from soccer to snowboarding full time in high school. I’ve essentially been playing on Tuesdays ever since (10+ years later). Germany then went on to win the 2014 World Cup in a pretty “striking” fashion (sorry Brazil!) And I maintained an allegiance to the Deutscher Fußball-Bund due to sheer dominance and because there was no Canadian team until very recently.

I found the Pakhtakor Tashkent 2014 Away Kit in a thrift store and I will be honest, I knew absolutely nothing about the club at the time. (Founded in Uzbekistan’s capital in 1956! And a dominant club in Asia since then.) I have no qualms admitting that I sometimes make purchases based on aesthetics, (see: beautiful “painted type” yellow stripe.) It’s been an education into Soviet era football and the Asian leagues since then!

RFC Women’s Season 1 Blackout Jersey: The first season we had a women’s only team playing in the Catalogna soccerplex winter league. What a time. Emotions ran high. Broke a sweat and made new friends. We lost every single game and ate a lot of pizza and French fries. 10/10 no notes.

FC Porto 23/24 Home Jersey: During my last trip to Europe I crossed paths with my parents for one night in Porto, Portugal. I had flown in that day and my luggage never arrived, so I took the opportunity to acquire a jersey I was already fond of– re:aesthetics. (Thanks Lufthansa!) By chance Porto was playing Portimonese at Estádio do Dragão that night, and I took my mom to the game. The stadium is beautiful. The infrastructure is equally remarkable as there is a dedicated metro station built for the stadium. Getting to and from was easy and painless even as a tourist, and there is even a direct metro line right to the airport. Incredible things can happen when you build architecture and infrastructure with public transportation and people in mind.

In sports and competition, how do you define teamwork?

I think the key to success on the field is being able to manage one's own skill, personality and expectations as well as everyone else’s; easier said than done (in sports and in life) but the field is a great way to work out some of the kinks!

I love sports (and think they are essential) for the teamwork and (life) skills it teaches people in general. Teamwork is learning how to ask for help, and competition is for learning how to push one's own limits. Plus, I suspect there are few things that bring very different people together like football, so hopefully it will continue to unite the masses (if only momentarily).

Do you have any football rituals?

I don’t think I would quite consider myself a person who can maintain any rituals haha. I work on a lot of projects at the same time, and often feel pulled in a lot of directions, and while they might be actually of use to me, I definitely haven’t mastered any. I might be tempted to say that sports in general are a bit of a meditation or break for me instead of a ritual. When I hit the field, I get some focus and a sense of ease because there is only one thing to concentrate on for a little while and it’s your teammates and the game.

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