Mostly all-star college, high school students competing for NC Courage in TST

CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Triangle is gearing up for an economic boost with The Soccer Tournament, or TST. The sporting event is returning to the Town of Cary and set-up is underway.

This year, the number of women's teams competing has doubled and some of those playing are from NC Courage.

NBA superstar and North Carolina native Chris Paul is part-owner of the tournament.

He tells ABC11 he's looking forward to the high-octane sporting event. TST matches start on Wednesday, June 4 and ends on Monday, June 9.

"Make sure you got your walking shoes or your running shoes so when you hear these loud screams, you want to go see this match , and you want to see this match. Everyone is just there to have a good time," said Paul.

Cary resident Alex Setzer has his tickets and is ready to see top-tier athletes.

He said, "I live right down the road. It's a great event. Just bringing everybody in from all over the world to come compete."

The competition and all of the festivities generate $9.2 million in economic revenue for our region.

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NC Courage is playing and this year, the team will mostly be made up of some all-star college and high school students.

The team won second place in 2024.

In this competition, it is winner takes all. Courage lost out on the million-dollar prize.

The team is now preparing to play again on its home turf.

"To see our home field play host to some of the greatest names in soccer history year in and year out for the last three years now has been really, really cool. And to be a part of it and get to have a team competing on the women's side is really fun," said NC Courage Spokesperson Jake Levy.

In 2024, TST drew more than 70,000 fans.