A Grassroots Vision
Eddie Costa grew up in the tight‑knit neighborhoods of Fall River, Massachusetts, where the clang of street‑hockey sticks on cracked pavement was as familiar as the rhythm of his family’s kitchen. After discovering floor hockey at the Fall River PAL building on 158 Bedford Street, he turned a childhood pastime into a mission to give other youngsters the same sense of belonging.
In 2015 he launched SouthCoast Ball Hockey in nearby Swansea, creating a league that charges just $110 for ten weeks of play, playoffs included. The affordable model removes the financial barrier that kept many children, like his own father who grew up in the Sunset Hill projects, from stepping onto a rink.
Today Costa coaches the USA Men’s National Ball Hockey team and its U‑18 counterpart, guiding both squads to gold medals at the 2024 International Ball Hockey Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic, and the 2026 tournament in Slovakia. His programs now span multiple towns, offering kids a place to make friends, family and a brighter childhood.
Giving Back to the Community
Beyond the national stage, Costa serves as the ice‑hockey head coach at South Shore Vocational Technical High School in Hanover, Massachusetts, and previously led the Apponequet/Old Colony combined team. He continues to advocate for new community rinks, hoping to replicate the opportunities he missed as a boy.
The impact is measurable: families across Fall River, Swansea, Berkley and Hanover report that the leagues provide not only sport but also mentorship, discipline and a supportive network. For Costa, each victory on the scoreboard is secondary to the smiles he sees in the locker rooms.