Before traversing the country during a 13-year pro career, before earning USL Pro MVP honors, and even before winning national titles at St. Benedict’s Prep and emerging as a U.S. U-17 national team prospect, Jose Angulo had developed a rare perspective on American soccer’s depth and potential.
That came thanks to a childhood spent watching neighbors and former pros contest lively Sunday league matches at Paterson’s packed Pennington Park. And it came playing for Colso Club, the team launched by Angulo’s late father, long-time pro José Angulo, and fellow Colombian immigrants who noticed a dearth of opportunities for young players in urban New Jersey.
“It was a very interesting time to grow up as a soccer person,” Angulo said. “You had to go search for it, or make it yourself.”
Angulo, now 37, made it pretty far. As a child, the Barranquilla, Colombia-born striker moved to Paterson’s 21st Ave. neighborhood and attended PS No. 30 (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Educational Complex). He eventually spent time with the New England Revolution and New York Red Bulls and played for teams in the USL, NASL and NISA.
A professional high point was winning the 2013 USL Pro MVP award after scoring 15 regular season goals for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. But there also were times when Angulo felt like he’d slipped between the cracks. Early passport and paperwork issues prevented a move to Europe and cut short his dream of representing the USA in the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Cup. And occasionally it seemed like his non-traditional developmental path wasn’t always embraced at the highest levels of the domestic game.
Angulo’s unique journey through the promises and pitfalls of the sport’s American ecosystem, not to mention his strong ties to North Jersey’s diverse soccer community, made him the ideal choice when New York Cosmos Head of Soccer Giuseppe Rossi was looking to make his first technical appointment.
In July, Angulo was hired as the club’s scout and manager of youth partnerships. The Cosmos, who will kick off their USL League One schedule in March 2026 at Paterson’s renovated Hinchliffe Stadium, are dedicated to identifying, signing and fielding local athletes. Angulo will be the point person for finding those players and forging fruitful relationships with nearby clubs and coaches.
It’s a fitting position for someone who once navigated that complex terrain, and who still believes there’s loads of untapped talent throughout North Jersey and the Tri-State area. It’s also an appropriate landing spot for someone who appreciates the Cosmos’ legacy. Angulo’s father, José, remained Colombian at heart yet still revered the great Pelé. Dad and son would subject their VHS recordings of Brazil’s World Cup highlights to heavy use. So the Cosmos’ return to competition, and their commitment to offering opportunities to local players, represents a gratifying full-circle moment.
“It’s surreal that Pelé was involved with the Cosmos, and now I’m working for the Cosmos. I wish I could share it with my Dad. It’s an honor,” Angulo said.
“I know how big this is. I know how much this means to the kid who’s in school right now from Paterson and thinking about soccer and thinking, ‘I have to leave to play,’” he continued. “To have it close to home, that’s opportunity. That’s hope. For a young player, there’s a chance for me to learn here, be a pro here and then from there, maybe go to Europe. It’s a pathway that has never existed here, and it’s going to be something special.”
Angulo ended his playing career in 2021 and 18 months ago, he helped organize (and coach) an exhibition match between an ad hoc team of local players and traditional Ecuadorian powerhouse Barcelona SC. The match attracted thousands to Hinchliffe, demonstrating locals’ love for the game and the venue’s soccer potential, not to mention Angulo’s administrative acumen. He’ll now be charged with funneling players toward Hinchliffe full-time.
Angulo is already on the job, scouting and identifying potential prospects while strengthening the sort of personal and organizational relationships that create genuine community and opportunity. In early August, he took some time to answer a few questions about his new position and his hopes and plans for the Cosmos as the 2026 season approaches.
What inspired you to take this position with the Cosmos and to dedicate your post-playing career to this kind of work?
JA: I’d like to think that all of these things that I’ve seen and been through starting from a young age kind of led to this. There’s a formula that’s been common around the world for 100 years. You go to South America, and it’s the normal way of doing things: you find young players from your town, your area, and you build them up.
But here in America, it’s like they’ve gone the opposite route. You want to get the two or three big stars, and that’s how you’re selling out games but you’re not connected as much to the community. With what we’re doing here, it’s something that’s never really been done before in this country: a team of mostly local guys and a lot of talented players in the area who have fallen through the cracks. I think my job is identifying those guys that aren’t getting a chance but can maybe compete at that level. It’s to help the team win and compete, but also stay financially stable.
Can you tell us more about how you’ll tackle the role?
JA: We’re going to scour the Tri-State area for players, from the age of 14-15 to the pro level. If you’re good and you’re in the area, we’re most likely going to see you at some point. It’s a mixture of leads and conversations, but it’s also just going to games. For example, I was able to go to some NPSL and UPSL games this summer, and I’m the only one there. I’m the only one watching these players at this level. There’s no scouts, nothing.
It comes to a point where these players, people just stop looking at them. Even if you look at MLS Next, where you’ve got younger players, all you see is college guys there. So it’s a wide-open market that’s not being explored. I’m out here by myself just sitting at these games. Nobody knows who I am. It brings me back to being young and my Dad saying, “You don’t know who’s watching.” I’m that guy now. I’m the one watching. It doesn’t matter the level. I’ll stumble onto a game at a park and I’ll watch. You never know.
It’s using all avenues. There’s no one way. Sometimes I do research on a guy to see what’s up. Sometimes I get in the car. I’ll get in touch with someone the player knows to see about their character, their personality. I’ll have somebody I trust give me feedback. Or I’ll get in my car and go see them in person. It’s a bit of everything.
Why isn’t this a more common approach?
JA: It’s a bit old school. Wyscout isn’t going to find you this player. You need to be in an area where there’s talent that nobody’s really watching, and I would say you need expert eyes. It takes an understanding of the landscape—understanding what the game is here, and also filtering out the money grabs.
There’s a lot of pro combines. Is there really talent there, or is it whoever pays the $150 for two days? It’s knowing the landscape and filtering out who’s doing it right, who’s doing it wrong, and getting into these communities—literally on the ground in these communities and the inner city. There’s players there, and we’re trying to do something in this area that nobody’s done before.
It obviously helps to have grown up here. A lot of the guys I’m meeting with who run this club or that club, they’re all guys I know about or I’ve seen before. I’m coming in with these existing contacts and then strengthening them.
How will this ultimately shape the squad that finally takes the field next year?
JA: It’s about finding the right balance of players who can help you in the now, but also kind of giving knowledge to these young players coming up. You don’t want young players playing against young players every day, because who’s learning from who? It’s finding a balance between more experienced pros in the area—and they’re here—just identifying those guys and bringing in a balanced roster to help these young players as well.
Eventually one or two can get sold here, sold there. I think that’s down the line. For now, it’s just identifying a lot of guys this year. These things take time.
To wrap up, can you share your best, only-in-North Jersey soccer story?
JA: It was my first day of school at St. Benedict’s. This is my freshman year. My father tells me that one of his former teammates from Colombia wants to put his son in school in New Jersey, so he’s here in Jersey and we’re going to show him the school.
When I get in the car I see a guy with all this hair and it’s like, is this guy wearing a Valderrama wig? He turns around and it’s Carlos Valderrama! And yeah we walked into St. Benedict’s Prep, which is like an old school, inner-city school. It’s all brick and in the middle of Newark. It’s kind of like Paterson—very similar city. And Valderrama walks in and you see all the soccer players from St. Benedict’s just turn around and say, “What?” That was a fun story.