Beyond the Four Walls: How VBTC Empowered the Local Church to Seize the Moment

It started with a small goal: reaching 1,000 churches. That was it. But something told them that was too small. God was going to do more.

The team behind Victory Beyond the Cup (VBTC), an outreach designed to ignite conversation around the global soccer tournament held in North America this year, prayerfully determined that they were missing a “0.”  So the goal became “reach 10,000 churches.” 

Could they do it?

“We hit something here; there was a need we didn’t anticipate,” said Heather Reddy, who led the Cru initiative. “We heard again and again, ‘We want our church to be about evangelism, but we don’t have the resources to pursue that. Victory Beyond the Cup gave us the resources to help us get out of our four walls.’”

Now that the world has turned off its televisions, the effect of what happened in homes, churches and communities remains. Instead of hitting the 10,000 church goal, VBTC had around 77,000 pastors and another 108,000 individuals download hosting kits from its sites.

The pastor kit provided the "plug-and-play" solution churches craved: sermons, devotionals, social media graphics, and digital marketing tools. It was designed to remove administrative friction so leaders could focus on the mission.

Across the U.S., pastors and families were putting these tools to work in ways that went beyond traditional outreach. In California, Ron and Maffe Torres, members of Saddleback Church, didn’t know exactly what would come of the invites they put out in their community to watch a match.

“It was Spirit-led,” said Ron Torres, who hosted 30 people all donning Colombia’s team jerseys that the Torres family handed out. “It was spiritually satisfying; even cleaning up seemed easier than other events we’ve hosted, even our small group sessions,” Ron Torres shared. “We really didn’t need to be the ‘facilitators’ of the experience. The game was the experience, and we were more hosting an environment for the experience.”

This strategy — equipping the local church rather than branding it as an external "Cru" project — proved to be the initiative's defining philosophy. By equipping the local body to open their homes, VBTC extended evangelism beyond the church programs and into organic, relational environments.

“Ministry doesn't have to happen inside a church building; it can begin in a living room, around a shared meal, while cheering for a favorite team,” said Saddleback Church Community Partnerships Pastor Walmer Landaverde. “Through simple acts of hospitality, our members were able to reflect the love of Jesus, strengthen relationships, and create opportunities for spiritual conversations to emerge naturally.”

The numbers tell a story of reach, but the true impact lies in the barriers broken down. By empowering the local church, VBTC did more than just resource an event; it ignited a hospitality movement that continues long after the final whistle.

“What it did was show us that there’s a desire out there. We had 185,000 people engaged, and that’s just the equipping; the ripple effect is wild,” Reddy said. “Those 185,000 people had watch parties with anywhere from five to 300 people. That was the goal from the beginning. Let's use this moment to help people share their faith and testimony for the rest of their lives. 

“We’ve heard life change already happening, but the prayer has always been that this would just be the beginning.”

What’s next?

The tournament may be over, but there are always opportunities to talk about God in everyday conversations. Discover more inspiring stories of how God moved through Victory Beyond the Cup.