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Adriano Zunino noticed a gap in UF’s tailgating scene: Latino students.
Whether it was because of the music, the traditions or the conversations at the fraternities, most Latinos didn't enjoy tailgates, and some didn't even bother going at all.
Zunino, 25, and his childhood friends, Mateo Matos-Perales and Luis Felipe Pacheco, saw with entrepreneurial eyes an opportunity to build something new.
“There were definitely Latin parties, but there wasn’t much structure. … We were trying to do something more elevated,” Zunino said.
The three business partners, who were all born in Lima, Peru, have been friends since they were 14. When Matos-Perales, 26, left Peru to attend UF as a business administration student, Zunino and Pacheco, 26, began making frequent trips to Gainesville. With each visit, Zunino said, their desire to build a unique Hispanic community grew larger.
So, they took a leap of faith and enrolled at UF for their graduate degrees in information systems and operations management, calling their decision to move to Gainesville “partly because we really saw an opportunity” for entrepreneurship.
After months of planning, their idea became official in June 2022. SoCo, short for Social Community, emerged as a new kind of tailgate that resonated with their culture.
Inspired by his economist mother and father, Zunino grew up dreaming of being an entrepreneur. He also spent years competing in water polo in Peru and made history in the UF Men's Water Polo Club by bringing it to finish as the National Collegiate Club Championship runner-up.
Sports proved crucial for Zunino’s development, as they taught him the importance of teamwork in achieving a shared goal, he said. He applied this principle to SoCo, working together with Matos-Perales and Pacheco to create new events.
The group gained momentum in Fall 2022, when it started collaborating with the live event company X1 Entertainment. Zunino described that time as “a learning phase — over time, we kept improving.”
Zunino recalled SoCo’s “we made it” moment at one of its first major events in 2022, when an unexpected storm hit. Instead of letting the rain ruin the event, the team quickly set up tents to protect the speakers and guests.
Despite the weather, hundreds showed up, and videos from the event gained more than 70,000 views on TikTok. That moment proved SoCo could thrive rain or shine, Zunino said.
SoCo has since grown exponentially, bringing more than 40 people onto its Gainesville team. It also introduced a wide range of events, from tailgates to pilates classes.
The group has expanded its impact by bringing Hispanic-style parties to several cities, including Austin, New York City and Orlando, among others.
Support from brands such as Red Bull has been crucial in developing identity and reach, Zunino said.
The last tailgate it hosted, which was for the Texas vs. Florida game, took place in a Midtown parking lot in Gainesville. Zunino said Redbull provides “any assets a party might need,” such as DJ booths and energy drinks.
The mission behind SoCo stems far from a money-making scheme. What matters is creating a space for Latino students, Zunino said, and “whether we make money or not doesn’t matter.”
Now graduates, Zunino, Pacheco and Matos-Perales manage SoCo from different cities and occasionally make appearances at the events.
Despite this, they left a strong leader in charge of Gainesville’s SoCo: Felipe Rodriguez.
Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, Rodriguez joined SoCo in 2024 as project manager. The 23-year-old UF mechanical engineering senior started at Santa Fe College, where he met Zunino and the rest of the SoCo founders. After hearing about their project, Rodriguez was eager to get on board.
“I told them, ‘I want to be project manager. … It’s literally the only thing I want,’” he said.
Under Rodriguez’s leadership, the crowd at SoCo has grown even more. Juan Martin Naranjo, the 23-year-old former operations manager of SoCo and a recent UF food and resource economics graduate, said Rodriguez has helped “attract people who didn’t usually attend their events and, in turn, increased the group’s sales and success.”
“His work ethic and perseverance ensure that he’s always up to any challenge and capable of organizing,” Naranjo added.
Rodriguez’s success comes from understanding teamwork, he said. Even small tasks, like ordering decorations from Amazon, are done collectively.
“When you have a restaurant, if the owner isn’t there, it won’t run as well,” he said. “That’s why we always make sure at least two of us are at every event.”
For Rodriguez, the group has become something special.
“SoCo was like watching a family grow,” he said. “My best friends from college are because of SoCo.”
Now, the team is preparing for a busy season, with Homecoming and Halloween events in Gainesville and some even in Orlando, Tampa and Miami.
But Rodriguez doesn't see this as an obligation — he’s part of a bigger cause.
“I just want everyone to grow, and for SoCo to be a tool in their journey,” he said.
