ThreeSixty -

By Ari Mitchell

While a soccer game between a local Minnesota team and one from Mexico took place this summer, cultural exchanges were happening on the sidelines. A group of Brazilian boys approached some American girls kicking a ball around, and comfortably began to talk.

“Will you take a picture with us?” asked one of the boys. The girls happily agreed and then posed with their new
acquaintances. After about five pictures, they decided to watch the game together.

Scenes like this were common at the 23rd annual Schwan’s USA Cup held at the National Sports Center in July.

More than 16,000 youth ages 9 to 19 played for 1,006 teams from over 21 countries and 25 states. Blaine’s facilities are home to 52 fields scattered throughout the vicinity, make the world’s largest continuous soccer complex. Teams from as far away as Australia and Japan came to the Twin Cities for a try at the coveted Cup and to get a taste of Minnesota.

Most of these exchanges are informal. It is easy to see groups of kids who have never met but soon become familiar because they have one thing in common: their love for soccer.

“Playing so many teams from around the world was a great experience, and it was a good chance to get better,” Roger said.

One afternoon, four players from Bermuda approached a group of American girls who were watching another Bermuda team play. There were introductions, followed by questions.

“So how long does it take to get here?” a blonde teen asked a guy wearing dreads and a white t-shirt with “Bermuda” written in blue and yellow letters.

“It’s like an hour and 45 minutes to get to New York,” and another two to Minnesota.

“I thought it was farther,” the girl answered.

The Bermuda teens wanted to exchange country pins; although the American girls didn’t have any, they continued to chat.

Seeing people from different cultures connect so easily is what tournament officials strive for. “ We want the focus not only to be on soccer, but also in making it fun for the kids” said Tournament Director Teri Vogt.

After training for months, Javier Delgado and Fest, two 14 year-olds from Mexico came to Minnesota for the tourney. Their team, the “Mexican Boys”, are a special combination of teenagers from Mexico’s capital who get together specifically for this tournament.

Roger has been to Minnesota once before to play in the Schwann’s USA Cup and has nothing but great memories. “ I love Minnesota. The people have been so nice and helpful,” he said.

The first thing that they noticed, both mentioned how much cleaner and less polluted Minnesota is. “It’s so clean here. I feel that I can actually breathe,” said Javier with a huge grin.

He also loved going to Mall of America, especially Abercrombie & Fitch. “There are so many things that we don’t have in Mexico, so it is fun looking around at all the different stores,” he said. In Mexico, as in the U.S., clothes from Abercrombie symbolize elite fashion status among teenagers.

Both Javier and Roger said their favorite part was hanging out in the indoor activity center in Blaine during down time. Along with racing a friend in the giant inflatable obstacle course, the “Cool Place” was a great chance to meet new people and bond.

Some of these relationships last much longer than the week of the USA Cup’s games. A few years ago, a youth from Mexico was invited to stay with a local family while playing in the tournament, Vogt said. He immediately built a bond with his home-stay family. The following year, he came back to Minnesota and studied for a year and lived with the same family. Years later when he got engaged, he asked the boy from his host family to be his best man.

To encourage players to get beyond the soccer field, the tournament offered shuttle buses to take them to the Mall of America, downtown Minneapolis and even to a water park to help the players cool down after a long, hot day of soccer. Home stays are another important connection. Players from 16 teams stayed with local families for the week.

Most players go home with new friends. This was the case for four teenagers from Mexico City who met at a Minnesota host family’s house, where they ate cheeseburgers and brownies and connected immediately.

Later in the evening they found out their teams had faced each other back in Mexico. In fact, they live in the same neighborhood, which surprised them greatly. While juggling a soccer ball, they exchanged contact information and made plans to see each other when they got home.