Who would be able to foresee the future of football today? Without a doubt, with the vertigo in which we live daily, which imprints a furious dynamic on all aspects and activities of our society, predicting the direction of the most popular and massive sport in the world sounds impossible.
However, it is clear that from completely ungovernable phenomena, such as the spectacular career of Lionel Messi, things find a configuration halfway between the whim of fate and the decisions that are implemented by different organizations, interested in football continuing. expanding and reaching deep into lands where it has not yet done so.
In North Bay Village (NBV, two small islands located in the north of County Miamibetween the mainland and North Miami Beach) the community will be able to enjoy, towards the last third of 2024, a community sports and recreation center built by AFA and the local government on land that today belongs to the Treasure Island Elementary School (TIES) the city’s public primary and secondary school.
This is what the city’s Deliberative Council voted unanimously on Tuesday afternoon.
“There are 12 million dollars of investment,” he says. Ricardo Chervony, Vice mayor of the city, in talk with Ambit– 7 by AFA and 5 on our part, and the contract we have signed guarantees 10 years of relationship between the school, the Argentine entity and the mayor’s office, but it is designed so that we continue working, in total, 3 decades.”
Dr. Chervony does not hide the qualms that the mayor’s office had when receiving an informal proposal at the end of 2021 from AFA. He admits that they had heard things they did not like regarding the administration of the funds and the political issues of the institution.
“For this reason, the contract that we have signed between the 3 parties has an addendum in which it is clarified that NBV is committed to complying with fundamental points of the agreement, even if AFA back down, which we do not believe will happen, but we have given all possible guarantees to the community for which both Brent and I are responsible,” explains Chervony.
Brent is Latham, the Mayor, who knew how to advise the FIFA and CONCACAF. He is a fan of football – which here they call soccer – and firmly believes that the sport of the ball at the feet will be all the rage in the United States, not only due to the arrival of Messi, but even considering that the final of the Copa América in 2024 It will be played in Miami, and that in 2026 the World Cup will be hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States.
In that sense, although Latham and Chervony understood from the beginning that AFA was looking for a property where the National Team could train – and, why not, set up a football school that would allow Argentines with dual nationality to be recruited like Benjamín Cremaschi, the Inter striker who accompanies the attack on Messi – made sure that the work brought benefits to the community of this small piece of land surrounded by water.
“The completely completed work consists of 5 multipurpose fields with indoor soccer measurements, plus an 11-size professional soccer field; 4 paddle tennis courts and 2 pickleball courts (a sport on the rise in Miami, similar to paddle tennis but easier); a perimeter of less than one mile for walking and running; area with grills, picnic tables and games for children; parking for 70 vehicles including electric charging stations; and a building of almost 700 square meters in which there will be offices of AFA and NBVmeeting rooms, conference and events room, terrace with solar panels and garden, and a gym.”
The Vice Mayor recites the entire construction while pointing out each part in the approved document that was endorsed by an advisory council on planning and zoning, which gave support to the initiative.
AFA Miami property front.jpg
He also adds that the investment of AFA It will generate substantial improvements to the current school facilities, and a good part of the recreation center will be available to residents free of charge. “Our entire building area is visited by investors from all over the world who buy and sell without bringing improvements to the city. We, with this project and other similar ones that we have in the pipeline, intend that with private investment and development taxes will be lowered and people will see the fruit of what they have been paying over these years, which, for True, it has been increasingly the result of the growth of Miami.”
The 11-player court will have professional measurements and an underground drainage box, considering the intense rains that hit Miami during the wet season of the year. In addition, AFA will provide training for football teachers from NBV schools, and the training center will operate against the school’s shift.
“In the first 3 months of 2024, we will work on the demolition of an old building in the city, and we will ensure that there is no contamination in the underground layers (…) from April onwards, the construction begins. AFA estimated in 6 months.”
From a strictly financial point of view, to sign the contract AFA must put on the table a mortgage bond, in the style of a mortgage, which works as a guarantee for the investment commitment of 7 million dollars. This is common in the United States when large-scale construction projects are undertaken, and it is done through banks.
“Yeah AFA If he withdraws or does not fulfill the contract, we – Chervony emphasizes – have assured TIES a soccer field for 11 players and 5 multipurpose fields. That, with the 5 million that the city is going to invest. Then, in the worst scenario, the bond would be executed to collect what remains.”
Talking about scenarios is not pleasant in Argentina these days. However, who knows if football will continue to give us satisfaction next year. If so, the sports marketing strategy of Claudio Tapia It doesn’t have a bad color: position the brand AFA in the United States taking advantage of the last flashes of the best player in the world, locating in the city that is recognized as the capital of Latin America, the place from where, sooner or later, those who put the ball on the ground will come.
Source: Ambito
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
