Although since 2021 the Argentina Football Association (AFA) and the North Bay Village mayor's office (NBV) have been following up with attempts to create a sports training centre focused on football, the project became more advanced from an announcement by Lionel Messi on June 7, after his retirement from doubt and speculation and let the world know that his future was in Miami.

"The project originally started between the mayor and the school," says Ricardo Chervony, vice mayor of the town, in an exclusive conversation with C5N, referring to the Treasure Island Elementary School, the primary school that owns the lands to be used, but after that AFA approached with the intention of association because its intention is to set up a football academy here as we call it. "

To have the property of the mentioned educational institution become a football academy and even "at the AFA regional centre for training and talent collection for its own national selection" as Chervony says, 10 million dollars are necessary and an agreement that Chiqui Tapia should sign with the school, so that it's later this one that will sign up with the Miami County Public Education System.

"AFA committed itself to setting up its administrative office at this place, as well as to building a community complex and even making paddle courts," adds the vice mayor.

The community that starts breathing football

North Bay Village is a little bit of ground of about two square miles, amidst Miami Bay, between the mainland of the county and Miami Beach, where a good share of tourism from the most unusual locations of the planet is focused.

The location of the town, as well as the fact that the project had been under way since 2018, was supposed to have been some of the variables that weighed so that AFA would have been established at the site of Treasure Island School.

Also and as the county's legislature lacks this idea, on Saturday June 24, the same local authorities called for a meeting with the community, to which C5N had access.

Around 10 a.m. about 40 people attended the detailed explanation of the whole project, including 5 football courts and about 7 multi-purpose areas, as well as a run or walk perimeter, paddle courts and other tennis courts.

Ralph Rosado, general manager of the place of the school (that occupies lands that belong to his town as well as his own) developed every aspect of the project, and this revealed that the weight of the arrival of Messi to the Inter of Miami is crucial for the concrete conduct of everything: up to last year, his efforts brought the rhythm of the usual bureaucracy, but in 2023 his county and town tighten his accelerator by integrating AFA as a partner.

To Chervony "say that Messi's arrival plays nothing in all this would be at least naïve (...) we know that his apartment here at a condo, and we believe that David Beckham and he are promoting football in this area. The construction of the new stage of the Inter, a mega project to ride on the grounds of Melreese golf course, is currently under way."

To complete a best suit for our main sport, we have also been told by the mayor of Miami, Francis Suárez, his wish for South Florida's Latino community to adopt football.

No coincidence: next year the Copa América will be played to the north of Ecuador, and in 2026 there will also be the World Cup.

Suárez has just launched his candidacy for President of the United States. It would be a half-court goal for him to have the final of the World Cup play in Miami, with his highest political capital.