You can see them in a strip of beach in Miami, every Saturday, rain or shine – kicking a soccer ball around on the golden sand. It’s thick and deep. You can’t really run. Sometimes it’s just 10 players. Other times, the numbers reach 20. The rules are simple: five a side, goalkeepers get involved in the play, no offsides.
The goals fly in as the sun rises. There is always music blasting, maybe a swim at the end, and then it’s back to normal life. Remove the sand, swimming and sunrise, and it’s the kind of pick up soccer that happens anywhere and everywhere, on pitches, courts and grassy fields around the globe.
But for Nico Perea, defender for the U.S. Men’s Beach Soccer National Team – and two-time national player of the year – it’s the perfect way to stay sharp. He is one of a select few athletes in the U.S. who compete in beach soccer at an elite level. He has 34 caps for the national team, in fact, and has played in the World Cup – yes, there’s a World Cup for beach soccer – and is a mainstay at the back for the reigning CONCACAF Champions.
Still, this is a wild bunch, a mixture of ex-pros, indoor stars, and soccer-lovers – some with no apparent background in beach football whatsoever – piecing together a squad capable of competing for the United States.
“I didn’t even know this was a ‘thing’ at first,” Perea told GOAL. “But you’re telling me I can represent my country at it? It’s a dream come true.”