Local man aims to start indoor soccer league

Romero, the 43-year-old founder of Casa Mexico, and several soccer players are working with city officials to start a league of futbol de salon, or indoor soccer, at the Bonita Springs Recreation Complex's now-defunct hockey rink. At the moment, the rink amounts to little more than a concrete pad.

Casa Mexico is a Bonita group of about 100 people working to develop affordable recreational opportunities.

"We were talking with a group of adults, Hispanic people mostly, and they were saying there's not any activities for the people who work in the farms or construction. In Bonita, the soccer league is organized for children and teenagers. There's not space available to have an adult soccer league," Romero said.

There's no roof, no finished surface or goal posts at the seven-year-old rink that Lee County shut down about three years ago because the benches and wood began to deteriorate around the rink, city recreation officials said.

League organizers hope to improve the rink with future financial help from the city or by raising money.

While the city hopes to buy land from the YMCA to build three soccer fields this fiscal year, this would be a solution in the meantime, said Jack Campbell, Bonita's recreation director.

"There's a lot of people that play soccer out there," he said. "Until we get some more permanent fields, we're helping them out. We're trying to help them find a place for the adults to play."

Currently, there's no official place for adult soccer fans to play. Men gather at the Little League fields when games and practices aren't ongoing. In the past, adults played at the now-enclosed soccer fields at Spring Creek Elementary where the city's youth league plays.

But when the fields were locked, Hispanic players felt shut out and didn't understand why, Romero said.

"The only thing they wanted was just to have recreational activity. Hispanic families were feeling they didn't want us here. It's a misunderstanding," he said.

Another soccer option dried up at Pueblo Bonito in recent months. The basketball court at Pueblo Bonito once served as a mini-field for the farmworker community's 12 adult soccer teams with 96 players. But, for liability and safety sake, they can no longer play, said Baltazar Briceno, the former president of league.

Briceno, a 40-year-old landscaper, joined forces with Romero to start the new league because there's such a lack of recreational activities for Hispanic men.

"Latinos don't have a space to play indoor soccer, quick soccer or regular soccer. We see basketball courts and baseball fields but the Latin sport is soccer. All of Naples, all of Fort Myers and all of Boynton Beach has leagues, but in Bonita? Nothing," he said in Spanish.

Futbol de salon originates from Uruguay, Briceno said, and requires only four players and one goalie on the court at a time with five players on the bench. Quick soccer, or futbol rapido, can also be played on a hockey-sized court, he said.

Players will be required to sign a hold-harmless agreement to take the liability away from the city and likely pay a $20 fee to Bonita Springs. During the rainy season, they hope to gain permission to use the gymnasium.

League organizers hope to organize 18 teams of 10 people and count about 100 people now interested in playing. Eventually, they hope to extend the indoor soccer league, which is not yet indoors, to women and children. With an organizing meeting this week, organizer hope to start exhibition games as early as Saturday.

People interested in joining the league can call Romero at 947-0425.

(Contact Staff Writer Janine Zeitlin at 213-6036 or jazeitlin@naplesnews.com )