Sergio Camargo first saw his son play organized soccer at the age of 7, and he knew right away that the boy had potential – the touch, speed and passion were all on display. He was different from the other kids.
So Mr. Camargo did what most fathers would do for a child blessed with a gift: He nurtured it, making sure his son got the coaching and competition required to keep getting better at the sport he loved most.
“He never said no to practice,” recalls the machine mechanic, who moved his family here from Colombia in 1999. “He always wanted more.”
Sergio Camargo trains daily with the Toronto FC Academy.— Chris Young for The Globe and Mail
And last summer, the young whiz – like his father, named Sergio – went off to Portugal, alone, to take a shot at turning professional. He had just turned 15.
“It's a sacrifice you have to make for them to follow their dream,” his father says.
The two-month trial with the club, Vitoria de Guimaraes in the country's north, went well. The youngster was offered a contract to train that would cover his expenses and give him about $165 a month in pocket money.
But there was a complication: Because he was still a minor, the rules of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) required that his parents move to Portugal as well. This was not a practical undertaking for a family of five, so Sergio was forced to come home to Newmarket, just north of Toronto.
The pro clubs develop the best players.— Vancouver Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi
His decision to pursue his soccer dreams outside Canada isn't surprising, considering this country's relationship with the sport. For the past month, Canadians have been fixated on the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but they have had to cheer for teams from their ancestral homelands or ones they just happen to like. Only once have they ever tasted the extra joy of rooting for a squad that wears the Maple Leaf.
Recreational soccer is massively popular in Canada with 800,000 registered players compared with 500,000 in hockey, but elite development has lagged. Canada ranks a lowly 63rd in the world, with a system built on community clubs, provincial teams and the Canadian Soccer Association, the umbrella body that runs the national team, failing to create a competitive international side.
The one time Canada qualified for World Cup play was 1986, when it failed to score a goal, let alone reach the playoffs. Ten years later, its FIFA ranking hit 40, its zenith. By 2007, however, the figure had plummeted to 103, an all-time low.
Clearly, the Canadian team has a way to go before it can be on a level playing field with the world's soccer powers. And yet now, for the first time in years, there is a hint of optimism.
Rising profile
Fuelled by immigration from soccer-loving countries, easy access to the highest levels of the sport on television and online, and the fact that it's less expensive to play and players are less injury-prone than in hockey, soccer has seen its profile rise here remarkably.
Now, the beginning of a professional soccer culture – the lack of which has long been seen as a hurdle to the proper development of players with Sergio Camargo's talent – is promising to do the same for the level of the game.
The return from Portugal may have seemed like an obstacle for young Sergio, but flash-forward a year and, rather than having his ambitions stunted, he is flourishing.
