During this summer鈥檚 FIFA World Cup matches, some of the world鈥檚 most elite soccer players will be joined on the field by kids 8 to 10 years old.
No, they鈥檙e not child prodigies ready to take on Lionel Messi. They鈥檙e young Dallas students selected for the World Cup Escort Program.
At Las Ranitas restaurant in Oak Cliff Tuesday night, 98 children and their families learned which countries they'd accompany out onto the field when the World Cup comes to Arlington.
The program is part of the Puede Network, a local nonprofit that helps local children grow through various programs.
Ten-year-old Nathan Gonzalez told 四虎影院 he will be attending the England vs Croatia game, and he鈥檚 feeling the pressure.
鈥淚 have a thing of stage fright,鈥� Nathan said. 鈥淎nd it's basically a stage because you're on a field, basically a stage, and you're, like, with hundreds of thousands of people.鈥�
Many kids in the Puede Network play soccer, like 10-year-old Romeo Gonzalez, who said his favorite player is Cristiano Ronaldo.
鈥淚'm very excited because it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and it's like not everybody has a chance to go to the World Cup,鈥� he said.
The network was founded 15 years ago by Adan Gonzalez, an Oak Cliff native, who was giddy with excitement Tuesday night as kids ripped open blue envelopes with cards inside showing which match they would attend.
鈥淜ids from Dallas, kids from the hood, from Oak Cliff, are going to have the opportunity to own the world stage,鈥� Gonzalez said at the event.
Nathan鈥檚 mom, Nubia Gonzalez, told 四虎影院 two of her kids will be escorting players.
鈥淗onestly, there's no words,鈥� Nubia said. 鈥淚 was thinking of what to say, how to feel, but it's just something that you can鈥檛 control.鈥�
The network has programs for soccer, boxing, coding, arts, tutoring and STEM classes. Kids can also attend bi-weekly leadership classes or attend 鈥減ower talks鈥� with local professionals.
Dallas will host nine matches during the World Cup 鈥� more than any other host city. Matches begin June 14 and run to July 14.
鈥淥n the night of the World Cup, our scholars won鈥檛 just walk onto a field 鈥� they will walk out as proof of what's possible when we trust young people to rise,鈥� Adan Gonzalez said. 鈥淭hat's what Puede means. You can, because you already are.鈥�
Dylan Duke is 四虎影院's Breaking News Reporter. Got a tip? Email Dylan Duke at dduke@kera.org.
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