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Canales Daily: Players and Feds Guess And Choose
With citizenship a long-term process and call-ups not a guaranteed option, players and federations must often guess before they make choices that affect the future.
Dec 31, 2008 5:03:53 AM
By Andrea Canales
Another player has turned away from the possibility of representing the United States.
This time it's Honduras who has claimed a young U.S. soccer player. Roger Espinoza, who has lived and played soccer in the United States since he was 12 years old, has been called into the latest national team camp for the Catrachos, as the Honduran national team is known.
The Kansas City Wizards player gained his U.S citizenship in 2008, so he could potentially have played for the United States. Instead, because of Espinoza's age (22), a single appearance for Honduras will tie him to that country permanently.
At that camp, Espinoza will join Ramon Nunez, a player who came to the U.S. at an even younger age than Espinoza did. Nunez was five when he arrived in the States, but through all his years in the country, he never gained citizenship, only a legal resident status.
"I'd love to play for the U.S. team — I've lived here all my life," Nunez told a local publication back in 2003. "But I haven't heard a thing from [U.S. Soccer]. If nothing happens soon, I'll have to contact the Honduran federation."
Reports out of Texas indicated that the Nunez family did not seek citizenship status, apparently expecting that the U.S. Soccer federation would grant that if the organization wanted Ramon badly enough.
Expedited citizenship for sports figures is possible, but very rare, as they require amendments to the current law. A recent one was guided through congress by a representative on behalf of some U.S. Olympic ice dancers seeking to make their partners (Olympic rules require both participants to be from the country represented, while other competitions require only one) was written to "shorten the residency requirement for 'aliens of extraordinary ability' from five to three years between the receipt of their green card and the date of their eligibility for naturalization. The amendment would apply to 'aliens of extraordinary ability' who began their naturalization process prior to July 2002 and who will be representing the United States at an international event." President Bush later signed the bill into law.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services defines those eligible for special treatment as having "extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation."
The problem in soccer is that it's hard to have documented evidence of how amazing one is at the age in which most players make a choice of which country to represent. There's also the issue that U.S. Soccer would possibly lack the political clout necessary to pass such a measure in congress. The athlete assisted by the amendment President Bush signed won a silver medal. The U.S. Men's National Team has yet to earn an Olympic medal of any color.
Some players are simply late bloomers, such as Shalrie Joseph, a defensive midfielder who came into his own playing in Major League Soccer with the New England Revolution. However, Joseph was cap-tied to Grenada, the tiny island country where he was born, before he ever started an MLS game. He accepted a call from Grenada while still a college player, because he apparently doubted he would ever be successful enough in the game to get a look from the U.S. Like Nunez, Joseph had also neglected to advance the citizenship process on his own.
Joseph's gamble against himself would come back to haunt him, as the U.S. squad was definitely interested in him only a few years after it was too late.
A similar situation was faced recently by Chicago Fire defender Bakary Soumare, but he at least had an inkling that U.S. Soccer was interested in his services. However, the citizenship process would take two years longer than Soumare was willing to wait, so he declared for his native Mali instead.
For Quavas Kirk, who at one point was pursued by Trinidad and Tobago for a camp in the lead-up to the 2006 World Cup, the lure of a possible shot at a World Cup was very tempting. Kirk eventually decided against accepting the invite, though his older brother did attend. The U.S. youth national team player hasn't really progressed in with the American squad, though, as he has been hampered by an ongoing foot injury.
Espinoza's case has a bit more in common with Kirk, since Espinoza is now a U.S. citizen. The choice made to go to the Honduran camp is either one of loyalty to his birth country, or appreciation for the interest the Honduran national team has shown towards him - interest not offered by the U.S.
But unlike the outcry over other U.S. citizens like Giuseppe Rossi, Edgar Castillo and Neven Subotic, who are suiting up for Italy, Mexico and Serbia, respectively, there has been little fuss about Espinoza's move to go with Honduras. It's not likely that this is due to an outpouring of generosity concerning where players themselves wish to play. It's probably due to the guess that Espinoza would not make the U.S. team if he turned down the invitation from Honduras.
Such guesses and gambles are made all the time. Whether it's a federation deciding to issue an invite to a player who might otherwise be lost to another country or a player deciding not to wait for a chance that may never come, fates are set in such decisions. Even inaction is a tactic that has consequences. Only time will tell if the calls were correct.
Andrea Canales is Chief Editor of Goal.com USA
Which 'lost' player do you most wish the U.S. had kept? Discuss in our forums.
Another player has turned away from the possibility of representing the United States.
This time it's Honduras who has claimed a young U.S. soccer player. Roger Espinoza, who has lived and played soccer in the United States since he was 12 years old, has been called into the latest national team camp for the Catrachos, as the Honduran national team is known.
The Kansas City Wizards player gained his U.S citizenship in 2008, so he could potentially have played for the United States. Instead, because of Espinoza's age (22), a single appearance for Honduras will tie him to that country permanently.
At that camp, Espinoza will join Ramon Nunez, a player who came to the U.S. at an even younger age than Espinoza did. Nunez was five when he arrived in the States, but through all his years in the country, he never gained citizenship, only a legal resident status.
"I'd love to play for the U.S. team — I've lived here all my life," Nunez told a local publication back in 2003. "But I haven't heard a thing from [U.S. Soccer]. If nothing happens soon, I'll have to contact the Honduran federation."
Reports out of Texas indicated that the Nunez family did not seek citizenship status, apparently expecting that the U.S. Soccer federation would grant that if the organization wanted Ramon badly enough.
Expedited citizenship for sports figures is possible, but very rare, as they require amendments to the current law. A recent one was guided through congress by a representative on behalf of some U.S. Olympic ice dancers seeking to make their partners (Olympic rules require both participants to be from the country represented, while other competitions require only one) was written to "shorten the residency requirement for 'aliens of extraordinary ability' from five to three years between the receipt of their green card and the date of their eligibility for naturalization. The amendment would apply to 'aliens of extraordinary ability' who began their naturalization process prior to July 2002 and who will be representing the United States at an international event." President Bush later signed the bill into law.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services defines those eligible for special treatment as having "extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics which has been demonstrated by sustained national or international acclaim and whose achievements have been recognized in the field through extensive documentation."
The problem in soccer is that it's hard to have documented evidence of how amazing one is at the age in which most players make a choice of which country to represent. There's also the issue that U.S. Soccer would possibly lack the political clout necessary to pass such a measure in congress. The athlete assisted by the amendment President Bush signed won a silver medal. The U.S. Men's National Team has yet to earn an Olympic medal of any color.
Some players are simply late bloomers, such as Shalrie Joseph, a defensive midfielder who came into his own playing in Major League Soccer with the New England Revolution. However, Joseph was cap-tied to Grenada, the tiny island country where he was born, before he ever started an MLS game. He accepted a call from Grenada while still a college player, because he apparently doubted he would ever be successful enough in the game to get a look from the U.S. Like Nunez, Joseph had also neglected to advance the citizenship process on his own.
Joseph's gamble against himself would come back to haunt him, as the U.S. squad was definitely interested in him only a few years after it was too late.
A similar situation was faced recently by Chicago Fire defender Bakary Soumare, but he at least had an inkling that U.S. Soccer was interested in his services. However, the citizenship process would take two years longer than Soumare was willing to wait, so he declared for his native Mali instead.
For Quavas Kirk, who at one point was pursued by Trinidad and Tobago for a camp in the lead-up to the 2006 World Cup, the lure of a possible shot at a World Cup was very tempting. Kirk eventually decided against accepting the invite, though his older brother did attend. The U.S. youth national team player hasn't really progressed in with the American squad, though, as he has been hampered by an ongoing foot injury.
Espinoza's case has a bit more in common with Kirk, since Espinoza is now a U.S. citizen. The choice made to go to the Honduran camp is either one of loyalty to his birth country, or appreciation for the interest the Honduran national team has shown towards him - interest not offered by the U.S.
But unlike the outcry over other U.S. citizens like Giuseppe Rossi, Edgar Castillo and Neven Subotic, who are suiting up for Italy, Mexico and Serbia, respectively, there has been little fuss about Espinoza's move to go with Honduras. It's not likely that this is due to an outpouring of generosity concerning where players themselves wish to play. It's probably due to the guess that Espinoza would not make the U.S. team if he turned down the invitation from Honduras.
Such guesses and gambles are made all the time. Whether it's a federation deciding to issue an invite to a player who might otherwise be lost to another country or a player deciding not to wait for a chance that may never come, fates are set in such decisions. Even inaction is a tactic that has consequences. Only time will tell if the calls were correct.
Andrea Canales is Chief Editor of Goal.com USA
Which 'lost' player do you most wish the U.S. had kept? Discuss in our forums.
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