Written by Gaby Alfaro Alvarado
Gaby Alfaro Alvarado is a junior finance and business administration major and the business manager of The Current. She is also a member of NSU’s women’s soccer team. After graduation, she hopes to become a professional soccer player and entrepreneur.
It all started around seven years ago when I was 13 years old and left San Jose, Costa Rica, on Aug. 21, 2009, to pursue my passion for sports. It was the beginning of many lonely birthdays and holidays away from family and friends.
At the age of 5, I became passionate about soccer andtennis. I remember I would always tell my dad that I wanted to be a professional soccer player when I grew up. Obviously, he did not take me seriously because I was only 5, and he believed soccer was only for men. At the age of 7, I was playing soccer and tennis with girls who were already 10. I was good at both sports because I was naturally athletic.
Eventually, I started winning awards for most improved player, best player, most coachable player and others for both sports. However, my father still refused to believe that I had potential for soccer because, in his head, soccer was still only for men.
I continued to play soccer for my school, but it was recreational because tennis was still my main focus. At this time, I was roughly 11 years old. One day, I went up to the men’s coach and told him that I wanted to play with the men’s team. I wanted to improve my skills and challenge myself. I wanted soccer to be my main focus not tennis. He said, “Yes,” and next thing I knew, I was playing soccer with the guys.
In the meantime, I was still playing tennis as well. A year after playing with the men’s team, the school got invited to go to Minnesota to compete for the Schwan’s Cup. The Schwan’s Cup is an international soccer tournament held in Minnesota. There were 25 players on the team, but only 21 could travel, so that month of training was very competitive since everyone was trying to make the roster. Thankfully, I made the roster and was the only girl on the team. I was the only female in the entire tournament, which was quite hilarious. Not going to lie, though — I had so much fun competing against and alongside male athletes.
Months after that tournament, my mom received an email from IMG Academies, which is a very well-known sports academy in Bradenton, Florida. In the email, the academy offered me a full scholarship to play sports. They had seen me play at the Schawn’s Cup up in Minnesota and believed I had the potential to pursue my sport at another level.
Next thing I knew, I was finishing my last semester at my middle school before going to the U.S. It all happened very quickly, and I didn’t really get a chance to say goodbye to my family and friends or to my country, Costa Rica. It was difficult at first; I remember spending my sweet 15 all alone in a room crying. But, as time went by, I started to adapt and understand that every sacrifice I made was going to pay off, and it has.
I would say what I miss the most, though, is spending time with my family, seeing my nephew grow and playing with my dogs. Fortunately, I still keep in contact with my friends and family, and I visit Costa Rica maybe three times a year.
