Marble Falls student Almazan spends semester at soccer academy

CAPTION: Marco Almazan calls spending the spring in Spain a dream come true as he works toward a career in professional soccer. Courtesy photo

Marco Almazan took another step toward living out his dream of playing professional soccer.

The Marble Falls High School junior spent the last five months in Cadiz, Spain at the International Soccer Academy with the goal of making a pro roster.

“La Liga is the top division in Spain – it’s where everyone wants to be,” he said. “I played for one of their academies. It’s what I’ve been doing my whole life. I love the game.”

The academy works closely with Cadiz Club de Futbol, a Spanish professional football club founded in 1910. Soccer academies are created throughout the world with the sole purpose of developing promising youngsters in to professionals.

So for Almazan, who returned to Texas May 14, to be offered a spot at the academy was huge, he said.

“I was invited through my (Capital City) club,” he said. “We were playing in the MLS Next Fest in Arizona. A scout there saw me. I got the email a couple of days later.”

In Spain, his day began at 8:15 a.m. with breakfast then he went to a training session at 10 a.m. that included weights, video and skills.

At 2 p.m., he’d eat lunch and attend online school at Arizona State University followed by homework. Dinner was at 9 p.m. and then it was off to bed at 11 p.m.

“I feel like it was the right thing to do,” he said. “I wanted to go. Probably as every kid does, I saw my opportunity to get better and develop somewhere else and I took it.”

The 5-foot 7-inch athlete plays left wing on the Cadiz CF Integrated Academy team that included players from Canada and the U.S. At least three were from Texas. Though training was six days a week, the team competed in weekly matches.

Perhaps the most memorable win came against FC Bayern Global Academy during a tournament in Munich, Germany. Almazan had the game-winning assist to help his team earn the 1-0 victory two weeks ago to assist his team to finish 2-1 at the tournament. Cadiz CF Integrated Academy was in Germany for a week.

Almazan finished the semester with a goal and 11 assists.

The last five months weren’t all work and no play. Almazan experienced some of the fun parts of living in Spain by going to the mall and the beach and attending festivals and carnivals.

“A lot of people dress up in fancy clothes,” he said. “They do have fun and dance. People dress up and put flowers in their heads. It’s very pretty. A lot of the time, it was training. I went to church a lot.”

Almazan said he wants to return to the academy to continue to improve his skills and fulfill his dream of playing pro soccer.

“Right now we’re in talks of me going back,” he said. “I have the potential of making it out there. Right now I’m going to train for the summer in Austin. It was more than I could have ever imagined. It’s what I wanted to do since I was a little kid – go overseas and play for an academy.”

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