Soccer dreams can come true Siblings serve as example for youngsters aspiring to careers on the pitch By: Taylor Allen Posted: 10:00 PM CST Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 Last Modified: 10:30 PM CST Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 Updates

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This article was published 29/12/2023 (670 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s not easy for Winnipeggers to make it in the world of professional soccer.

It is possible — and two siblings who grew up in the Maples want to make that clear to the city’s current crop of talent.

The Marco and Melissa Bustos Winter Soccer Camp is underway this week at the Winnipeg Soccer Federation South indoor field for young players between the ages of three and 13.

Marco, a 27-year-old attacking midfielder, plays in Sweden’s top division for IFK Värnamo. Melissa, a 24-year-old attacking midfielder, has played in Chile since 2020, most recently with Santiago Morning.

The brother and sister duo has held youth camps in Winnipeg for several years now.

“The whole thing is to inspire the next generation,” Marco said this week.

“No matter what level you are, whether you’re just beginning or if you’re more advanced, I think it’s important for these kids to know that if they do want to have some sort of future in the game that it’s possible to do it coming out of Winnipeg with us being an example of that.”

“We talked about it as a family and wanted to try to give back to the community.”

“We talked about it as a family and wanted to try to give back to the community.”–Marco Bustos

They’ve also organized a three-game showcase for 35 of the best teenagers in the city. If one or two players stand out from the rest, they’ll earn the opportunity to train in Victoria in the Powered by Pacific program — a high-performance program where promising talent gets to learn from Pacific FC’s coaching staff.

Marco joined the Canadian Premier League (CPL) in 2019 with hometown Valour FC before starring at Pacific for three seasons and winning a league title in 2021.

He was a finalist for the CPL’s Player of the Year award in 2020.

As much as he enjoyed playing in Canada, Marco is determined to stay in Europe for the forseeable future. He’s under contract with Värnamo for another season.

“I’ve had to sacrifice a lot of things. Being a professional was my dream job and I can say I’ve accomplished my dream and, hopefully, I have another 10 years,” said Marco, who left Winnipeg at the age of 15 to join the Vancouver Whitecaps’ youth system.

“But if I can help one, two, maybe three kids in the years to come to get an opportunity to be a professional, that would satisfy me a lot. There are so many kids that have the talent but they don’t have the opportunity. I know not everyone’s gonna become a professional, and not everyone is going to make it to college, but sometimes a kid misses out because they don’t get that chance.”

“There are so many kids that have the talent but they don’t have the opportunity.”–Marco Bustos

The motivation for Melissa, who made her Chilean senior women’s national team debut earlier this month in a pair of friendlies against Peru (she’s elgible as their father Alex is originally from Chile), is to make a difference with females in the sport.

She played two years of U Sports soccer for the UBC Thunderbirds before turning pro. She has bounced back from two serious knee injuries to have a career year in 2023 (eight goals and 10 assists in 22 matches) with her club.

“Desiree Scott is really the only one here in Winnipeg that can really be that role model for little girls. (Earlier this week), for example, there was a six-year-old girl and the parent said, ‘We want our daughter to be around you to have a girl role model because it’s usually men or boys who are teaching the kids,’” said Melissa.

“It was definitely an honour. It’s nice to hear that. I just want the girls to have fun and know that if you really want to go to the next level that anything is possible if you keep working hard. Even though women have less opportunities than men, it’s not impossible. We may not get paid as well as men do, obviously, but it’s not impossible to play this sport and get paid for doing it.”

“I just want the girls to have fun and know that if you really want to go to the next level that anything is possible if you keep working hard. Even though women have less opportunities than men, it’s not impossible.”–Melissa Bustos

Marco and Melissa only get to make it home for the holidays but they do their best to make their limited time at home count.

“Ever since we were young, my brother and I always dreamt of doing what we’re doing now. We always practised with each other by playing in the basement of our house and running around with a ball everywhere we went,” said Melissa.

“I think a lot of it has to be credited to both of our parents for supporting what we love to do and helping with our development. It’s kind of crazy to think that two siblings are playing professionally, it’s not something you see often.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

X: @TaylorAllen31