A youth soccer league in Florida has sparked controversy after an organiser called police to remove the family of a three-year-old boy who was accused of pushing other players, while his parents claimed he was being kicked out because he was too good at the game.
The incident, which took place at a public park in Winter Park, Florida, gained widespread attention after the boy’s parents shared videos of him playing soccer and footage of their interaction with police on social media.
The parents, Martasia Griffin and Don Pierre, said their son, Nevada, had been unfairly removed from the league despite paying nearly $300 to participate.
In videos shared online, Nevada is seen dribbling past other children and scoring several goals during a match. The footage also shows the family interacting with Winter Park Police officers after the league organiser requested their removal from the park.
Body camera footage released on Monday shows an organiser from i9 Sports, a nationwide youth sports organisation, explaining to officers that the boy was talented but allegedly pushed other players during matches.
“The kid is good. He’s great. Really good,” the organiser told officers, adding that Nevada was more advanced than the other children and scored frequently.
However, the organiser alleged that the boy’s parents became argumentative after their son was benched.
The organiser told police that they wanted the family removed immediately and requested their names so that a refund could be arranged.
The videos shared by the parents do not show Nevada physically contacting or pushing other players.
When officers spoke to a woman who identified herself as the boy’s mother, she said the league was unhappy with her son’s performance and had unfairly targeted him for being good at soccer.
“They’re mad at my son because he actually plays soccer. They’re literally kicking him out of this place because he’s good at soccer,” she told the officers.
She also disputed the claim that Nevada was failing to pass the ball, arguing that other children were not catching it when he passed to them.
The responding officers did not issue the family with a trespassing notice or force them to leave the public park. They explained to the organiser that they did not have the authority to remove the family under the circumstances.
In a statement published on its website, the Winter Park Police Department said the family had told officers that the game was over and that they were leaving. The department added that the parents cooperated with the officers and that no one was arrested, issued a trespassing notice or forced to leave the park.
According to the police department, the league offered the family a refund.
The incident has drawn attention to the challenges of managing competitive differences among young children participating in recreational sports, particularly when one player appears more advanced than others.
Meanwhile, i9 Sports had not responded to requests for comment from ESPN at the time of its report.
At the end of the police interaction, one officer was heard telling a colleague that he wanted to watch the young boy play, adding, “I bet he’s good.”
