There is no doubt little Nevada is a soccer star in the making as he dribbles the ball, weaves around opposition players and finally shoots for goal.
At just three years old, he is clearly a step above the other players, who are reportedly two years older than him, and enrolled in the same beginners’ league in Winter Park, Florida.
But now little Nevada has found himself without a team after police were called to his soccer game on the weekend.
Just what transpired before police arrived is being disputed by the boy’s parents, an official, and of course, armchair experts across the world.
On one side are his parents, who claim Nevada is being punished for being ‘too good’ at soccer.
On the other side, is his coach, who says he called the police himself because Nevada’s parents were being disruptive.
The supportive evidence includes videos uploaded by his parents to social media that show a little boy who is clearly a soccer star in the making.
Then there is the bodycam footage recorded by police who were called to the field.
The drama began last Saturday when Nevada was playing in a i9 Sports league game in Winter Park, Florida. According to a series of videos uploaded by his parents, the league “kicked Nevada out” of the competition because he was better than the other kids.
One such video showed Nevada playing while his father loudly cheered him on before it cut to Nevada’s mother speaking to police on the field.
“They called police on a three-year-old, ‘cos he’s too good,” his father can be heard saying as a sad and confused Nevada looks on. “They called police on a three-year-old ‘cos he had the ball too long, and no one else can get the ball. So they called the police on him.
“Every week, no one could take the ball from him, and some of the parents for the other team didn’t feel that it was fair — mind you he is a three-year-old playing with five-years-old(s),” according to another video uploaded to the Instagram account the same day.
The videos soon went viral, and caused outrage, with many social media users posting that Nevada had been removed from the competition for being “too good”. Others alleged it was because he was black.
Soon, Winter Park Police weighed in by releasing bodycam footage of their interactions with the coach who reportedly called them in the first place.
“So the kid is good, he’s great, really good,” he can be heard telling police. “What happens is, he’s very advanced compared to the other ones, so he scores a lot of goals, but he pushes the kids… so I try to tell him to stop pushing… play without pushing.”
The coach then tells police he sometimes swaps players out so they all get to play but his parents “don’t like that” and call him ignorant.
He then alleges Nevada was “pushing again” so he told the referee not to allow it.
“The parents came over, created a big scene, arguing with other parents. I just want them out immediately, get their names so I can give them a refund,” he said.
The police eventually go to speak to the parents, who dispute the version of events. The parents also uploaded further videos of Nevada playing, even asking, “Where’s the pushing?”.
News24.com.au reviewed a number of videos of Nevada playing and did not see any signs of him pushing other players.
One of the police officers is even heard saying, “I kind of want to see him play. I bet he’s good”.
By Tuesday, the police were forced to weigh in, releasing a statement about the incident, which they posted to Facebook. They eventually switched off comments, but not before several people weighed in.
“The kid has allowed 10 goals in the first half; somebody call the police,” wrote one.
“Those parents were disruptive? Lol. If that’s disruptive, then what I’ve seen at youth basketball is basically a riot,” said another.
A number of celebrities have come out in support of Nevada, including former NFL player, Robert Griffin III, who posted a video of Nevada playing on his Instagram account.
“This three-year-[old] is so good at soccer they called the cops on him,” he wrote across the video, which he uploaded along with a lengthy comment, which ended with, “Punishing a three-year-old child for being too good at a sport is ridiculous”.
YouTube sensation and child expert Ms Rachel also weighed in, telling her more than six million Instagram followers she was “livid”.
Even the sports agency founded by Jay-Z offered its support, calling Nevada a “shining star”. There are even reports Jay-Z wants to help support his burgeoning career.
Little Nevada may just have the last laugh, with his mother Martasia Griffin today launching a GoFundMe account to further his career.
“Donations will help Nevada continue pursuing soccer in a more supportive setting by covering registration fees, training, equipment, uniforms, travel expenses, and other opportunities for him to keep developing his talent. We need this support as soon as possible so Nevada can move forward and keep doing what he loves,” she wrote.
Within hours, it had raised $55,000.
Read related topics:Sport