In Benjamin Mussuto Molinas’s Montreal home, f\u00fatbol is a passion that runs through the veins of his family, who hails from the same homeland as soccer legends Diego\u00a0Maradona and Lionel Messi.<\/p>\n
Benjamin was only four years old when his parents introduced him to the beautiful game.<\/p>\n
Now, at 12, Benjamin carries forward this love of the sport on the pitch with Soccer Verdun, a club located in the southwestern Montreal\u00a0borough.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just love the thrill of it,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m a very competitive kid.”<\/p>\n
But his soccer seasons and opportunities to grow as a player are limited by the lack of interior soccer facilities in the borough.<\/p>\n
Many families have to drive to Nuns’ Island, Brossard and Montr\u00e9al-Nord, among other places on and off the island of Montreal, so that their children can continue playing soccer and attending practices after the summer season.<\/p>\n
Verdun doesn’t have an indoor artificial turf field nor a sports complex, and its natural grass fields cannot be used before the end of May or after early October due to weather conditions, according to Colin Danby, president of the board of Soccer Verdun and a volunteer parent.<\/p>\n
But the issue is not unique to the borough. <\/p>\n
Robert D\u2019Alesio, director general of Soccer Lac Saint-Louis, which serves the western part of the island of Montreal, wrote in an email to CBC that the lack of indoor pitches is the main obstacle to the growth of soccer in the city, although its popularity is \u201cundeniable.”<\/p>\n
Each fall and winter, available slots to rent indoor spaces are claimed within hours, leaving many clubs no choice but to scale back their programs, wrote D’Alesio.<\/p>\n
Soccer Verdun, according to Danby, must rent space that costs around $400 per hour in other boroughs. He said the club\u2019s annual budget for renting indoor facilities nears six figures \u2014 and the club has to raise membership fees to cover the costs.<\/p>\n
![\"Colin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760517794_518_default.jpg\")
Colin Danby, president of the board of Soccer Verdun and a volunteer parent, has been pushing for the borough to build an interior synthetic turf field so that players can continue to play in the borough outside of the summer season. (Submitted by Colin Danby)<\/p>\n
For over two years, Danby has been pushing for a sports complex that would include an artificial turf pitch, which would allow the extension of soccer activities in the borough outside the summer season. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s beyond soccer. It\u2019s a way to keep families and kids physically active four seasons,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it\u2019s a chance for the borough and businesses to leave a legacy that is going to \u2026 give families one more reason to want to stay living in Verdun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Impacts on player development<\/p>\n
Paula Molinas, Benjamin\u2019s mother, is one of many parents in Verdun who have to travel long distances so that their children can continue playing soccer after the summer season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While she sees the game as “not just a sport” but a “beautiful community,” she’s now considering moving her son to a club in another borough \u2014 one with an indoor pitch, which offers reliable, year-round playing conditions.<\/p>\n
Benjamin says he’s dreading the possibility of having to change clubs. <\/p>\n
\u201cOne of my friends went to another club last year and we didn\u2019t stay that much in contact. I\u2019m hoping it doesn\u2019t happen to me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to miss my friends.”<\/p>\n
St\u00e9phane Suppervielle, a parent coach whose 13-year-old daughter Salom\u00e9 and son play soccer, says driving outside of Verdun for games and practices can be a logistical headache.<\/p>\n
He says the rented indoor grounds often have to be shared, and at times, as many as three or four teams can be using the same space.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe older the kids become, the more space we need,\u201d said Suppervielle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"St\u00e9phane](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760517795_791_default.jpg\")
Parent coach St\u00e9phane Suppervielle and his 13-year-old daughter Salom\u00e9 would like to have an indoor field for their teams in Verdun. They often have to share pitches rented outside Verdun with multiple teams. (Submitted by St\u00e9phane Suppervielle)<\/p>\n
His daughter Salom\u00e9 has a long-term vision for the club. According to her, if Verdun acquires an interior synthetic field, it will not only attract more players, but it will also improve the club\u2019s financial situation, thus making it possible to offer additional resources like mental health coaches.<\/p>\n
Salom\u00e9 started playing at the age of seven and wishes there were facilities better suited to her and her teammates\u2019 needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s frustrating because our team is actually really good,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
WATCH | Candidates for borough mayor say it’s time to build a pitch:![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760517795_73_default.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Will election promises bring an artificial turf soccer pitch to Verdun?<\/p>\n
Candidates for borough mayor in Verdun agree with the local soccer association that it\u2019s time to build a new turf pitch in the area. Currently, players are forced to travel to other boroughs and use rented facilities to play when spring and fall arrive.<\/p>\n
Salom\u00e9 pointed out that having an indoor field would also make a difference in the summer, when the weather doesn\u2019t co-operate.<\/p>\n
V\u00e9ronique Desilets, parent coach for the Verdun Soccer U11 girls team, said the suboptimal playing conditions and infrastructure in the borough limit players’ ability to develop. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s kind of hard to understand why this wasn\u2019t planned in the past and why it\u2019s not a priority,” she said.<\/p>\n
![\"V\u00e9ronique](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1760517795_634_default.jpg\")
V\u00e9ronique Desilets, parent coach for the Verdun Soccer U11 girls team, sees the impact of the lack of infrastructure on the players’ development.
\n (Submitted by V\u00e9ronique Desilets)<\/p>\n
Desilets also added that not being able to play on a full-size field prevents players from practising real-game scenarios \u2014 which take place on full-length pitches.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we play competitively against other clubs, sometimes we\u2019re on turf, sometimes we\u2019re on natural fields. And the fact that we practise on turf is also a disadvantage because the other clubs have both options,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
No funds for the project, Verdun says<\/p>\n
In a statement to CBC Montreal, the City of Montreal said the lack of space for playing soccer is not unique to the borough of Verdun.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn recent years, several football clubs have expressed a desire to continue their activities year-round. This extension of football practice over time contributes to increased demand, which creates pressure on the availability of time slots in gymnasiums and indoor centres,\u201d read the statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The city also said it supports boroughs by offering funding programs for the development of sports and aquatic facilities, investing approximately $80 million annually.<\/p>\n
Verdun, meanwhile, expressed in a statement that it does not currently have the funds to build additional indoor or outdoor sports fields, and given that reality, its priority is maintaining the existing facilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are in communication with Soccer Verdun regarding the possibility of installing an artificial turf soccer pitch,\u201d reads the borough’s statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Danby said challenges can be overcome with the \u201cright investment and with political will,\u201d arguing that adding an interior synthetic field or sports complex in Verdun would pay off in the long run. <\/p>\n
\u201cOne way or another, the borough is going to see its money back by putting money back in the pockets of citizens that live here, by keeping people here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In Benjamin Mussuto Molinas’s Montreal home, f\u00fatbol is a passion that runs through the veins of his family,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":214422,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-214421","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-soccer","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214421\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/214422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}