When former international soccer pro David Rodriguez stood up in front of the Key Biscayne Council in June, he took on a topic that is sacred on the island: youth soccer.
Rodriguez, who played professionally for Real Madrid, claimed his 8-year-old son had experienced psychological harm at the hands of one of Key Biscayne Soccer Club’s most successful coaches, Hernan Acosta.
Rodriguez told the Independent he witnessed Acosta berating players, engaging in favoritism and displaying public disrespect towards parents of affected players.
“Physical damage leaves bruises, emotional damage leaves ghosts, ghosts that haunt a child’s personality and potential in many aspects of their lives,” Rodriguez said on June 10.
David Rodriuguez addresses the Key Biscayne Village Council June 10, 2025 outlining complaints about the island’s soccer program. The Village altered policies for the popular programs, but he maintains the changes are not sufficient (KBI Photo/Tony Winton)
Soccer has passionate fans at all levels – and Rodriguez’s complaints have ignited a firestorm at the Key Biscayne Soccer Club. Parents and some players have come forward to defend Acosta, while Rodriguez has doubled down with a complaint to the organization overseeing Florida youth soccer.
Yet, two things can be true at the same time.
Acosta’s style breeds champions consistently. His players go on to attend academies, and his U11 team won the South Florida United Cup tournament this September. Yet, some players may not thrive under that drill sergeant approach. And, as one parent said, it’s essential to remember that the persons being coached are preteen boys.
The league came under a microscope at a time when it should have been celebrating one of its greatest successes. The U15 elite team went all the way to the nationals, playing against teams connected with professional soccer clubs.
Rodriguez’s accusations were vehemently and publicly denied by Marcelo Radice, the president of the Key Biscayne Soccer Club. He defended his club and his coach in front of the Council twice during the summer. He dismisses Rodriguez as just another disappointed parent who saw his child get less playing time in the club’s most competitive level.
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“We know this parent has made it his mission to defame and discredit the club, misrepresent, and exaggerate his interpretation of what transpired during the season. He is now using the media to intentionally cause harm to our club,” Radice told the Independent.
The Village and Key Biscayne Soccer responded to Rodriguez’s complaints, adopting a new policy that prohibits private coaching sessions, and calls for all players to be on the field 50% of the time, among other measures.
But Rodriguez wasn’t satisfied. He filed a complaint with the U.S. Center for Safe Sport. That sparked an investigation by the Florida Youth Soccer Association, which is looking into the complaint by Rodriguez that his son was psychologically harmed and the parents bullied by Acosta.
A previous complaint filed by Rodriguez with U.S. Club Soccer, a national youth sports organization, resulted in no action against Acosta, Radice said.
Hernan Acosta, a Key Biscayne Soccer coach, talks to a young player at a practice session, Sept. 3, 2025 (KBI Photo/Tony Winton)
Parents Rally to Coach’s Defense
There was an outpouring of support for Acosta from parents and players at the Village Athletic Advisory Board meeting on Sept. 24. The board said it would remain impartial in the matter and let the process play out. But Board Member Kenneth Coto was vocal in support of Acosta.
“The accusations are very serious,” Coto said. “This is a fantastic coach. He’s someone that we should treasure being in our community.”
Rodriguez accused Key Biscayne Soccer and Acosta of organizing a pressure campaign, writing emails to the Advisory Board and to the Village administration. A public records request to the Village asking for the emails has yet to be fulfilled.
The Independent reached out to coach Acosta, but he did not respond. He has recently retained local attorney Kira Grossman, who also did not provide any comment. Acosta has been with Key Biscayne Soccer for 15 years.
“You know, the kid had a hard, hard life, but he came here in this country, and he’s done very well,” Radice said of Acosta. “This is his living.”
Nuria de la Fuente, Rodriguez’s spouse, spoke to the advisory board and addressed the crowd that was supporting Acosta. Afterwards, when asked what would be an acceptable outcome for the coach, de la Fuente said Acosta shouldn’t be coaching kids.
Rodriguez said several other parents complained about Acosta, but the Independent was able to speak with only one other couple willing to go on the record.
Liza Daibue said her son was promoted to the A team for U9 for the 2024-2025 season, with Acosta as the coach. He fit in with the team and the coach was satisfied with his performance, she said.
Even though everything seemed great, Daiube began to notice that for some reason, her son was benched for at least 75% of the game time during tournaments, even though he had gotten a good evaluation.
“It looked like politics or something was going on where he prefers other players,” Daiube said.
Fred Daiube, her husband, spoke to the advisory board, saying Acosta’s coaching went beyond the guidelines the community agreed upon for youth soccer.
“This is not related to only one family, he said.
Both Rodriguez’s and Daiube’s kids were moved from the A team this season to be on the B team next season. Rodriguez believes this was done in retaliation for his speaking out, but offered no proof. Fred Daiube said his child is thriving on the new team and a different coach.
New Policy
After the allegations surfaced, the Key Biscayne Soccer Club and the Village quickly pivoted, creating a set of new policies to address playing time, oversight of coaches, player evaluations and parental complaints.
“We’ll require the club to follow the policy and we will be actively engaged with our staff to make sure that they’re following the rules,” said Director of Parks and Recreation Todd Hofferberth.
READ MORE: “Dream season for dream team ends for Key Biscayne U15 Elite at nationals”
“We’re also going to focus on improving our junior academy and intramural program. That’s a focus that we want going forward.”
A playing field at the Key Biscayne Village Green, Feb. 26, 2022. The Village is suffering from a shortage of playing space that has led to some community tensions (KBI Photo/Theo Miller)
Key Biscayne has invested much in supporting youth athletics. The Village Green, purchased decades ago, was astroturfed and lights were added to maximize playing time. There are frequent conflicts about competing uses.
Recently, the Village paid to astroturf a field at St. Agnes Roman Catholic Church, and is working to get access to more playing space on Virginia Key.
The fields are used for field hockey and other sports, but youth soccer remains king. The contract is subject to competitive bidding and the winning company gets to charge parents fees to pay for program costs. It is a business, subsidized by taxpayers.
On a recent rainy weekday, parents clustered around the twin fields while coaches blew whistles, engaged kids in drills, and huddled with players to give direction.
Radice said he hopes the new policy will give parents a way to address their concerns and avoid a repeat of the public drama.
“If they want to complain about bullying, the conduct of the coach, or the conduct of another parent,” he said “We will try to find solutions.”
Tony Winton contributed to this story.
Reporter at Miami Fourth Estate
ALLISON DUBROW is a reporter-intern for the Key Biscayne Independent and Liberty City Independent. She is pursuing a master’s degree at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, focused on local accountability reporting. She has worked for the NYCity News Service. She is driven by a passion for breaking news and in-depth storytelling.
JOHN PACENTI is a correspondent of the Key Biscayne Independent. John has worked for The Associated Press, the Palm Beach Post, Daily Business Review, and WPTV-TV.