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BiggerDavid Bellver believes soccer will displace baseball as the national sport in the Dominican Republic.
David Bellver believes soccer will displace baseball as the national sport in the Dominican Republic.
David Bellver, president of MICFootball, a Spaniard, predicted that in a relatively short time, soccer will displace baseball as the national sport of the Dominican Republic.
“In at least five years, soccer will become the king of sports in the Dominican Republic,” Bellver stated with conviction.
He highlighted what he describes as the rapid and surprising growth of soccer in the country, citing the most recent performance of his senior team in the Gold Cup as an example.
“In their first participation in this event (Gold Cup), the Dominicans lost by just one goal to a powerhouse like Mexico (2-3),” he said.
Bellver is in the Dominican Republic for the first edition of MICFootball Punta Cana at The Fields, Cap Cana Sports City, with the participation of 2,000 players across more than 100 teams from 21 countries on five continents.
This event is considered the most prestigious youth football tournament in the world and is being held outside of Spain for the first time in over two decades since its inception.
“I can assure you that MICFootball is here to stay in the Dominican Republic,” he said of an event that has been the birthplace of talents who now shine in the world’s top soccer leagues, such as Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr., Gerard Piqué, and others.
“The Dominican Republic offers extraordinary facilities for an event of the magnitude of MICFootball, in terms of sports and hotel infrastructure, in addition to the Dominican people’s passion for soccer and sports, and the government’s support,” he added.
He stated that the organization is very enthusiastic about the Dominican Republic and expressed confidence that MICFootball will contribute to the rapid development that soccer has been experiencing in that country.
Women’s Soccer
He announced that a women’s tournament will be added to the second edition of MICFootball Punta Cana.
Competing in the tournament are teams from elite clubs and academies in world football, including Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Olympique de Marseille (France), Bayer Leverkusen (Germany), FC Porto (Portugal), and Inter Miami (United States).
Also, La Galaxy (United States), Santos FC (Brazil), Club América (Mexico) and Atlético River Plate (Argentina).
Although soccer has grown immensely in DR and will continue to grow more over the years, it will never displace baseball. The talent pool for baseball on the island far exceeds that of soccer. Internationally, DR ranks in the top 10 nations for baseball. Meanwhile in soccer we don’t even rank in the top 50.
Very bold statement, but no, football will not replace baseball in the DR in the next 5 years. It will continue to grow and hopefully become one of the main sports in the Dominican Republic within a decade.