If last March’s U-23 Olympic soccer qualifiers in Tampa are going to be remembered for anything, it’s probably not going to be soccer. The two most intriguing stories that week were all about freedom—one woman’s desire to let her girls free and seven Cubans who decided they weren’t going to go back home. Well, three of those defectors—José Manuel Miranda, Yordany Alvárez and Yenier Bermúdez— are still trying to make it in the world of pro ball, and finding it hard so far. Well, not “Hey, we just found out what DVDs are!” back-home-hard, but Major League-esque comedy hard. Of course, having a large support group (um, Cubans) helping you foot the bill helps.

For now, they are relying on the largess of a network that runs through Cuban and soccer communities in Miami, New York and Los Angeles… They also have the opportunity to stay in shape by playing several semiprofessional games each week. They earn $40 to $50 each per game, which Miranda said was about five times their monthly salary at the national soccer academy in Cuba.

“The Cuban community is very tight knit and very good at taking care of their own people,” said Alicia Molina, a lawyer for the nonprofit International Institute of Los Angeles who is representing the players in their applications for work permits. “This is not a typical experience of an immigrant, but it is typical of a Cuban.”

We’re going to go out on a limb and say not every Cuban who finds their way to Florida gets the same treatment. That’s why those Cubanos should just fake it and say they’re soccer prodigies fleeing Castro on their asylum papers. By default, the least they’ll get is a studio somewhere along Calle Ocho owned by some sugar cane magnate from Key Biscayne.

Cuban Defectors Adjust to a New Life [NY Times]
Image [NY Times]