The FIFA World Cup wasn’t the only soccer event generating excitement around Charlotte in recent weeks. A local soccer showcase gave visually impaired residents a chance to play the sport and challenge misconceptions about blindness.
About a dozen players gathered this month on a soccer field in Matthews. The players relied on verbal cues from coaches and teammates as they trained and competed during an event hosted by the group Blind Soccer Nation.
Among the participants was Jahmil Garrett-Bey, 20, who dribbled the ball across the field, his feet clad in black-and-white sneakers.
Garrett-Bey traveled from Virginia to participate in Blind Soccer Nation's training sessions and matches.
"I used to be the type of guy that stayed in the house … But I got bored, and I wanted to actually enjoy my life," Garrett-Bey said. "Just because I'm blind doesn't mean I can't come outside and enjoy everything that life has to offer."
Garrett-Bey became visually impaired at age 3 due to congenital glaucoma.
"I'm living in a world that I've never seen before," he said. "But it's just another obstacle we have to get around. Everybody has an obstacle, right?"
According to the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes, blind soccer originated in Spain in the 1920s.
Garrett-Bey says soccer appeals to him because of its ability to bring people together.
"It's my favorite sport right now for a reason. I love it. That's why I come out here and do this stuff.
“Because I want my blind community, or just anybody, to come outside and have some fun. That's what Blind Soccer Nation is about."
“It's really a community," said soccer player Kate Firehammer.
Firehammer, 23, said a combination of factors — including the rare genetic eye disease retinitis pigmentosa — contributes to her visual impairment. She hopes events like the soccer showcase help change public perceptions.
"When people hear blindness, they think it's you either can see perfectly, or you can't see at all, but it's really a spectrum," Firehammer said. "Everyone's vision is different when you're blind or vision impaired. With sports, I think people limit what blind people can do because they don't understand our capabilities and our abilities."
Antoine Craig, the founder of Blind Soccer Nation, was nearby offering advice to players as they practiced ball control.
Craig, who is visually impaired, started the organization a year ago.
"Going and teaching kids how to play blind soccer gave me a lot of joy and kind of gave me a purpose," Craig said. "So I started to lean into it."
Participants wear eye masks to ensure everyone competes on an equal playing field, since visual impairment exists on a broad spectrum. Players also rely on verbal cues and a specialized soccer ball fitted with metal casings that rattle when it moves, allowing them to track it by sound.
Craig said the sport helps expand perceptions of what blind and visually-impaired people can accomplish.
Organizers hope to host more events, ensuring the joy of scoring a goal continues to create moments of celebration long after the World Cup excitement fades.
