MISSION VIEJO : Bold Dedication Set for Soccer Facility

It won’t be the multimedia extravaganza once envisioned, but today’s ceremonies dedicating the new U.S. World Cup Soccer training facilities will be bold enough for a community that is proud of hosting the national soccer team.

Beside showcasing the just-completed $3.5-million soccer complex, the U.S. squad will be formally introduced to the community for the first time in Oso Viejo Park.

About 3,000 children in Mission Viejo youth leagues will march in their soccer uniforms to the field at 9:30 a.m., which Mayor Robert Breton said symbolizes the real theme of the day.

“It’s a natural progression from 5-year-olds playing league soccer to our national team members,” Breton said. “It’s a demonstration of the future of soccer and a chance to show that we’re as proud of our youth as we are the national team.”

A military color guard and band will perform, followed by a flip-card show by 200 children. Speeches will be made by local politicians and U.S. soccer officials, then the team will be introduced.

Originally, city staff had asked for $33,000 to present a similar but larger-scale program. However, the City Council last month scaled down the event, citing the need for fiscal austerity.

A community barbecue will begin about noon on the park’s upper fields. At 1 p.m., city officials will begin conducting tours of the clubhouse.

Members of the U.S. squad will sign autographs and pass out team trading cards. Commemorative pins similar to those passed out in 1984 when Olympic bicycling events were held in Mission Viejo will be available.

U.S. soccer officials will also display the World Cup, given out every four years to be the best soccer team on the globe. The championship tournament will be held in Los Angeles in 1994.

But long after the World Cup championships next year, the soccer field and clubhouse will be used by the city’s young soccer children, Breton said.

“These fields show how much we’re willing to invest in our children,” he said.