Sometimes football has a funny way of reminding you about things you have stopped noticing.
Last Friday’s goodwill match between the TTFA All Stars and Diplo FC at the Hasely Crawford Stadium was intended to be a relaxed evening, a gathering of football people, diplomats, ambassadors and friends of the game. It came from a meeting involving Mexican Ambassador Victor Hugo Morales and senior men’s national team head coach Derek King, one I had been invited to attend.
I was happy to have played a small role, along with other TTFA staff members and the ever-enthusiastic Flavio Gonzalez, head of trade and international cooperation of the Mexican embassy, in helping bring the game to life. But by the end of the evening, I found myself thinking less about football itself and more about something Flavio said.
After the match, he spoke about what a privilege and honour it was for him to play on the Hasely Crawford Stadium pitch. Not the training field. Not Nelson Mandela Park.
Not any of the other community grounds where he had played before. The actual Hasely Crawford Stadium pitch.
It almost caught me off guard because for many of us, that stadium can become routine. We drive past it, work in and around it, host matches there and sometimes complain about what it does not have. We get accustomed to seeing it and forget what it represents.
But hearing him speak brought a different perspective.
He spoke with genuine excitement. He spoke about the history of the venue. He remembered Mexican football icons who had graced that same field — Jorge Campos with his colourful goalkeeper kit; striker Luis Hernandez with his flowing hair when Russell Latapy scored the winner in 2000; Jared Borgetti; Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez; and others who represented generations of football excellence for Mexico.
To him, this wasn’t simply grass and stands
It was a place where memories had been made. It was a similar feeling for other diplomats from Spain, Germany, Canada, Panama, Ecuador, France and others. And it made me think about how much we sometimes take for granted.
We spend so much time focusing on what we lack that we occasionally overlook what we already possess. Yes, there are challenges. There are always improvements to make. There are facilities to upgrade and systems to strengthen. But there is also history. There is an identity. There are places and moments that mean something.
Maybe we appreciate them more when we see them through someone else’s eyes.
Now let’s be honest. Mexican football operates on a level that may seem far beyond us in many respects. Their structures, investment, fan culture and football economy are built differently. We cannot pretend otherwise.
But football has always had a way of humbling assumptions. Because aspiring to something does not mean surrendering to it. There is a difference.
We should want to learn from nations like Mexico. We should want better systems, better development pathways and better standards. We should study what works and ask ourselves hard questions. Not because we want to become Mexico, but because we want to become the best version of Trinidad and Tobago football.
The gap between countries is not always measured only by money or population. Sometimes it is measured by consistency, planning and belief. And while we may never replicate every aspect of Mexican football, there is no reason why Trinidad and Tobago cannot stand its ground with anyone on any given day. We have done it before.
More importantly, football is bigger than comparisons. Friday night reminded me of that. For ninety minutes there were no titles, no diplomatic labels and no official roles. Just people enjoying a game.
Friday’s match also formed part of Mexico’s promotional activities in T&T ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. There was symbolism in that. Here was football once again serving as a bridge between cultures and people while anticipation builds globally for the sport’s biggest event.
Sometimes it is about bringing people together for something greater. We thank the Embassy of Mexico for its continued efforts and willingness to engage through football and strengthen relationships beyond the game itself. What were equally encouraging were conversations that extended beyond Friday evening.
Discussions and interest also emerged involving Spain, France and Canada, three nations with deep football cultures and countries already building excitement and investment around the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
These are football nations with rich traditions, different philosophies and decades of development.
We understand where they sit in the global landscape. But these engagements are not about comparing ourselves negatively or admiring from a distance. They are opportunities to learn, connect and grow.
