Sarasota Paradise's 'language' brings kids together

By Madison Bierl
| 3:45 p.m. July 31, 2026

Lakewood Ranch 11-year-old Finn Morris, who has been playing soccer for six years, likes competing at the Sarasota Paradise youth soccer camp.

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For Lakewood Ranch 13-year-old Ricky Caiazzo, soccer is more than running and being active.

"Soccer is a universal language," Ricky Caiazzo said July 31 on the final day of the Sarasota Paradise Youth Soccer Camp. "Anybody can play it, and it brings people together."

Caiazzo and his twin brother, Nicky, were among 140 campers between the ages of 5 and 13 to learn soccer from the pros at Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch.

The camp took place June 1-5, July 6-10 and July 27-31 with the themes "Ball Mastery Like Brazil," "Shoot and Finish like Portugal" and "Mini World Cup Week."

Lakewood Ranch 11-year-old Rosie Ward was proud to be one of the few girls playing with mostly boys at the camp. She has been playing soccer for two years and jumps at any opportunity to get better or score goals.

"Whenever I'm feeling sad, I can just pick up a ball and start juggling," Ward said. "I'm really happy that we got to go meet the players."

Ross Hopkins, the junior academy director and U13 Junior Academy coach, said the camp is all about giving the community insight into the world of soccer.

"My sole goal is to give back to the game that gave me everything," Hopkins said. "Being able to do it from such a young age with a professional organization is absolutely everything to me."

Lakewood Ranch 11-year-old Rosie Ward is about to meet the Sarasota Paradise pro players.

Ricky Caiazzo, Nicky Caiazzo and Myles Vernovski, all Lakewood Ranch 13-year-olds, prepare to learn from the pros at the Sarasota Paradise Youth Soccer Camp.

Lakewood Ranch 8-year-old Ryker Krawczyk says the rain felt nice enough to make him twirl and dance around during the soccer camp at Premier Sports Campus.

Lakewood Ranch 10-year-old Cooper Lux says stretching makes his body less sore, which allows him to hustle more on the field.

Bradenton 9-year-old Jakob Fleming, a super fan of the Sarasota Paradise, gets his program signed by the players.

Eli Jacobs, Ryan Coppes, Ryker Krawczyk and Elijah Lucas are part of the orange team during a scrimmage at the Sarasota Paradise Summer Camp July 31.

Lakewood Ranch 10-year-old Cooper Lux and Palmetto 8-year-old Eli Jacobs show off their shirts signed by Sarasota Paradise players.

Palmer Ranch's Liam Young says soccer is his favorite thing in the whole world, after his mom.

Lakewood Ranch 5-year-old Tadeo Zacnich has no fear playing soccer, even while up against his coach Jesse Roberts.

Junior Academy Director and Under 13 Head Coach Ross Hopkins gathers shirts for campers that will be signed by the Sarasota Paradise players.

Ten-year-olds Elijah Lucas and Cooper Lux test their speed and skills while scrimmaging at Premier Sports Campus.

Sarasota Paradise forward Sean Karani signs a shirt for camper Josh Robert, who hopes to also be a pro someday.

Sarasota Paradise player Roberto Burlew (center) poses for a photo with the campers.

Palmer Ranch 7-year-old Liam Young and Sarasota 8-year-old Ethan Rose vie for the ball during an activity at Premier Sports Campus.

author

Madison Bierl

Madison Bierl is the education and community reporter for the East County Observer. She grew up in Iowa and studied at the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication at Iowa State University.