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E-mail This StoryBrett Helm’s travel itinerary for the month of July more closely resembles that of an international rock star than a high school soccer player.
Helm, soon to be a junior at Centennial, is headed Sunday to Europe for a two-week stint with his club soccer team. Upon returning to the states, Helm and the Dallas Texans 92 Red will get a day off before flying to Arkansas to compete in the US Youth Soccer National Championships.
The Texans, the top ranked club in the nation according to Soccer America, are entered in the 33rd Helsinki Cup, an international youth tournament July 6-12. Participants in the competition will travel from 30 different countries, including Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Belarus, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, England, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Mexico, Namibia, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Spain, Tanzania, Turkey, Ukraine, USA and all the Nordic countries. A total of 800 boys and girls teams are expected to take part.
From there, the Texans will vie for world supremacy in the Gothia Cup, the largest international soccer tournament in the world. In 2007, a total of 34,200 players and 1,585 teams from 65 countries competed.
Following the conclusion of that tournament, to be held July 13-19 in Gothenburg, Sweden, the Texans will head home to enjoy some downtime. All 24 hours of it.
The globetrotting will wind down with the U.S. national tournament, which begins July 22 at Burns Park Soccer Complex in Little Rock, Ark.
Helm helped the Texans qualify for the national championships as an eighth-grader before the team ultimately settled for a runner-up finish. They are headed back to take care of unfinished business courtesy of winning the U16 National League this spring.
“Since the first time we’ve gone we have always been thinking about getting back,” head coach Hassan Nazari said. “By far it is one of the top tournaments in the U.S.”
Helm, a first team All-District 14-4A midfielder last season for Centennial, has been a key contributor to the Texans for a number of years. The team has been together since U11 competition.
“Brett brings something very, very special,” Nazari said. “He is one of our outstanding players. He has played a big part in us getting to where we are today.”
Which will surely be different than where they are tomorrow.
