Easton Brooks was determined to pursue soccer, despite his early struggles.
CARROLLTON, Texas — Mark and Kristie Brooks, of Carrollton, say their youngest son was born to play baseball.
Mark played, their first two played, and their youngest was named after a prominent baseball manufacturer.
“The name Easton came from Easton equipment,” Mark said.
So, when Easton was finally old enough for sports, he naturally gravitated to soccer.
“We just were lost,” Kristie said. “We didn’t know anything about soccer. I’d never even been to a soccer game.”
His first time training with the local select team, there were a lot of talented kids, and Easton wasn’t one of them.
“Afterwards, I asked the coach, ‘What’s your assessment?’” Kristie said. “He said, ‘to be honest, he’s one of the worst soccer players I’ve ever seen.’”
Coach Guillermo Lopez didn’t make that comment, but he also didn’t disagree.
“He didn’t stand out in a positive way, I’ll put it that way,” Lopez laughed.
Nevertheless, Easton believed that one day he would play in Europe, at the sport’s highest level.
“I just wanted to have fun,” Easton said. “I didn’t care what they were saying. I wanted to be as good as those other kids and prove that I could do it.”
“We said we will continue to, we’ll pay the money, we’ll do everything we have to do to get you there if you put in the work,” said Kristie.
Easton upped his training, started working with coach Lopez and within a couple of years was pretty much the best player on his team.
He was so improved, he was invited to try out and then selected to play in Spain.
However, Easton is 15, and FIFA doesn’t allow minors to play internationally unless one of their parents lives in that country.
“We’ve got to move over there and let him follow this dream cause he’s done his obligation,” Kristie said. “We’ve got to meet ours. We told him we would get him there if he did it.”
So, they did. Mark stayed home, and Kristie got a job in Spain. Last year was Easton’s first overseas.
He made such an impression last season that this year, he was selected to play with a high-level professional club, Rayo Vallecano.
However, there’s been a snafu with his paperwork, so Easton is back in the United States, playing here, while waiting to rejoin his team in Spain.
When he does go back, he intends to stay to play professionally in Europe and eventually for the U.S. national team.
From the worst soccer player on the field to one of the best on the planet.
“In my opinion, he’s the ultimate example of what you can become,” Lopez said.
“It’s ok not to be good at something,” Easton said. “As long as you just love the sport and keep playing, you can gain so much from that that you won’t even realize in that moment.”
Easton said he’s not content just playing in Europe. He wants to be the best who’s ever played the game, proving that it’s in his DNA to always swing for the fences.